RIV Capital closes on previously announced investment with the Hawthorne Collective

The cannabis investment firm receives a substantial injection of funds to fuel its growth

RIV Capital Inc., an operating and branding platform that aims to acquire, invest in and develop US cannabis companies, recently announced that it has finally closed the previously announced arrangement with The Hawthorne Collective, a cannabis-focused subsidiary of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company. This transaction includes a $150 million unsecured convertible promissory note issued by RIV Capital to Hawthorn.

Now that the investment has been fully formalized, it is stipulated that RIV Capital will be credited with a $150 million capital injection. This money will be used for both legal and general corporate purposes. The company’s intention is to accelerate the launch and expansion of its brand platform and cannabis operation in the US, something that this amount of money will make much easier to achieve. Under the terms of the investment, RIV Capital is now also established as The Hawthorne Collective’s preferred vehicle for investments that are not currently within the scope of The Hawthorne Gardening Company.

It was also reported that the size of RIV Capital’s Board of Directors was increased to seven now that the investment was completed. Chris Hagedorn, Gary Vaynerchuk and Mark Sims were the three nominees from The Hawthorne Collective who were added to the Board.

“The closing of The Hawthorne Collective investment comes at a pivotal time for RIV Capital,” said Narbé Alexandrian, president, and CEO of RIV Capital. “The current uncertainty surrounding the status of federal cannabis legalization in the U.S. continues to sideline significant amounts of capital, creating attractive acquisition opportunities in strategic markets. We believe we are well-positioned to capitalize on these opportunities, given our strong balance sheet and acquisition currency, and develop our operating and brand platform.”

Based on a focus on acquisitions and investments in brands and operators, the company intends to continue building its platform. RIV Capital assures that these investment funds will facilitate additional resources and flexibility to accelerate its strategy moving forward.