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FORTUNE.COM// FEB.1 .19as a force of disruption, even as marijuana teeters on the grayish
line of legitimacy. Pot is now legal for either medical or recre-
ational use in some 36 countries and 33 U.S. states plus the Dis-
trict of Columbia. And while its use and sale remain illegal in the
U.S. at the federal level, many on Wall Street and beyond see that
changing too. The recently passed Farm Bill exempted the hemp
plant and its derivative cannabidiol, or CBD, from the federal ban,
clearing the way for an anticipated surge in a product category
that in some states has already swept across store shelves and café
and cocktail menus. A new report from Arcview Market Research
and BDS Analytics forecasts that legal pot sales will more than
double from $10.5 billion in 2018 to $22.2 billion in the U.S. in
2022, and to $31.6 billion worldwide. By then, Kennedy and oth-
ers expect the U.S. will have legalized the drug, an issue that could
even dictate who wins the 2020 presidential election.
Chasing this buzz, U.S. industries, including Big Beer, Big To-
bacco, and Big Pharma, have made bets on cannabis companies,Kennedy, shaking his head reverently. “What a
gift. Such a life changer, a game changer. The
thought of being a Tilionaire one day.”
Kennedy swears this wasn’t a scheduled part
of the tour. He claims he’s never even heard the
expression “Tilionaire,” although his stock—
which he’s doled out to all 750 of the firm’s
employees, at all levels—has made many people
much richer. He has yet to sell any of his own
shares (and promises he won’t do so when post-
IPO restrictions lift in January), meaning his
10-figure wealth is still only on paper. Kennedy,
who previously started and sold two dotcom-
era software companies before getting an
MBA from Yale, claims he didn’t anticipate the
investor frenzy that Tilray ignited as the first
cannabis producer to go public on a major U.S.
exchange. “We were caught off guard,” he says.
Indeed, virtually the entire business world is
grappling with the sudden arrival of cannabis