Canopy Growth welcomed President Joe Biden’s declaration on Thursday that he will release thousands of individuals from prison for marijuana possession convictions.
David Culver, vice president of government relations at Canopy, said in a statement that “today signals action from the Administration that we have been waiting for — an acknowledgment that cannabis prohibition has failed and that too many people have been significantly damaged as a result.”
The largest cannabis firm in the world, which is based in Canada, had a 22% increase in share price and ended the day at $3.75. shares of Tilray Brands, a competing cannabis company
grew by approximately 30%. CNBC was unable to get a comment from Tilray.

President Biden “has set into motion the efforts needed to heal the harms of the past and map a road for responsible, legal cannabis markets in the future, in keeping with his campaign vows,” Culver added.
The action could be a first step toward a general easing of the drug’s federal classification. The pardons, according to the White House, affected more than 6,500 people who had previously been convicted of simple marijuana possession. Numerous further people have received pardons in accordance with D.C. law.
“There are thousands of people who may be excluded from housing, employment, or educational prospects because they have had prior federal convictions for marijuana possession. In a statement, Biden argued that his intervention will lessen the effects of these convictions’ side effects announcing the pardons.

Governors were asked by Biden to grant similar pardons in cases involving state convictions including marijuana possession.
Constellation Brands, which holds 36% of the outstanding shares of Canopy, disclosed in an earnings report on Thursday morning that it has written down $1 billion of its investment in the cannabis company.
In light of declining sales across the cannabis business, Canopy’s stock price has decreased by more than 70% over the past year. The stock has dropped from its peak point of $56.89 by more than 90%.