Cannabis company Phoena will wind down business under creditor protection
By The Canadian Press on April 10, 2023.
VAUGHAN, Ont. – Phoena Holdings Inc. plans to wind down its business and has obtained creditor protection for a second time. Documents filed with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, which granted the protection, show the Vaughan, Ont. cannabis company previously called CannTrust Holdings Inc. is insolvent and plans to liquidate its assets. Interim chief executive Cornelis Pieter Melissen says in an affidavit that the company is pursuing a wind down because it has been unable to revive its business and generate a profit since emerging from creditor protection in March 2022. He says Phoena was unable to recover because it could not bring back its previous patient base that was lost when the company’s licenses were suspended in September 2019, after it was accused of growing cannabis in unlicensed rooms. Phoena was able to get its licenses reissued eventually, but by then, Melissen says the Canadian cannabis market had become increasingly competitive with market share dominated by a handful of major corporations. In its most recent full fiscal year, Phoena had a net loss of $24.8 million based on gross revenue of $13.2 million. This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 10, 2023. 8-7
