• XPhyto Therapeutics Corp., a life sciences technology accelerator, is looking for ways to turn promising psychedelics into therapeutic pharmaceutical drugs, and recently added mescaline to its study profile
• Mescaline is illegal under U.S. federal law, but some state-centric efforts to legalize or decriminalize the hallucinogenic have launched in a manner similar to the populace effort that produced a wave of cannabis product legalization
• Mescaline has historically defied predictable outcomes by researchers, but advocates cite it as a means of successfully treating some mental health and substance abuse disorders
• A number of psychedelics production stocks saw huge gains during the past year

Bioscience industry innovator XPhyto Therapeutics (CSE: XPHY) (OTCQB: XPHYF) (FSE: 4XT) tapped into a ready market when it began the production and testing process for a rapid, point-of-care RT-PCR test system for COVID, but the Canada-based company raised eyebrows when it announced its Alberta subsidiary XPhyto Laboratories Inc., had added mescaline production to its psychedelic medicine development programs earlier this year (https://ibn.fm/zQUC1).

The small cap markets have seen the rise of several progressive psychedelics stocks over the past couple of years that further defined their sector as a potential growth area in 2020. Health Europa recently reported that Mind Medicine Inc saw its share price increase 864 percent last year, for example, and that Numinus Wellness increased 555 percent while Red Light Holland increased 300 percent, and that investors in several other psychedelic stocks saw their money double or triple during the year (https://ibn.fm/ymeR6).

The report stated that some advocates believe psychedelics have much greater potential to disrupt the antidepressant market than cannabis, which has thus far failed to arrest the growth of antidepressant sales despite expectations to the contrary.

Mescaline is listed in the United States’ federal drug registry as a hallucinogenic substance without legally recognized medicinal benefits that has a high risk of abuse, but the substance occurs naturally in some types of cactus and has been granted legal use under limited conditions pertaining to certain religious ceremonies registered by the Native American Church and in select research efforts.

And much like cannabis, which saw its star rise as state after state defied U.S. federal drug policy by approving varied uses of hemp and cannabis within their political boundaries, mescaline has begun attracting legislative attention. In California, state Sen. Scott Wiener introduced a bill this year that would decriminalize select hallucinogenics, including mescaline, in part because he said research from top medical universities indicates that such substances can have significant benefits for treating mental health and substance use disorders.

The bill passed the Senate Health Committee by a vote of 6-1 on April 14 and will now be reviewed by the Senate Appropriations Committee, according to a local CBS News affiliate report (https://ibn.fm/oWYut).

Branded the world’s “first psychedelic” in a history about efforts to tame the drug for a variety of scientific and creative purposes (https://ibn.fm/iVmhR), mescaline has defied efforts to make it useful even since a synthetic version was created. However, this in turn creates a breakthrough opportunity for companies like XPhyto if they are able to make mescaline outcomes more predictable for its users, some of whom have historically reported euphoria and artistic enlightenment while others have reported serious nausea, anxiety and “excruciating” pain, according to the history.

“We see a significant market opportunity in the production of pharmaceutical mescaline and the standardization of dosage formulations with precise, predictable and efficient drug delivery for clinical study and therapeutic use,” XPhyto CEO and Director Hugh Rogers stated in the company’s announcement. “Our goal is to develop industrial scale production processes for the wholesale market and for incorporation into XPhyto’s thin film drug delivery platforms.”

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.XPhyto.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to XPHYF are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/XPHYF

• New York-based Ideanomics redefined its operations last year to synergistically create a global ecosystem focused on the growing potential of the electric vehicle market
• Ideanomics expects its developing revenue stream to largely depend on a Sales to Financing to Charging (S2F2C) business model based on vehicle and battery sales, financing and insurance services, and EV battery charging and related energy services
• Forecasts anticipate more than a million global commercial EV sales by 2023 and growth in the global EV charging infrastructure market at a CAGR of 33.4 percent from 2021 to 2028

Global commercial electric vehicle company Ideanomics (NASDAQ: IDEX) is driving next generation solutions to energy consumption. Through its Ideanomics Mobility division — the company has evolved into a synergistic ecosystem of subsidiaries and investments in the electric vehicle (“EV”) industry.

We have a unique view across what we believe is the (‘EV’) value chain because we have operations in China, South Asia, in Malaysia, in Europe and in North America, and we have interesting subsidiaries and operations and investments in everything in the value chain from charging systems through the two-wheelers and three-wheelers, buses, trucks and even EV tractors on the agricultural side as well,” Ideanomics CEO Alf Poor said during a recent webinar on investments in the EV battery and charging markets (https://ibn.fm/A8A6h).

The Mobility Division’s focus on the EV ecosystem is Ideanomics’ primary source of revenue following a shift during the past year. Ideanomics believes it has identified a significant strategic opportunity to grow within the PRC and globally in a changing economic climate that is trending toward renewable energies and reduced use of the internal combustion engine.

The year-end report notes Bloomberg NEF estimates that global commercial EV sales will reach 1.2 million units in 2023 and that the global EV charging infrastructure market will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 33.4 percent from 2021 to 2028, achieving a $144.97 billion revenue stream.

Ideanomics is developing a Sales to Financing to Charging (S2F2C) business model that relies on three revenue channels: vehicle and battery sales; financing, leasing and insurance services for fleet customers; and EV battery charging and energy services.

Many of the company’s operations are in the development or early stage and have not had significant revenues to date. Ideanomics Mobility’s mission is to leverage its ecosystem of operating companies to use EV and EV battery sales and financing solutions to attract commercial fleet operators that will generate large-scale demand for energy, particularly through its operations in Asia at this time, operating as an end-to-end solutions provider for the procurement, financing, charging and energy management needs for fleet operators of commercial EV.

Although Ideanomics’ principal revenue sources are in China, a nation that leads global EV trade thanks largely to government support of the industry, the company notes expectations for rising EV adoption elsewhere in the world amid forecasts that associated costs will decrease in the near future.

Industry publication Utility Dive recently reported that the number of electric vehicle models available to U.S. consumers is expected to more than triple during the next three years as the industry achieves cost parity between internal combustion and EV ancillary solutions (https://ibn.fm/ZzGd1), and a February executive order signed by President Joe Biden highlighted the national leadership’s concern about finding the resources to sustain EV adoption independently of contracting supplies from China (https://ibn.fm/pnwo3).

Ideanomics expects 2021 to be a growth year after it raised about $400 million during the last half of 2020, about half of which was used to acquire Wireless Advanced Vehicle Electrification (“WAVE”) and Timios. Utah-based WAVE is a leading provider of inductive (wireless) charging solutions for medium and heavy-duty EVs, which can be embedded in roadways and depot facilities and eliminate many of the limitations and hazards of plug-in-based charging systems.

Timios, a nationwide title and escrow services provider, has been expanding in recent years through offering innovative and freedom-of-choice-friendly solutions for real estate transactions and is expected to become one of the cornerstones of Ideanomics’ Capital division.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.Ideanomics.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to IDEX are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/IDEX

• FingerMotion Inc. is made up of four business units, including a big-data insights (Sapientus) division
• Sapientus is poised to be the company’s leading revenue generator, alongside the rich communication services division
• FingerMotion partnered with Pacific Life Re-insurance, ushering it into the insuratech industry wherein it can monetize its big-data asset with a sellable product

MarketsandMarkets projects that the global big-data market size will grow to $229.4 billion by 2025, up from an estimated $138.9 billion in 2020. At a CAGR of 10.6%, this growth is driven by such factors as the increasing availability of data across organizations, knowledge of Internet of Things (“IoT”) devices among companies and government funding to enhance digital technologies (https://ibn.fm/HLiGM). The first driver can be considered a wheelhouse for FingerMotion (OTCQX: FNGR), an evolving technological company that has ventured into big data.

Founded in 2016 as a mobile gaming company that later diversified into the mobile recharge business, citing stagnation, FNGR has grown over the years thanks to partnerships and relationships with large corporations in China, including Alibaba, JD.com, Pinduoduo, China Unicom, China Telecom and China Mobile.

Presently, FingerMotion is made up of four business units: telecommunication products and services (its foundation business), SMS and MMS services, rich communication services (“RCS”) and big-data insights (https://ibn.fm/CjnW8).

Though the former two divisions have long been the company’s primary revenue source, FNGR anticipates that once it formally launches the last two units in 2021, their revenues will eclipse those of their older counterparts. Notably, FingerMotion has already launched its big data insights division, dubbed Sapientus, through a partnership with Pacific Life Re-insurance.

“In January, we made one of the most significant announcements as a company. We are very proud to announce our partnership with Pacific Life Re-insurance, in essence becoming their data provider,” FingerMotion CEO Martin J. Shen said in his presentation during the March 3 Emerging Growth Conference (https://ibn.fm/7bJBt). “We’re very excited about the deal because it not only validated the work, which we had had in our R&D phase for about two years, but also put us on track to monetize our data asset.”

Shen also noted that the Sapientus division would offer more than just data. It will focus on providing behavioral analytics, with the resultant information giving more insight into human nature itself. Combined, these elements will add value to its clients, who will initially be drawn from the Chinese insuratech industry. Later, FingerMotion will extend Sapientus’ predictive algorithms and platform to finance, healthcare and insurance, as well as other jurisdictions.

“We look to build strong forays into the insuratech space,” Shen said in a separate video update on the company’s activities in February (https://ibn.fm/OWCbd). “We believe other re-insurance companies will look to develop a similar model with us. By remaining non-exclusive and offering similar services to other companies in other insurance sectors, we believe we have the potential to be the most disruptive technology in insurance today.”

In a market fraught with companies that know how to process data but not how to draw value from it through transformation and analysis, Shen was quick to point out that FingerMotion has the edge over such firms. It transforms the data by overlaying the information with its proprietary behavioral algorithms before applying it to specific industry applications. FNGR also differentiates itself from the competition because of its access to real data from actual users.

The insurance industry in China has witnessed tremendous growth, with projections showing that it will be the largest insurance market in the next decade. The health insurance alone grew at a CAGR of over 12% from 1999 to 2019, with short-term health insurance, considered the fastest growing property and casualty insurance segment, witnessing a 47.4% year-over-year growth in 2019. However, according to Shen, this industry has remained relatively untapped.

With the Pacific Life Re-Insurance partnership having ushered FingerMotion into the insuratech industry, its future remains bright. The company can offer its big data insights platform to other insuratech firms and generate revenue. Therefore, FNGR is on track to monetize its data asset with a sellable product.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.FingerMotion.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to FNGR are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/FNGR

• Some trends in sports beverage space likely to continue even as industry recovers from pandemic
• Incorporating functional ingredients in formulations, choosing healthier drink trends could strengthen market for Splash Beverage sports drink.
• TapouT Performance is first advanced-performance drink that focuses on all three levels of physical support — activation, hydration and recovery

Not surprisingly, COVID-19 has left few markets, industries and sectors untouched; the sports drinks space is no exception, but the industry has shown remarkable resilience. A recent “Nutritional Outlook” article looked at the impact the global pandemic has had on what has remained a growing industry despite the challenges of 2020 (https://ibn.fm/3sYxQ). That growth is of particular interest to Splash Beverage Group (OTCQB: SBEV), a holding company of leading portfolio of beverage brands, including TapouT Performance drinks, a natural isotonic hydration and recovery sports drink featuring a 3-in-1 advanced formula.

“Contrary to what you might assume, not all of the disruptions [of 2020] have been bad,” reported the article, which was titled “What Could Impact the Sport Drinks Category in 2021?” Some of the trends, the article noted, could be here to stay.

Among those trends is one that had already begun before COVID-19: incorporating functional ingredients in sports drink formulations. The article quoted one beverage marketing professional, who noted that “hybrid sports drinks are designed to help active consumers fulfill performance and recovery goals by incorporating several functional ingredients into one beverage for multiple benefits. . . . Energy drinks are a common platform for hybrid beverages. There are energy drinks on the market that are enhanced with ingredients like creatine, electrolytes, BCAA and green coffee extract.”

Another transformation that is likely to stay is an increased interest in healthier drinks. “The pandemic boosted consumer awareness around health and wellness in general and the link between nutrition and health specifically,” the article observed. “With organized sports and gyms around the world unavailable for a significant portion of the year, more people are searching for ways to take their health into their own hands, . . . This includes seeking additional health benefits from their usual eating and drinking habits.”

Both of these trends bode well for Splash’s TapouT product line (https://ibn.fm/eWRfq). Available in three different flavors, TapouT Performance is the first advanced-performance drink that focuses on all three levels of physical support — activation, hydration and recovery. The exclusive beverages are formulated to restore what the body loses through physical exertion with its proprietary formula of 12 key vitamins, 68 minerals and all five electrolytes.

Specializing in manufacturing, distributing, sales and marketing of various beverages across multiple channels, Splash operates in both the alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverage segments, allowing it to leverage efficiencies and dilute risk. The company’s business strategy is to quickly develop and accelerate pre-existing brands to exit for cash events. The company’s management team has invaluable expertise and insight, and the company strives to identify brands it perceives to have highly visible preexisting brand awareness or pure category innovation.

Specifically, the company looks for brands and products that are on trend and deliver natural quality, health benefits, freshness and refreshment within their beverages. The company looks to maintain highest performance standards and focus on execution as it works with distributors and retail partners to achieve and exceed all goals. In addition, the company offers support for members of the U.S. armed forces, first responders and health-care professionals.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.SplashBeverageGroup.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to SBEV are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/SBEV

• NexTech AR Solutions Corp. closed the $14 million bought-deal short-form prospectus that the company will use for working capital and other purposes
• The company issued 2,801,500 units of the company for $5.00 per Unit
• Nextech recently launched the live holoportation feature that can beam the hologram of a person virtually anywhere in the world

Nextech AR Solutions (CSE: NTAR) (NEO: NTAR) (OTCQB: NEXCF) (FSE: N29), is a leading provider of virtual and augmented reality (“AR”) experience technologies and services, based in Vancouver, Canada. The company recently announced the closing of $14 million (the “Offering”) bought-deal short-form prospectus that the company will use for working capital and other purposes. The company issued 2,801,500 units of the company (the “Units”) at $5.00 per Unit and 100,000 common share purchase warrants, as a partial exercise of the over-allotment option amounting to the gross proceeds to roughly $14 million (https://ibn.fm/Ttwus).

The Offering was led by Research Capital Corporation (formerly Mackie Research Capital Corporation) as the sole underwriter and sole bookrunner (the “Underwriter”). Shareholders are entitled to purchase a common share at an exercise price of $6 at any time until April 8, 2023. That date could be moved up with notice subject to NexTech stock trades above $10 on the Neo Exchange for 15 consecutive trading days.

Each Unit consists of one common share of the company and one-half of one Common Share purchase warrant of the company (each whole Common Share purchase warrant, a “Warrant”). The net proceeds raised under the Offering will be used by the company as described in the final short form prospectus of the company dated March 31, 2021.

Nextech believes in creating infinite virtual experiences that engage with your communities and audiences with AR product visualization. In keeping with this innovative approach to design and development, Nextech AR Solutions Corp. recently launched the live holoportation feature in its AiR Show app. The live streaming event showcased Nextech CEO, Evan Gappelberg, featuring a live demo wherein viewers could beam his hologram into their homes. Holoportation is the transportation of a product or person from a particular location, to virtually, all around the world (https://ibn.fm/3mLVa).

Nextech acquired the AiR Show app, its seventh acquisition, from TRICK 3D in the last quarter of 2020. The holoportation technology is still going through many advancements.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.NextechAR.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to NEXCF are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/NEXCF

• Bi-partisan support seen in U.S.; Democratic party supports nuclear energy for first time in 48 years – nuclear power included in Biden’s Clean Energy Standard
• Nuclear energy is projected to increase worldwide to combat climate change
• UEC utilizes in-situ recovery (“ISR”) technology at its fully licensed projects, including Palangana, Burke Hollow, Goliad, Reno Creek
• UEC controls of one of largest historical uranium exploration, development databases in United States
• Largest resource base of fully permitted ISR projects of any U.S. based producer
• Over $110 Million in Cash, Equity and Inventory Holdings as of April 9, 2021

The U.S. Democratic Party changed its stance on nuclear energy for the first time in nearly fifty years through a party platform supporting existing and advanced nuclear and other zero-carbon technologies (https://ibn.fm/BUFwj). Nuclear energy is included in Biden’s Clean Energy Standard Policy development to address climate change with decarbonization of the electricity industry (https://ibn.fm/HUmQw).

As interest in nuclear projects increases worldwide, Uranium Energy (NYSE American: UEC), a U.S.-based uranium mining and exploration company, is positioned to benefit from increased demand for uranium through its low cost, environmentally friendly in-situ recovery (“ISR”) projects. The ISR technology is known for being a more low-cost, environmentally benign method of uranium mining than conventional technology.  UEC’s fully licensed projects include their Palangana, Burke Hollow, Goliad and Reno Creek ISR projects as well as their state-of-the-art Hobson Processing plant.

The new Democratic position marks the first time the party went on record supporting nuclear energy since the Nixon administration in 1972. Analysts following the issue believe the policy change is good news for the nuclear energy sector and advocates concerned about climate change. Other groups that welcome the change include opponents of the new renewable energy platform, concerned that excessive deployment of wind and solar capacity threatens massive tracts of land and drives up electricity costs for low- and middle-income consumers.

“What changed the Democrats’ stance on nuclear? I cannot claim any special knowledge about the drafting of the platform,” wrote Forbes contributor Robert Bryce in a recent article. “It appears that science and basic math finally won out. While vying for their party’s nomination, several Democratic presidential hopefuls endorsed nuclear energy. In addition, the new Administration’s energy plan included a shout-out to nuclear.”

Bi-partisan support for nuclear bodes well for industry innovators like Uranium Energy. UEC has used and will be using ISR technology at its fully licensed projects. The company’s resource base of fully permitted ISR projects is the largest of any U.S. based producer. These projects and the green technology they utilize have situated the company to capitalize on the world’s demand for more uranium and carbon-free energy.

Increased interest in nuclear energy has helped send uranium stocks on a rebound after a downturn that has spanned many years. UEC stock is up roughly 76% year-to-date. UEC develops and controls one of the U.S.’s largest historical uranium exploration and development databases with properties in Arizona, Texas, Wyoming, New Mexico and Colorado, in addition to projects in Paraguay and Canada. Historical exploration data has enabled the company to identify and acquire properties pre-developed by prominent energy firms, positioning UEC to profitably capitalize on rising global demand for uranium and carbon-free energy.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.UraniumEnergy.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to UEC are available in the company’s newsroom https://ibn.fm/UEC

• SRAX released unaudited financial results showing positive net income for Q4 2020, 316% YOY revenue increase, massive growth of Sequire SaaS investor analytics platform
• Sequire’s subscriber base more than doubled from 91 to 183 companies since Q3 2020
• New Sequire features include shelf registration feature, seamless data additions for non-public share increases, one-click volatility predictions

SRAX (NASDAQ: SRAX), a financial technology data analytics company, recently released unaudited financial Q4 and 2020 results with highlights that include positive net income and stunning growth of Sequire, the company’s SaaS platform that unlocks data and insights for publicly traded companies (https://ibn.fm/jvBuH).

Sequire features a unique suite of tools that helps public companies obtain valuable insights such as investor tracking, warrant management and shareholder surveys. The platform has been growing for eight consecutive quarters, topping off Q4 2020 with $10 million in bookings – almost double the $4.8 million reported for Q1 2020. With over 5 million active traders and investors, the platform’s subscriber base doubled since Q3 2020 from 91 to 183 companies.

“We are making great progress with our platform and we are seeing continued adoption of the products that we are building for issuers,” said SRAX CEO and Founder Christopher Miglino. “We had another record quarter of bookings for Sequire. In the first quarter of 2021 we have closed over $10 million in contracts. This momentum is not slowing down, and we are growing the business to accommodate this demand.”

SRAX’s ground-breaking fourth quarter is highlighted by a revenue result of $4.5 million – up 74% quarter-over-quarter and 316% year-over-year. Total revenue for 2020 went up 141% to $8.7 million, putting the company in a revenue-positive position with $200,000 in net income – a stellar result when compared to its net loss of $4.4 million in 2019.

SRAX will continue to upgrade Sequire with innovative technological improvements such as its new Shelf Registration feature that allows users to review and track their shelf registration and current shelf availability. As interest in data analytics continues to grow, SRAX ensures that Sequire will adapt to the growing demands of the market through additional features that include real time data importing, seamless data additions for non-public share increases, and timely one-click predictions that offer its user base critical insights into the increasingly volatile market.

“Our team did an amazing job in delivering a number of cutting-edge technological improvements to the platform, and they have laid the foundation for some amazing enhancements that we will bring to market throughout the rest of this year,” said Miglino. “I could not be more proud of the hard work and dedication that the team has demonstrated as our sales continue to skyrocket.”

SRAX was recently featured in the Wall Street Journal in an article highlighting the importance of data-based insights on trading activity and share ownership (https://ibn.fm/ROdNk). With markets continuing their unpredictable course, technology companies like SRAX can help bring clarity to public companies through the power of data-based insights into shareholder activity.

For more information, visit the companies’ websites at www.SRAX.com and www.MySequire.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to SRAX are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/SRAX

• Asia Broadband Inc. announced it had recorded over $1 million in AABB Gold Token sales, despite not undertaking an international marketing campaign
• The announcement follows a series of methodical steps that saw the company launch the AABB Wallet and Gold token in collaboration with developer CSHC
• The initial token release meets the criteria for a successful cryptocurrency launch per an IEEE study, indicating that AABB is on course to record higher sales

Asia Broadband (OTC: AABB), a resource company that produces, supplies and sells precious and base metals, primarily to the Asian market, recently made another important stride in its efforts to provide a standard of exchange through its AABB Gold (“AABBG”) token. The company announced it had recorded more than $1 million in sales within the first two weeks after the sales launch of AABBG on March 22 (https://ibn.fm/3GIo0).

The news was positively received as indicated by the movement of the company’s stock price on OTC Markets, which rose to a one-week high, bettered only by the combined influence of the token’s launch and the announcement that Asia Broadband had recorded an all-time high annual gross profit of $16.8 million for the financial year 2020 (https://ibn.fm/fHsKt) two weeks prior.

Importantly, the company witnessed these record sales even before embarking on an international marketing campaign, meaning that the sales are likely to soar even higher once such marketing efforts begin. Once it commences, the campaign will amplify public and investment community awareness of AABB, promote brand exposure and increase token sales and AABB wallet transactions.

Asia Broadband has taken a progressive approach to rolling out its gold-backed token. What began as a vision to become a world leader in providing a standard of exchange that is secure, transparent, trusted and of excellent quality, turned into reality thanks to the input of Core State Holding Corp. (“CSHC”), the developer of the AABB Wallet and Gold token. Following the launch, CSHC began validating token sales operations by monitoring and refining the information, as well as processing transactions.

With the validation process already complete, AABB is proceeding to implement the international marketing campaign. This implementation will happen as CSHC develops Asia Broadband’s own proprietary cryptocurrency exchange that will enable AABB Wallet users to exchange their AABBG tokens for major cryptocurrencies.

This methodical approach also permeates other aspects of the rollout. Initially, Asia Broadband is focusing on progressively expanding token circulation to the primary sales markets of North America and Europe, after which it will expand globally to other predominant and high growth market areas.

The company released 5.4 million tokens in this initial release at the one-tenth gram of gold price (about $5.60) for each AABBG token. This effectively means that the two-week period saw the company sell over 175,000 tokens. With the acceptance among cryptocurrency enthusiasts already evident, the marketing campaign will likely yield even better results.

In fact, the findings of a study by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (“IEEE”) reveal that Asia Broadband’s initial token release has the potential for higher sales. The study, which explored the indicators of a successful cryptocurrency launch, cited elements such as a high amount of total token supply and issuing the tokens in the USA, as having a positive correlation with the total sales achieved (https://ibn.fm/KzI0Q).

With AABB’s token release having met the criteria contained in the study, the company looks well-positioned to record even higher sales. The release also indicates that Asia Broadband Inc. is on course to actualize its vision of becoming a world leader in providing a standard of exchange backed by gold.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.AsiaBroadbandInc.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to AABB are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/AABB

• While more research is needed, a recent study provides some evidence that using CBD to transition from tobacco addiction holds significant promise
• Supply chain issues are the main barrier to entry to the CBD cigarette industry for big tobacco
• GRYN already owns the largest single industrial hemp for CBD farm in North America

Big tobacco companies are already making strategic moves into the fast-growing hemp industry, as they are exploring hemp-based alternatives to tobacco. To make this move, they require a very large supply of quality industrial hemp from which they can derive the targeted CBD products, more specifically quality hemp biomass and flower to make CBD cigarettes.

There is an emerging trend to replace smoking tobacco with smoking hemp flower. The goal is to ease the conversion from tobacco, with its addictive and negative health effects, to CBD cigarettes as a transition cigarette. While there is yet limited research providing enough evidence that CBD can sufficiently ease tobacco addiction, the results of one recent study provide anecdotal evidence that CBD may positively affect addiction. The study included 700 participants who were asked to inhale/consume CBD when they felt the urge to smoke. 42% of the participants were able to abstain from smoking cigarettes after one month of consuming CBD. This particular study was not conducted in a controlled environment and relied solely on the data provided by the participants (https://ibn.fm/6IVfz).

Another concern for big tobacco companies interested in the hemp space is the quality of soil, as soil contamination, caused by poor farming practices in the past, is considered an issue, primarily in Europe and the Eastern parts of the United States.

Green Hygienics Holdings (OTCQB: GRYN) addresses this problem as well. The soils on its’ 824-acre Sol Valley Ranch are pristine, which is a critical factor in supply chain requirements.

With the capability of ensuring a steady supply of quality hemp, GRYN is one of the few companies that has the ability to supply big tobacco and is set to leverage multiple growth opportunities resulting from a growing demand for hemp in North America following the entry of big tobacco companies into the market.

Additionally, Green Hygienics’ U.S. Food and Drug Administration registration as of August 26, 2020, also opens up more expansive growth opportunities for the company, allowing it to supply hemp to various industries, including tobacco.

Green Hygienics is uniquely positioned to meet the growing demand for hemp resulting from big tobacco entering the market. There are only a handful of companies in the entire industry that have the capacity to meet this kind of demand.

CEO Ron Loudoun discussed the company’s growth plans in more detail when he was featured on the Bell2Bell podcast at the end of March (https://ibn.fm/fPFMp).

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.GreenHygienics.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to GRYN are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/GRYN

• An ultra-premium cannabis grower for the medicinal and recreational cannabis markets in California, Sonoma Biologics Corp. is committed to using only organic-equivalent outdoor growing techniques to cultivate its cannabis product at a fraction of the cost of its competitors
• Sonoma Biologics’ target locations cover three well-known wine country counties, offering considerable branding opportunities
• The global market for legal cannabis is expected to reach $84 billion by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 14.3% from 2021 to 2028
• The California market for cannabis is expected to reach $6 billion by 2025 and account for roughly a sixth of all legal cannabis sales in the United States
• Sonoma Biologics’ seasoned management team is highly skilled at handling large commercial farming operations

Sonoma Biologics is an ultra-premium cannabis grower focused on the medicinal and recreational cannabis markets. The company’s business model includes acquiring additional farming/cultivation properties in the prestigious wine counties of California, as well as continuing to enter into joint ventures and revenue sharing cultivation opportunities with other landowners/farmers/vineyards. The company’s goal is to become one of the largest organic-equivalent, environmentally friendly cannabis suppliers in northern California.

Sonoma Biologics’ use of solar power in its low cost, highly efficient growth processes exemplifies the company’s commitment to having as close to zero environmental impact as possible.

The company currently holds local and state cannabis cultivation licenses for its existing facilities. Since entering the cannabis industry, Sonoma Biologics products have passed stringent California quality control laboratory testing each year. The company exclusively adheres to organic cultivation methods, reinforcing its commitment to yielding the highest quality cannabis.

Sonoma Biologics is currently prepping to certify with the State of California’s comparable-to-organic cannabis standards. The OCal Program will ensure that cannabis products bearing the OCal seal have been certified to consistent, uniform standards comparable to the National Organic Program.

Current Operations

Sonoma Biologics has been cultivating premium cannabis outdoors for the last four years, taking advantage of the favorable climate in its operating region. The company is currently aggressively expanding its model. As the California weather minimizes the need for climate control technology and artificial lighting, the company boasts a significantly lower cost of production when compared to both indoor and outdoor grow operations in areas with less suitable climates. The company pours its efforts into screening and optimizing specific genetic strains that grow the best in local farming conditions, thereby maximizing its yields and taking full advantage of the well-known benefits of the Sonoma soils.

Locations

Sonoma Biologics’ target locations span three well-known wine country counties in California: Sonoma County, Mendocino County and Lake County.

The company’s current locations in Sonoma County provide for up to two acres of outdoor cultivation (pending licensing and county regulations).

The company has a Mendocino joint venture (“JV”) agreement, which, when completed, will expand its overall cannabis related assets and operations. The joint venture provides the company with additional licensed cultivation, licensed nursery operation, potential dispensary (pending licensing) and employees.

Manufacturing

Highlights of the company’s manufacturing capabilities with the JV include:

• An existing 5,000 square foot warehouse currently being built out to facilitate manufacturing and distribution and
• Additional proposed facilities to manufacture cannabis-related products.

With applications for manufacturing currently in process, these facilities offer further scalability opportunities for the company. Additionally, the Anderson Valley location can intake surplus cannabis from numerous licensed farms in the region and focus on “onsite” and “managed” streams for superior economics.

Investing in California Cannabis

Sonoma Biologics is currently accepting investments from accredited investors under Rule 506(c) of Regulation D. The minimum investment amount is $5,000 per investor, with the overall goal of raising $10 million. The company is also preparing a Reg A+ filing with the SEC for summer 2021. In alignment with its environmentally low impact business strategy, the company has created a streamlined, completely paperless online subscription process for investors.

The company offers those looking to invest in California-grown cannabis the opportunity to invest at an attractive valuation. Sonoma Biologics’ operations are large-scale, low-cost and managed by industry leaders with experience in large-scale farming, making the company an attractive investment opportunity in the expanding cannabis market in California and worldwide.

The global legal cannabis market is estimated to reach $84 billion by 2028, expanding at a CAGR of 14.3% from 2021 to 2028 (https://ibn.fm/xSpyM). Of the $24.6 billion in global cannabis industry revenue reported in 2020, 60.3% was attributed to the recreational adult-use segment. Furthermore, 91.1% of the revenue can be attributed to North America, spurred by early legalization of medical and recreational cannabis in a number of jurisdictions (https://ibn.fm/3Nn42).

The California market for cannabis is expected to reach $6 billion by 2025 and account for roughly a sixth of all legal cannabis sales in the United States (https://ibn.fm/ugi3q).

Management Team

Paul Caracciolo is the Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Sonoma Biologics Corp. He has a Master’s in Biochemistry from the University of Colorado. After obtaining his degree, he developed human-grade biopharmaceuticals for a company that was eventually acquired by Amgen. Mr. Caracciolo has spent much of his career in the health care industry, holding positions such as Chief Technology Officer for Dignity Health, Duke University Health System and Stanford’s Hospitals and Clinics. In 2008, Mr. Caracciolo and his wife, Margaret, founded Mill Station Vineyards. Mill Station spans 8.5 acres of ultra-premium Pinot Noir grapes, sold and used in some of the most coveted Pinot Noir blends in the Russian River Valley.

Hal Reuling is the owner of the Anderson Valley Property. He has a long history of real estate development and management projects, from inception to realization. He began his career as a general contractor in Colorado, establishing Bluefootprint Construction and specializing in single-family and custom-built homes. Mr. Reuling’s next venture took him to Florida, where he developed raw land parcels into subdivisions. In 2007, he moved to Northern California to capitalize on property development, including that of the cannabis industry. Durango Organics approached Mr. Reuling in 2015 to design and build a 20,000 square foot fully integrated cultivation facility. More recently, he developed a 110-acre, 11-lot cultivation site in Southern Colorado. He purchased the Anderson Valley Property in 2016 as California began passing cannabis laws. Now, it is being used for co-developing into cultivation, nursery and manufacturing.

Directors

Alexander Somjen, Director, has extensive experience serving as an officer and director of publicly listed and privately held companies. Since December 2019, he has served as President of Hollister Cannabis Inc., a diversified, multi-state cannabis company whose securities are quoted on the Canadian Securities Exchange (“CSE”) and the OTC Pink Market maintained by OTC Markets. Hollister provides manufacturing and white label services to help build new brands and support influencers and is also involved with the manufacturing of various cannabis related products (such as pre rolls, capsules and vape formulation). Additionally, since January 2018, he served as President and CEO of Global Care Capital Inc. (formerly Rescinco Capital Partners Inc.), whose securities are quoted on the CSE and the OTC Pink Market. Global Care Capital is a global investment company which specializes in providing early-stage financing to private and public companies. Global Care Capital also has a sector focus on cannabis pharmaceutical opportunities. Mr. Somjen was Vice President of Capital Structure Products at Desjardins Capital Markets from January 2015 to January 2018, where he served as the co-head of the Capital Structure Products desk and advised issuers (namely banks) on subordinated debt and hybrid and preferred share markets. He held other roles with Desjardins Capital Markets from January 2008 to January 2015, including serving as an associate in the fixed income group (January 2012 to January 2015) and as a trader in the fixed income group (January 2008 to January 2012). Mr. Somjen received a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Toronto and is working to obtain an Executive MBA from the Instituto de Empresa Business School (“IE”) in Madrid, Spain.

Robert Metcalfe, Director, has been a partner at the law firm of Metcalfe, Blainey & Burns LLP since 2001. Prior to that he was a senior partner with the law firm of Lang Michener LLP for 20 years. He is the former President and Chief Executive Officer of Armadale Properties and counsel to all the Armadale Group of Companies, which boasts significant holdings across numerous industries including finance, construction of office buildings, airport ownership and management, land development and automotive dealerships, as well as newspaper publishing, radio and television stations. Mr. Metcalfe was a director of Canada Lands Company Ltd., one of the largest real estate corporations in Canada, and was a director and Chairman of the Board of CN Tower Ltd., the tallest communications structure in the world. Throughout his career, Mr. Metcalfe has served as a director of numerous public and private corporations and currently serves as director of publicly listed companies Gran Colombia Gold Corp., (Director and Chairman of the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee, as well as a member of the Audit Committee); Xinergy Corp. (Lead Director and Chairman of the Audit Committee); Alberta Oil Sands (Director and Chairman of the Board); Agility Health Inc. (Chairman of the Compensation Committee and member of the Audit Committee); and Ivernia Inc. (Member of the Audit Committee, Member of the Corporate Governance Committee and Chairman of the Compensation Committee). As a director and shareholder, Mr. Metcalfe has been engaged in numerous acquisitions, divestitures, corporate financing and corporate improvements, as well as serving on special committees across many sectors. He is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors and a member in good standing of the Law Society of Upper Canada.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.OwnSonomaBiologics.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Sonoma are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/Sonoma