Gold Flora files for receivership after loan default, mounting debt

Another one of California’s largest cannabis operators plans to liquidate assets after mounting financial losses and operational challenges.Gold Flora Corp., one of the state’s largest cannabis retail chains, is entering receivership after defaulting on a $11.5 million loan.

ADVERTISEMENT The company said in a press release its seeking court protection as a result of lawsuits related to its 2023 acquisition of TPCO Holdings, rising business expenses and high-yield debt.The deal for TPCO, which operated as The Parent Co., was positioned to streamline operations while generating annual savings of $20 million to $25 million, Gold Flora said at the time.

The deal also had high visibility because of The Parent Co’s affiliation with rap mogul “Jay-Z”  Carter.Gold Flora’s receivership filing followed a default notice from J.J.

Astor & Co.related to a senior secured promissory notes issued between August 2024 and December 2024.

The default increased the notes’ outstanding principal and interest to approximately $11.5 million.“This was a difficult but correct decision to make for all stakeholders,” CEO and founder Laurie Holcomb said in a releases statement.

“While Gold Flora remains a leading operator and retailer in the cannabis market in California with over $100 million in annual revenues, the liabilities on our balance sheet, many of which are due to lawsuits we inherited with the TPCO business combination, forced us to file for a voluntary receivership that is necessary to achieve an orderly sale of the business.” Gold Flora did not immediately respond to attempts to reach it.The company said it expects to be placed into receivership in the Los Angeles Superior Court, Santa Moncia Division and Richard Ormond of Stone Capital Blossom, LLC, to be appointed as receiver.

Ormond, a Los Angeles-based attorney with expertise in finance, banking and cannabis regulations, briefly served as...