The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has extended the application date to Feb. 28 for financial institutions that wish to participate in its study on cannabis banking. Financial institutions with and without cannabis banking services are both needed for the study.

The GAO is examining how cannabis-related businesses and their employees access financial services and encourages participation from Bank Secrecy Act/Anti-Money Laundering (BSA/AML) officers, compliance officers, and managers of cannabis banking programs.

The groups will inform Congress about experiences and challenges related to cannabis banking, and the perspectives of institutions that do not currently offer any cannabis banking services.
Selected participants will be asked to attend one virtual, 90-minute focus group, which will be scheduled in the coming weeks.  

The Senate Banking Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection requested this GAO study. While the results will be published in a public GAO report to Congress, no individual names, financial institution names, or other identifying information will be included.

Interested participants must sign up using this form by Feb. 28. It includes five short questions that will help the GAO assign you to a focus group. Send any questions about the study to FocusGroups@gao.gov.