Thursday, August 11, 2022
High Yields Cannabis/Marijuana/ Weed News
  • Home
  • Cannabis Strains
  • Product Reviews
    • Consumables
    • Vaporizers
    • Accessories
  • Grow Guide
    • Climate Control
      • Cannabis Grow Lights
      • Grow Tent Fans
      • Carbon Air Filters
      • Grow Tent Heaters
      • Humidity Controllers
      • Co2 Regulators
  • Buy Seeds Today
  • Write for Us
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Cannabis Strains
  • Product Reviews
    • Consumables
    • Vaporizers
    • Accessories
  • Grow Guide
    • Climate Control
      • Cannabis Grow Lights
      • Grow Tent Fans
      • Carbon Air Filters
      • Grow Tent Heaters
      • Humidity Controllers
      • Co2 Regulators
  • Buy Seeds Today
  • Write for Us
No Result
View All Result
High Yields
No Result
View All Result
Home News

Columbia Care CEO set to net $100M-plus from Cresco cannabis merger

High Yields Team by High Yields Team
July 8, 2022
in News
0

READ ALSO

The CBD Gold Rush Is Over & It’s Great for Consumers

Colorado Marijuana Shops Are 98 Percent Compliant With ID Checks To Prevent Underage Sales, State Regulators Say

Columbia Care co-founder and longtime CEO Nicholas Vita likely will emerge with more than $100 million in cash and stock, thanks to Cresco Labs’ pending acquisition of the New York-based multistate marijuana operator.

Details of Vita’s pay package were shared in a regulatory filing in advance of Friday’s special meeting, at which Columbia Care stockholders are expected to approve the blockbuster acquisition by Chicago-based Cresco.

A compensation expert called parts of the CEO’s compensation package “atypical.”

Columbia Care didn’t respond to repeated requests for comment.

Details of pay package

Vita’s stock holdings and potential compensation include the following, according to the regulatory filing:

  • Stock valued at $95.5 million at the time of the all-stock merger announcement on March 23. Cresco’s acquisition price represented a 16% premium at the time. The deal’s initial price tag was around $2 billion, although stock prices have since fallen.
  • A change-in-control benefit valued at $12.2 million as of May 24, to be paid in monthly installments over three years.
  • Accelerated vesting of restricted and performance stock awards. The filing indicates that Vita had 15.6 million restricted stock units and 8.6 million performance stock units.

The merger, pending shareholder and various regulatory approvals, will create one of the largest multistate marijuana operators in the United States.

The combined footprint of the two companies will include more than 130 cannabis retail locations across 17 states and the District of Columbia, reaching about 55% of the U.S. population, the companies said in a news release at the time of the announcement.

Cresco CEO Charlie Bachtell is expected to become chief executive of the merged company.

Highly compensated

Nicholas Vita

Vita, who has been at the helm of Columbia Care for a decade, has long been one of the highest-paid CEOs in the marijuana industry.

In 2021, Vita received total compensation of $4.1 million, according to the company’s annual 10-K report to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The compensation included a salary of $485,753, incentives of $360,000, and a stock award valued at $3.3 million.

Vita’s 2020 compensation totaled $3.7 million, including nearly $1 million in salary and incentives, and $2.7 million in stock.

Fred Whittlesey, a marijuana compensation expert and founder of the Compensation Venture Group in Seattle, said the $12.2 million change-in-control benefit likely would be triggered by the fact that Vita won’t be CEO of the merged company.

Vita signed the change-in-control agreement in April 2019.

“Given that he has been co-founder and CEO since 2012, one should question why this agreement was created in 2019,” Whittlesey wrote in an email to MJBizDaily.

Vita will be on the executive committee of the board of directors, according to Columbia Care’s regulatory filing.

“What is atypical is for a founder-CEO who is such a significant shareholder to have any arrangements for change in control … when he’s getting nearly $100 million (in stock in the deal),” Whittlesey added.

Change-in-control agreement

The change-in-control provision calls for Vita to receive:

  • An amount equal to 36 months of his base salary and target bonus at the time.
  • Health insurance coverage for 36 months.
  • Outplacement services for one year to find a new job.

Whittlesey also noted the agreement calls for the vesting of Vita’s stock awards to accelerate at a time when many companies are cutting back on provisions enabling executives to receive the monetary benefit much sooner.

“Companies started getting pushback from proxy advisers and investors on 100% acceleration of all grants,” Whittlesey wrote.

Expert advice for a stronger shelf life

Learn the fundamentals for getting started in cannabis retail in this comprehensive guide curated by the editors at MJBizDaily with help from industry experts.

Inside the MJBizDaily Retail Buyers Guide:
  • Learn best practices for designing a cannabis dispensary.
  • Select display infrastructure that supports industry compliance.
  • Choose the right point-of-sale system for your operation.
  • How to incorporate e-commerce and home delivery.
  • And more!

 

However, Whittlesey noted, “cannabis companies are not yet subject to the same scrutiny” as other industries.

“Because so many investors can’t or won’t invest in cannabis companies, they aren’t paying much attention to them, and executive compensation is still under the radar,” Whittlesey wrote.

Jeff Smith can be reached at jeff.smith@mjbizdaily.com

 


[Original Source]

Total
0
Shares
Share 0
Tweet 0
Pin it 0
Share 0
Tags: Columbia Care

Related Posts

News

The CBD Gold Rush Is Over & It’s Great for Consumers

August 10, 2022
News

Colorado Marijuana Shops Are 98 Percent Compliant With ID Checks To Prevent Underage Sales, State Regulators Say

August 10, 2022
OG Kush: The Legendary Cannabis Strain Of All Time Reviews
News

The Biden administration defends the federal ban on gun possession by medical marijuana patients

August 9, 2022
News

Jushi and Curaleaf settle lawsuit over CFO’s move

August 9, 2022
News

Packers’ Aaron Rodgers won’t be disciplined for using psychedelic drug

August 9, 2022
News

Idaho is one of the few states without any legalized cannabis

August 9, 2022
Next Post

The CLIMB Act: How the Cannabis Industry Could Benefit

  • Trending
  • Comments
  • Latest
Plain Jane Delta 8 Review: The Best of Plain Jane CBD

Plain Jane Delta 8 Review: The Best of Plain Jane CBD

August 3, 2022
The Ultimate Dr. Dabber Stella Vaporizer Review for 2022

The Ultimate Dr. Dabber Stella Vaporizer Review for 2022

June 6, 2022
smell proof bags for weed

The 7 Best Smell-Proof Weed Bags To Keep Your Bud Stash Safe

August 3, 2022
The Best Synthetic Urine Kit to Pass Your Drug Test in 2022

The Best Synthetic Urine Kit to Pass Your Drug Test in 2022

May 23, 2022
Best Of Delta Extrax – Delta Effex Review

Best Of Delta Extrax – Delta Effex Review

June 3, 2022
Joy Organics Delta-9 THC Gummies Review

Joy Organics Delta-9 THC Gummies Review

June 9, 2022
The 10 Best Smell Proof Backpacks for Weed in 2022

The 10 Best Smell Proof Backpacks for Weed in 2022

June 15, 2022
MMJRecs - cannabis leaf

How Medical Marijuana Can Help Treat Sleep Disorders

0

Elon Musk Thinks CBD Is ‘Fake,’ But Joe Rogan Teaches Him A Lesson

0
Ice Cube Launches Own Cannabis Line Called “Fryday Kush”

Ice Cube Launches Own Cannabis Line Called “Fryday Kush”

0

Hashish and The Hermetic Brotherhood of Luxor

0

The CBD Gold Rush Is Over & It’s Great for Consumers

August 10, 2022

Colorado Marijuana Shops Are 98 Percent Compliant With ID Checks To Prevent Underage Sales, State Regulators Say

August 10, 2022
OG Kush: The Legendary Cannabis Strain Of All Time Reviews

The Biden administration defends the federal ban on gun possession by medical marijuana patients

August 9, 2022

Jushi and Curaleaf settle lawsuit over CFO’s move

August 9, 2022

Recent Posts

  • The CBD Gold Rush Is Over & It’s Great for Consumers
  • Colorado Marijuana Shops Are 98 Percent Compliant With ID Checks To Prevent Underage Sales, State Regulators Say
  • The Biden administration defends the federal ban on gun possession by medical marijuana patients
  • Jushi and Curaleaf settle lawsuit over CFO’s move

QR Code

Columbia Care CEO set to net $100M-plus from Cresco cannabis merger
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Cannabis Strains
  • Product Reviews
    • Consumables
    • Vaporizers
    • Accessories
  • Grow Guide
    • Climate Control
      • Cannabis Grow Lights
      • Grow Tent Fans
      • Carbon Air Filters
      • Grow Tent Heaters
      • Humidity Controllers
      • Co2 Regulators
  • Buy Seeds Today
  • Write for Us

© 2021 High Yields