*By Carlo Versano*
Cannabis stocks continued their run Monday on renewed speculation that more big-name companies will add pot to their recreation portfolios.
The latest deal ー Canada's Nova Scotia Liquor inking an initial purchase order with pharmaceutical company Tilray ー sent shares of the latter up as much as 30 percent the day before its first earnings report as a public company. The stocks of Cronos and Canopy Growth, which earlier this month earned an investment from Corona-maker [Constellation Brands](https://cheddar.com/videos/corona-brewer-adds-cannabis-to-its-booze-business-in-4-billion-deal), rose too.
Sam Masucci, CEO and co-founder of ETF Managers Group, is trying to give investors a chance to capitalize on such gains.
He joined Cheddar Monday after ringing the opening bell at the NYSE to detail the ETFMG Alternative Harvest ETF, which launched in 2017. The fund tracks nearly 40 foreign and domestic companies that Masucci said may benefit from the production and sale of cannabis, both medicinal and recreational.
The ETF includes companies as varied as Scotts Miracle-Gro (which is developing hydroponics), Canopy Growth, and tobacco giant Phillip Morris.
Companies in Canada, where marijuana will be legalized for recreational sale in October, make up 40 percent of the basket of stocks, with 20 percent coming from the U.S.
While marijuana remains a Schedule I drug at the federal level in this U.S., legalization has gained serious momentum on a state basis.
Masucci said this fund is intended to capture some of that growing bipartisan acceptance and make a bet that medicinal marijuana will be legalized nationally.
"I think the federal government is starting to come around," he said.
A [market report](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/data-shows-medical-cannabis-could-reach-usd-19-billion-in-sales-by-2027-807442325.html) released Monday predicts medicinal marijuana sales will hit $19 billion domestically within the next decade, with worldwide legal spending on cannabis reaching $57 billion.
That's the kind of upside exposure Masucci said he wanted to deliver to investors with the creation of the first "pure play" cannabis ETF.
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/legal-pot-business-booming).
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Spain's government has fined Airbnb 64 million euros or $75 million for advertising unlicensed tourist rentals. The consumer rights ministry announced the fine on Monday. The ministry stated that many listings lacked proper license numbers or included incorrect information. The move is part of Spain's ongoing efforts to regulate short-term rental companies amid a housing affordability crisis especially in popular urban areas. The ministry ordered Airbnb in May to remove around 65,000 listings for similar violations. The government's consumer rights minister emphasized the impact on families struggling with housing. Airbnb said it plans to challenge the fine in court.
Roomba maker iRobot has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, but says that it doesn’t expect any disruptions to devices as the more than 30-year-old company is taken private under a restructuring process. iRobot said that it is being acquired by Picea through a court-supervised process. Picea is the company's primary contract manufacturer. The Bedford, Massachusetts-based anticipates completing the prepackaged chapter 11 process by February.
Serbia’s prosecutor for organized crime has charged a government minister and three others with abuse of position and falsifying of documents related to a luxury real estate project linked to U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. The charges came on Monday. The investigation centers on a controversy over a a bombed-out military complex in central Belgrade that was a protected cultural heritage zone but that is facing redevelopment as a luxury compound by a company linked to Kushner. The $500 million proposal to build a high-rise hotel, offices and shops at the site has met fierce opposition from experts at home and abroad. Selakovic and others allegedly illegally lifted the protection status for the site by falsifying documentation.
