Psychedelics is the new cannabis
And it won't be pretty
It's starting to look that way. I work in both industries and had a front row seat to the rise of the Canadian cannabis industry. The following two (of many) quotes are triggering my Cassandra-like warning.
From a major Investment Bank, “For the first time, we estimate that psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy could represent a $500B opportunity, in the U.S. alone.” I really doubt that. The US education services and mining industries combined are around $500B, or approximately 4% of the total US economy.
From a Tweeter with 1000+ followers “if you’re anti-psychedelics you’re anti-science and also possibly (likely?) racist.” Of course!
This type of thinking & publishing is not only silly but it works against the development of a responsible and healthy psychedelics industry. Here's why:
· It creates unrealistic expectations for sufferers and caregivers;
· The industry loses credibility in the eyes of the institutions that will really drive the fate of the sector: regulators, banks and physicians;
· Companies and individuals start to resemble pump n' dumpers. A kiss of death for attracting many investors.
I get that puffery occurs and is sometimes needed to generate market and investor awareness. But the above examples go way overboard. There are many good people in psychedelics but a few bad apples can spoil things for everyone...
We can continue down the current path but we know how the movie end. …. Just ask people in the cannabis space.
#psychedelics #capitalmarkets #hype