Marijuana businesses continue to face significant barriers to basic banking, loans and payment processing despite a gradual increase in the number of financial institutions willing to work with the industry, according to a newly released report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office.
The 44-page report, dated August 7 and publicly released September 8, found that about 1,000 banks and credit unions filed marijuana-related suspicious activity reports in 2024. That represented roughly 11% of the approximately 9,000 federally insured banks and credit unions nationwide.
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) cautioned that the figure does not necessarily mean all 1,000 institutions maintained marijuana businesses as ongoing customers. Some may have handled only occasional transactions, while others may have served ancillary companies such as law firms, real estate businesses or consultants rather than companies that directly grow, manufacture or sell marijuana. Still, federal data indicate that the number of institutions reporting marijuana-related activity increased from 2015 through 2019 before remaining relatively steady through 2024.
GAO conducted nine focus groups and 11 interviews involving 74 financial institutions, along with eight focus groups involving owners and managers of 51 marijuana-related businesses.
Among the 48 marijuana business participants who responded to a poll about banking, 43 said their businesses had bank accounts. But participants reported accounts being closed with little warning, lengthy approval processes and unusually high fees. Participants in seven of the eight business focus groups reported paying monthly or annual banking fees, with two saying they paid at least $100,000 per year.
Access to business financing was also a significant problem. Participants in all eight business focus groups reported being offered loans with high fees or interest rates, while participants in seven groups cited interest rates exceeding 15%. For comparison, GAO noted that a Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City survey found median rates on comparable small-business loans ranged from 7.42% to 7.91% during the first quarter of 2025.
Payroll and payments presented additional obstacles. Participants in seven of eight focus groups said a payroll provider had closed or suspended services for at least one marijuana business, and participants in three groups reported resorting to more manual methods, including paying workers in cash.
All eight business focus groups also reported problems accepting their preferred payment methods, particularly credit cards. Visa and Mastercard prohibit their cards from being used for marijuana purchases, leaving some companies more dependent on cash, ATMs, checks, wire transfers and Automated Clearing House payments. GAO noted that greater reliance on cash can increase costs as well as theft and robbery risks.
The banking difficulties can extend to individuals who work in the industry. GAO found reports of marijuana business owners and employees having trouble maintaining personal bank accounts or obtaining mortgages and other loans. Among participants representing plant-touching businesses, majorities reported that either they or their employees had encountered problems with personal bank accounts and mortgages.
Financial institutions told GAO that federal legal risks and the cost of complying with Bank Secrecy Act requirements remain major reasons for avoiding marijuana businesses. However, GAO said it found no indication that a financial institution has been subjected to civil or criminal penalties solely because it provided services to a marijuana-related business. Federal banking regulators likewise told investigators they had not taken enforcement action against institutions solely for serving the industry.
GAO also examined whether federal legislation shielding financial institutions from liability for serving state-licensed marijuana businesses could expand access. Of 25 participants from financial institutions that currently do not serve marijuana businesses, 20 said such a safe harbor would likely affect the types of marijuana businesses their institutions would be willing to serve.
However, some institutions said broader changes, including federal legalization or reductions in federal compliance requirements, would still be necessary. GAO also noted that rescheduling marijuana could reduce the perception of risk for some banks, but would not by itself eliminate federal Bank Secrecy Act obligations.
The report was prepared at the request of U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren, Raphael Warnock, Tina Smith and John Fetterman.
