Cigarette Maker Imperial Bets on Medical Cannabis
June 28 2018 - 11:00AM
Dow Jones News
By Saabira Chaudhuri
LONDON -- Imperial Brands PLC, the owner of Winston and Maverick
cigarettes, bought a minority stake in Oxford Cannabinoid
Technologies, a U.K.-based startup focused on research into medical
uses of cannabis.
The investment marks the latest move by the world's biggest
tobacco and alcohol companies to explore opportunities from the
widening acceptance of the drug.
The London-based company, formerly known as Imperial Tobacco, is
contributing about GBP10 million ($13.1 million) in a funding round
for the firm, according to a person familiar with the deal. The
money will be used to research how cannabinoids can be used to
treat conditions including pain, inflammation, cancer and
neurological disorders. Cannabinoids are the chemical constituents
of cannabis.
Cowen analyst Vivien Azer described the investment as "the most
significant move among the global tobacco players in the cannabis
industry to date."
As a number of U.S. states and other countries have legalized
cannabis use or liberalized regulation, tobacco and alcohol
industry executives have viewed the drug as a potential competitor
to their own products. Canada recently moved to legalize
recreational marijuana. California in January implemented new rules
allowing recreational marijuana sales and the drug's commercial
regulation.
Imperial said its interest in cannabis is limited to medical
uses. The company's chief development officer, Matthew Phillips,
said the deal would help Imperial build a deeper understanding of
the medical cannabis market.
Heineken NV on Tuesday said its Lagunitas beer brand would this
month launch a new line of nonalcoholic sparkling water in
California, infused with tetrahydrocannabinol and a combination of
THC and cannabidiol. Both are cannabinoids present in cannabis. The
company promises "the chill of sun-grown cannabis."
Last year, Constellation Brands Inc., the U.S. distributor of
Modelo and Corona, took a stake in a Canadian marijuana company,
and said it plans to work with the grower, Canopy Growth Corp., to
develop and market cannabis-infused beverages.
Write to Saabira Chaudhuri at saabira.chaudhuri@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 28, 2018 11:45 ET (15:45 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2018 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Imperial Brands (LSE:IMB)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2024 to May 2024
Imperial Brands (LSE:IMB)
Historical Stock Chart
From May 2023 to May 2024
