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Brandon Padget on Cannabis Banking, Compliance & Building Careers in Minnesota Cannabis
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What does it actually take to bank a cannabis business in Minnesota?
In this episode of The Canna Connect Show, Stephen Eigenmann talks with Brandon Padget, Chief Deposit Officer at Union Bank & Trust, about the realities of cannabis banking and the infrastructure needed to support a growing legal market.
Brandon shares the story behind Union Bank & Trust’s approach to cannabis, why their team believes banking should be accessible for entrepreneurs, and how thoughtful financial systems can help businesses grow sustainably.
The conversation explores:
- Cannabis banking compliance
- Supporting cannabis entrepreneurs in Minnesota
- Banking fees and financial accessibility
- Workforce development and union values
- Building long-term cannabis careers
- The role of community partnerships
- Cannabis as a professional and skilled industry
This episode offers an inside look at one of the least understood but most important parts of the cannabis industry: access to financial services and the people working to make that access better.
The Canna Connect Show highlights the builders, advocates, entrepreneurs, and organizations shaping Minnesota cannabis culture from the ground up.
#CannaConnectMN #MinnesotaCannabis #CannabisPodcast #CannabisBanking
The thoughts, views, and opinions expressed on the CannaConnect show belong solely to the individuals and do not reflect those of Canaconnect and its affiliates, sponsors, or partners. Canaconnect does not promote or facilitate any activity that violates state or federal regulations. Everything you hear here is strictly for educational and entertainment purposes. It is not legal advice. It is not financial guidance, and it's definitely not medical direction. Seriously, don't take our word for it. Even if someone on the mic sounds like they know what they're talking about, and they're probably crazy smart too. Regardless of how legit our guests may be, you should always do your own homework, consult with your attorney, and understand the risk you're taking before you do anything when it comes to cannabis. Our intention is to keep it real. If you've got a problem with anything we've said, take us to court.
SPEAKER_02Brand new logo, officially out now. Finally. What is it like working for an organization like Union Bank and Trust?
SPEAKER_01It's cool and it's special. I shared this last night with the team. We we had a, I told you we cooked breakfast as senior leaders yesterday, and then we ordered in some lunch, and then we had a happy hour with Lunds catered uh from across the street.
SPEAKER_02And yeah.
SPEAKER_01You think about an organization that was built and founded by the men and women that literally built the city and state we live in, right? To protect their assets. Wow. You know, they they they pull wire as an electrician or they bend sheet metal or they, you know, they pour concrete or whatever. They're the people we don't think about a lot, but they built this bank to protect their assets and make sure they had a future. And so now we're it's cool for us because we see we let's say we fund a loan for a for a training facility, a joint apprentice training center. So we're at the front end of these careers, right? People that are 18, some of them changing careers 30, but they're new in their career and we're helping get them trained. And then we have the people on the back end of the career where we're funding their retirement, we're sending their checks, we're sending their vacation. They're getting it's so it's like from beginning to end of their careers, yeah, we're impacting it on the back end. You know, a lot of people don't think about the finances, especially of a union. We're 100% union-owned, 24 different labor labor organizations, wow, including the Minnesota AFL CIO is the one most people are familiar with. Okay.
SPEAKER_02Or who do they represent?
SPEAKER_01They represent all workers, all organized workers across the state. Right. So um, but it's it's just it's special, right? I I've worked in banking forever, uh, since the mid-2000s. Uh let's not date me too much. No, no. Uh lady yesterday said, Oh, you already have gray hair. And I was like, Oh, thanks. Uh, but yeah, it's a special place because banking is always cool. You think you've helped somebody, right? You got a home mortgage for somebody and they bought a boat. That's awesome. It's cool, right? Yeah, yeah. You know, get a student loan, that's awesome. But the holistic help of this, like when we do something, it doesn't impact one family or one person, it impacts thousands at a time sometimes, right?
SPEAKER_02Like, yeah, I think about infrastructure in in what your members have provided. Yeah. Dating back 50 years. How unique of an idea? How how I don't want to say radical because I was just using that term, right? But how different were the label, the labor organizers thinking when they formed a bank? Could they pull that from Milwaukee or could they pull that from St. Louis? Was that no? No.
SPEAKER_01No, they it were so unique because all the other labor banks that are credit unions, there's not a lot anymore, but they're all single trade, right? So like an IBW, uh, International Brother of Electric Workers, electricians, right? Yeah, they'll own a credit union for their members for that local. Okay.
SPEAKER_02Or I mean the most popular one is Navy.
SPEAKER_01Essentially, yeah, we're like we're like Navy Federal uh on the union side, right? But that's just the Navy. Yes. Whereas we are, we represent all skilled trades. So you think about the construction trades, and then some other uh non-trades, uh United Food and Commercial Workers, Teamsters, um, are also shareholders of ours. Um so it's it's a wide breadth. You know, Bank of Labor is another really good bank in the space out of Kansas City, but they're a boilermaker bank, right? They're owned solely by the Boilermakers Union. Wow. So they're a single trade, right? A bock out of Chicago, amalgamated out of New York. There's a few credit unions out there, but they're single trade.
SPEAKER_02I don't remember how we first got introduced, but I'm thinking back to the early conversations, and it's it's Union Bank and Trust. Okay, but that's just that's just their name. You know, I don't know anything about the history. And it's it's different than not to pick on any one other bank, but it's in the formation and the mission of Union Bank and Trust, it's unique to the greater industry. And one of the ways you guys, uh one of the ways Union Bank and Trust differentiated themselves early on in the cannabis industry, at least when you came out of the closet. I don't have as much background on the medical marijuana side, but when you started coming out to the independence and the traditional industry as we know it now, you said cannabis banking should not be expensive. You should not be getting taxed in a way that uh it's more expensive for a cannabis entrepreneur than a a a restaurant entrepreneur, for example. And I think that was one of the early ways you differentiated yourself. How do you tie that feature of your business back to the mission overall with union bank?
SPEAKER_01Wonderful question. Uh we started, you alluded to we started in medical, right? That they medical couldn't find banking in Minnesota. They knocked doors of probably every bank in the state. And people are like, they didn't come to you first. Whoa. Yeah. Uh, our board took a risk uh and said, yeah, we want to try that. Let's let's do it, let's see what it looks like. Nobody, nobody thought, let's let's gouge this company. Let's it wasn't a thought. It was how let's let's see what it looks like, how we do it. Let's see. I've shouted out Debbie before to you and on some other podcasts. Let's see what Debbie can put together. Um 41 years with us, by the way, uh put together that can help these people. And as the industry grew, the medical industry grew, our ownership group, our shareholders, our board members saw members of the people we just talked about that build this city, state, country, slow down on alcohol, get off of opioids. They saw just the benefit of the flower, of the plant, of how it can make people's lives better. And as the verticals change, right? We had the farm bill and then the drinks and edible bill in Minnesota. We've they've encouraged us to go hard into those spaces with good customers, right? We interview the clients, we we do everything now. We have the OCM guardrails, which is helpful, right?
SPEAKER_02If you think about it, it's kind of every four years in in uh 2018, 2022. Now we're here in 2026, March of 2026 as we record this. And and and you're you guys have really hit your stride. You're you uh have a number of cannabis entrepreneurs banking with you, cannabis brands, companies, organizations, not just dispensaries, I would imagine.
SPEAKER_01No, all through everything. I mean the mesos, obviously, we're on learning a bunch of mesos right now, but we have a ton of the smaller people, we have like a little grow that the guy just he bought a farm, he lives on it, he lived in his truck for a while and started his grow. Now he's got a place he lives in the space. But yeah, it's it's so from that to we have a we have a cannabis company, I have 34 different locations across different verticals. Um, people don't even know it's all the same umbrella.
SPEAKER_02Um and so to to I mean you did answer it, but Debbie and the team was able to figure out a way to say yes to cannabis. Yes. And it's if you think about the hard labor jobs, labor in general, whether you're working at Lunds and Byerley's and you're represented by UFCW or you're uh represented by local 49 and you're you're you're in concrete or or earth movers and things like that, like the giant tonka trucks, the giant tonka trucks like joints, uh arthritis, stress, pain, uh soreness, all things.
SPEAKER_01Um we're so excited about adult use wreck. CBD. You gave me C BD for my concussion. Yeah, it helped a ton. We we we we're very pumped, and it we rightfully so. Adult use wreck marijuana is a blast. Um yeah, but we we it's kind of we forgot about the other effects of the plant, how it better people's lives, and and that's what our ownership structure saw, and that's what we see. And it, you know, we don't we don't have all these weird crazy rules on alcohol. I know we've talked about this before, right? Why why have all these weird crazy rules on marijuana, right? Um it has healing properties, it has healing properties, right? So, yeah, a lot of the members too is the bombs and the the the CBD the drops, the tincture, and all that is just wonderful.
SPEAKER_02Um non-psychoactive, safe, safe and effective.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. And so through all different levels of use, we we've seen people change and and evolve, and but we've we've tried to stay the same with if you are people forward as an organization, uh-huh, we want to bank you and we don't want to stress you out. You know, I've I've shared this story with you before, and I've shared it many times publicly, but we we've saved one cannabis company almost $30,000 a year just in fees. What is what did that do for them? Marketing and a part-time employee. Yeah. They got a Saturday back, the owner got a Saturday back in their life. Yeah. So we can eliminate burnout now.
SPEAKER_02Wow.
SPEAKER_01You you know, how long are you gonna be in business if you work 52 weeks a year, 12 hours a day? Right. You as much as you love something, there's an end to that. Yeah, you know, whether your wife tells you there's an end to that or your kids like you are, or your body tells you there's an end to that. Yeah. Uh, not that you don't have the fee, right? I'm not saying there's no fees, and I think Minnesota's done a wonderful job. The the banks in the state, we all talk quite a bit. Um, exchanged emails yesterday with the bank. Um, they they can't quite help this company get their building built. So we're gonna try to help them get this building built, right? So the partnership of the cannabis banks and the the lower fees, you know, Minnesota. Some people did start high, but they've come back to real good fees. Okay. You know, and you as a business, you have to decide what's it cost us to operate and what's the risk profile and what what are we gonna charge a client to balance it for us? Yeah. Ours are lower than probably everybody's, but Minnesota's done a great job of bringing it down to being accessible banking for all. Okay.
SPEAKER_02Because we that's the role of the what role does the state play? None. Okay.
SPEAKER_01Just Minnesota as an industry, yeah. Yeah. As a collective. As a collective, yeah. I hear you. The banks have done a great job of seeing realizing these this is a great industry. Yeah. It's a wider industry than most people think about. Let's figure out a way to make sure these business owners can operate.
SPEAKER_02Hey everybody, Steven with Canada Connect. Taking a quick minute to shout out today's sponsor, CEE. That is the Center for Energy and Environment. If you're not familiar with CEE, they're your one-stop shop for all lighting rebates. If you are in Xcel Energy territory and you're a micro business, CEE is somebody that you need to talk to. Give Brad a call, give Tony a call, go online, one-stop shop, LED lighting rebates. They'll help take care of up to 60% of the costs associated with your grow and your build out with the lighting. Uh, really nice people, great people to work with, huge sponsors of Canaconnect, and uh give them a shout. That's CEE, Center for Energy and Environment. You know, in the same sense of uh, I'm gonna make a parallel here with like fear around the effect of low-dose beverages, for example, or low-dose uh hempatible products? Monday morning quarterback, now that you've helped stand up this cannabis program for independents and and and entrepreneurs in the state, how in actuality, how much in the sense of more or less, has the compliance and the nefarious side of the industry actually come up in your KYC uh process? Not not looking to single in on one, but going, you know, three years later. How I'm gonna say nefarious as as the as the word to say like, okay, yeah, there is actually legitimate concern around how some of these folks are operating because it's below ground, above ground. And and it it it's probably very dependent on where they're coming from. If they're coming from making millions in this space or they're coming from making cash in the in in the below ground. Right. But as a mix, because I know compliance is paramount to banking. How much of a concern has it actually been inside the four walls?
SPEAKER_01For us, not a huge concern, right? One, Debbie built one of the first programs in the state. She did a great job. It was very manual for a while. Yeah. Um, but site visits and and and we we talk to people too. It's not just guy walks in on the street, gal walks in on the street. We're we're asking questions, you know, if if we have, but then now we also have a system in place. We use we use a third-party fintech that's gonna run all good good news, bad news checks across all 50 states. That's gonna, you know, if you've if you've got a speeding ticket in Florida, we know. Got it. Um, it comes up, the list is wild of the information we get. So there's nothing you're hiding from us.
SPEAKER_02And not that a speeding ticket in Florida would ban. It would not. Yeah, sorry. No, no, no, no. But like you're gonna you're gonna find out if there's something there.
SPEAKER_01Exactly. And most people, I would say you're you're the below ground the way you put it, operators have been very honest with us. This is how I got to this space. This is how I'm transitioned out of this space. Here's my plan, here's how I insulated myself, here's how I'll continue to insulate myself. Okay. And then we follow OCM guidelines, we we use our third-party fintech. Um, you talk to people too. We're constantly interviewing with a lot of a good handful of people that have been in it a long time through different, whether it's glass blowing or it's the drinks or it's manufacturing or it's you know, uh, we ask them, what do you know about this person? Sure. We're starting to hear it feels funny. I've asked you. Yeah. Sure. Sure. Yeah. This feels a little funny, Steven. What do you know about what's going on here? Uh, and so we can try to use our network too.
SPEAKER_02So right, and I think you've built a really strong network from who I know that is involved at Union Bank. Absolutely. Um, I had a I had a quick pivot here for you. The um the advancement that you've how long have you been at at UBT? Three years. Okay, so it has been three years, but you've moved fast in in standing up this coming out of coming out of the cannabis closet as we first referred to it on the on the Northern Lands podcast. Fast forward two years, two and a half years, and you're starting to focus on larger industries outside of cannabis that are core to Union Bank's mission. So you've created some some separation from the cannabis program, but you've put some really good people in place. Yeah. Talk about who folks can get in touch with when they're when they're actually applying and reaching out, because that's kind of moved off your desk and onto Oliver.
SPEAKER_01It has, yeah. Yeah, Oliver Gutierrez Garcia um is our AVP of client services. Um exactly what it sounds like, right? You need something done as a client, reach out to Oliver, he's gonna quarterback it. Uh he's done the certifications through the payments, banking compliance conferences. He does continue net, he gets on the learnings. Uh, and then uh Paul Ranissett is our AVP of Treasury Services. So, Treasury Services, for those that aren't familiar with banking, is how the money moves. It's ACHs, it's the wires, it's right, it's that back end movement of the money, how you get on and view your money, um, the security things we put in place to protect the money movement in and out. Um, and both with tons of experience. Um, but they these guys are awesome and they're passionate about small business, they're passionate about helping people succeed, helping workers. We don't hire anybody, you know, we hire our own values, right? We're we're a union-owned bank. We we can teach you a lot of things if you have the right values. And these guys care about people, you know. They we all have our own individual story about why you need to make and trust calls to us. Uh, they both have unique stories. I won't even try to tell them for them, but uh, if you ever get a chance to ask them about them, uh Paul's especially is very powerful. Um, but these are great, great guys that want to help the industry. And then our banker team too has got some of the sort of the entry-level cannabis certification. So you're gonna be able to walk in the bank, ask questions, call the bank, email the customer service line. And we have people that have at least a level one cannabis certification that can answer your questions. And talk a little bit, you know.
SPEAKER_02Obviously, folks are familiar with Canada Connect. They're probably less familiar with PVC. Talk a little bit about how much they matter in in your industry. So there's the conference, but then they also have the education certification.
SPEAKER_01There's a marijuana bankers association, there's payments, banking, and compliance in cannabis. They're kind of they're similar. Uh, we we do PVC. I'm a people person. Um, I kind of make my decisions a lot on the people, right? And if you have a similar, like, you know, the great, I met the people at the marijuana uh cannabis or the cannabis bankers association, awesome people, but really connected with PVC. So PVC is payments, banking, and compliance on cannabis. They put on a conference every September after Labor Day in DC, where like last year I was a moderator and we talked about how the taxes happen, how it moves, how how you can lend, all that. So there's different professionals, a CPA, a lender, um, an insurance guy, and we just we we talked through that. And so a lot of times you have bankers or insurance reps or people trying to get started in the business come out to this conference to hear. So I moderated that, but it's it's a learning. And you can go through either a track of like a like a sales track, marketing track, or you go through a compliance track at this conference every year. And then, you know, I wrote a paper for them to be a certified uh PBC professional on why I don't think you have to gouge in the cannabis. It's not saying you don't have to charge fees, yeah, but so I will have a webinar in May through them. And they, these people that get the certified will all have webinars that you can also then continue to learn, whether you're inside the ecosystem or you just want the one-off. But it's all it's all about the things people don't talk about, the law, the CPAs, the bankers, you know, everybody's like, oh, we're gonna sell cannabis, it's great and make a lot of money. Well, you need us, not just me, right? You need a banking ecosystem. Yeah. Oh, I hear you. PBC puts together all the ancillary services. Um, and there's they actually have a directory where you can go out and find these people in each state, people that are friendly across state lines. And it's cool because like I'm talking with a cash transfer person, uh vault services person, and a banker at Oklahoma, and we're trying to see if we can do something for PBC this fall. Okay. Um, so it's bringing people from across the country together to talk about what it looks like in New Jersey, what it looks like in Oklahoma, what it looks like in Tennessee, what it looks like in Minnesota, or the four people in there. So it's also bringing you together across state lines.
SPEAKER_02Turning stars into constellations and building a network within uh within a sector of this industry. But it's not just cannabis. PVC goes beyond cannabis, is that right? PBC doesn't go beyond cannabis. Which is even better for us to talk about. Yeah. So um that's great. That's really great. And actually, I I knew that, but you know, sometimes you think small and then sometimes you think big, and and with with banking, it's often cannabis is just a vertical. But I think Union Bank and Trust has done a really good job of of platforming in a safe way to say, hey, we're not like Luke says, we're the boogie, the boogeyman doesn't live here. No. And if he does, your team's gonna find out.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Exactly. And you know, I think then the cross-reference to our original um what we do is it's huge for us. And I know you're working in some avenues with this, like the 49ers. I know the teamsters are doing their own thing. But it's how do we how do we find a way to help create careers in cannabis? Yeah, not just 20 hour, 15-hour churn and burn, right? In and out. You know, we want people, cannabis is a skilled industry. You know, we have the rap from the you know, people our age from the 90s, it's the stoners out back in school. No, yeah, this is a technical industry that takes very smart, very educated, very dedicated people. And a lot of them have built a career because they are that. But then there's people that want to work in the industry and want a career in it, but there's not a lot of opportunity to get good pay, good benefits, retirement. Right. Um, right. And you know, that's we're trying to work together. And I know you guys are working with some things too, with the college and uh a union. How do we how do we create cannabis careers? How can you start like we talked about with the electric, like we build the joint apprentice training center? How do you start at a training center, get a degree, a two year, four year, whatever it looks like, a certification? Yeah, and then work for 30, 35 years and retire on the lake if you want. Or or move south or whatever that looks like. A real a real career. Built a real career, real safety net in the middle class. You know, we keep shrinking. I will not get on my soapbox there. Sorry. Yeah. Um it we feel like this is a way to expand it.
SPEAKER_02Right. It can be and it it has to be thoughtfully crafted. It can't just be treated like well, I'm not gonna pick on any any one, you know, brand or or restaurant or anything like that. But the um I mean what yesterday I did, you know, yeah, there's something that comes up there, but the the intention behind it, because uh I guess it goes back to how we found cannabis. You know, we found cannabis through a a Ziploc bag that our friend had, and you know, we we go around the house and backyard into the neighborhood, and we we find a place where you know we're not gonna be seen and and you know it's a it's whatever pipe pop can pop can or pipe or apple.
SPEAKER_01And then we never did the apple.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. We I did the apple once I think we did I did I did the apple. Nice. Um the the thought though is like it was not legitimate from the get-go when we found it. Now as as young people are coming online, it's legitimate in in retail stores like Quick Trip and Cub Foods and Lanzarbeiterleys, but uh also it's legitimate in uh municipalities and on reservation as an alternative to opiates and alcohol. There's so much legitimacy, positive legitimacy headwinds for the cannabis industry, so that folks can appreciate it more and not look down on it, not step on it. Because when it was underground and it was illegal and you had to sneak to find it, you're you're not gonna value that as a career. Right? I mean, until you got out to Oregon, until you got out to California, until but the folks that are from where I grew up, Classic Lake Conference, those guys had to really step out, counterculture, yeah, and go f and go learn how to trim and grow and and disappear for a few years to get that training that you're talking about. To about you're talking about legitimacy, legitimacy, certification, value. Uh the unions want to standardize wages. They want to know that this wage provides this, this much, this or sorry, this job provides this much in wages, this job provides this much in wages. So that uh laborers, uh individuals, employees are not taken advantage of. Yeah. Ultimately, it's protecting workers. But until you have a legitimate, legitimate industry, it's really hard to do that.
SPEAKER_01Well, people forget, right? Like even just in Minnesota alone, uh, in lifetimes of at least our grandparents, we we had workers killed in Minneapolis, killed on the Iron Range, one, for fighting for what you're talking about. Just a legitimate wage in a weekend. We don't have weekends just because business owners decided to give us weekends, right? We don't have health insurance just because a business owner decided, oh, let's let's make sure we give health insurance. I see. Those were things workers fought for. They fought for legitimacy, they fought for you turning a great profit, but what do we get, right? And that's kind of where we're at a little bit in cannabis. A lot of great, a lot of great individuals in cannabis. So it's not as bad as you would think back to like bloody bloody Friday in Minneapolis, but sure. It's how do we, to your point, legitimize a career? You can work at the dispensary, you can work at the growth, you can do it for 30 years, take vacations and retire.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_01And be comfortable. Right.
unknownRight.
SPEAKER_01Because that's whatever, I mean, that's whatever American dream is, right? You work 40 hours a week, you do it from now until the agreed upon time, and you can retire.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_01And that's that's what the unions have always fought for. That's what union members have died for in the past. Hopefully they never have to do it again. Right. But everybody, everybody gets their holidays off. Oh, we had Martin Luther King Day, we're closed. They don't thank anybody for that. We have Labor Day every year. It ends the summer in Minnesota. People throw a huge party, they get wasted, they make way too much food. They don't realize people died for that day. They don't realize that those days weren't given. You worked on labor, you worked on Christmas, you worked on Thanksgiving. Like your children worked.
SPEAKER_02Wow.
SPEAKER_01Right? And that that's what labor unions have done for us. And I think people have forgotten about that.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. Well, I mean, ground floor as we are right now, I think there's ample opportunity to re-educate people and to establish what needs to be for legitimate careers to happen in this industry. Um ultimately it's about showing up. But if you're showing up, are you going to be taken care of? And that's the hardest part for a business to commit to. We love if you showed up, but are we going to be able to take care of you? Right. And uh and and and not growing too fast is critical for that because and I think having a good banking partner helps manage, yeah, manage growth. And and uh, you know, we appreciate the work you do. We're looking forward to continuing to see you at Neekan and Canacon and and being a part of our events around those events, those expos and things. Uh we've got, I'm excited. We've got a few, you know, it's always, it's always for us, it's the ZAG. You know, we we can do the Zig, but what about the ZAG? So we've we've got some tricks up our sleeve and and we can't wait to share, share and be a part of it with you.
SPEAKER_01Awesome. Thanks for having us.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, no doubt. If uh if folks want to get in touch with Union Bank uh and they're a cannabis entrepreneur, what is where's the best place to send them?
SPEAKER_01Uh easiest way is customer service at ubtmn.com or you go right to our website. There's a contact us, that'll hit my inbox, Oliver's inbox. Um or if you really want, just give me a call, 612-437-5207.
SPEAKER_02Awesome. Yeah, we'll uh we'll include all of that in the show notes. We appreciate you coming on the brand new Mechaniconnect show. And uh, we're gonna have you leave with some green standard. We've got to get your review. So thank you. Awesome, good to see you.
SPEAKER_01You too. Appreciate it.