ACB Partners with Green Check to Launch Cannabis Banking Professional – Executive Certification

PLACITAS, N.M. - June 16, 2026 - PRLog -- Placitas, New Mexico, June 16, 2026 — The Association for Cannabis Banking, in partnership with Green Check, the certification's content architect, announced the launch of the Cannabis Banking Professional – Executive Certification (CBPE), an executive-level program for financial institution leaders, risk executives, compliance officers, and cannabis banking decision-makers.

The certification provides a leadership-focused roadmap for evaluating cannabis banking as a strategic opportunity while addressing regulatory, financial, risk, governance, and examiner-readiness considerations before launching or expanding a program. As federal cannabis policy evolves, financial institutions must understand the benefits, risks, and opportunities of banking cannabis-related businesses.

"Cannabis banking has moved from a compliance question to a strategic leadership question," said Mike Beird, Co-Founder of the Association for Cannabis Banking. "Financial institutions need more than general awareness. They need to understand the business case, risk framework, board conversation, and examiner expectations. This certification gives executives the structure and confidence to make informed decisions."

The five-session certification guides participants through core issues leaders must understand before entering or expanding in cannabis banking. The program begins with the federal guidance framework and the meaning of "permission" under FinCEN guidance, then moves into the industry, including direct and indirect cannabis-related businesses, hemp, market evolution, and strategic entry points.

From there, the certification helps executives evaluate the financial opportunity by examining revenue models, fee structures, deposit strategy, cost of funds, lending considerations, staffing, technology, and expenses. Participants also explore the risk framework required to support cannabis banking, including liquidity risk, compliance risk, strategic risk, customer-level risk assessment, ongoing monitoring, examiner communication, and exit planning.

The program concludes with a critical element of cannabis banking: the board conversation. Participants learn to frame cannabis banking within the institution's mission and strategic plan, present a credible business case, document approval, and respond to board questions and objections.

"Cannabis banking programs work best when leadership understands the opportunity, controls, and responsibilities that come with serving this market," said Stacy Litke, VP of Banking & Financial Services at Green Check. "This certification is designed to help executives approach those conversations with practical context, clear expectations, and a framework they can use with internal teams, boards, and examiners."

CBPE is designed for financial institution leaders considering cannabis banking, strengthening a program, preparing for board approval, or seeking a disciplined framework for examiner-ready governance.

Unlike traditional cannabis banking training, the Executive Certification focuses on the leadership and decision-making layer of the program. It connects compliance, strategy, finance, lending, risk, and governance into a single executive roadmap.

"This is about helping institutions move from 'Can we do this?' to 'How do we do this responsibly?'" Beird added. "The institutions that succeed in cannabis banking will be the ones that treat it as a serious, governed, risk-managed line of business — not as a side project."

Registration information is available at https://the-acb.org/cannabis-banking-professional-executive-1

About the Association for Cannabis Banking

The Association for Cannabis Banking provides education, research, training, and professional development for financial institutions serving or considering serving cannabis-related businesses. ACB supports banks, credit unions, regulators, compliance professionals, risk leaders, and cannabis banking teams with resources that advance safe, sound, compliant cannabis banking.

About Green Check

Green Check provides cannabis banking technology, advisory services, and financial services solutions for banks, credit unions, cannabis-related businesses, and service providers in the legal cannabis industry. Through its platform, marketplace, and support, Green Check helps financial institutions build compliant, scalable programs while helping cannabis businesses access essential financial and business services.