Canada was in the headlines all weekend - but, as far as I'm concerned, the most earth-shattering news went almost totally unreported.
This is the culmination of more than seven months of research and parliamentary debate among five separate committees. After repeated, firm, public promises among legislators - including the Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau - an incalculable amount of political capital was on the line.
And sure enough, on Thursday, right around the time world leaders started arriving in Quebec for what would be an extremely contentious G7 summit, the Senate of Canada voted in a late-night session to legalize the recreational use of marijuana across the country.
That means Canada is right at the doorstep of being the first G7 nation to open the door to legal, regulated weed.
That's right: It's not a done deal... yet. Despite rhetoric calling for legal weed sales to begin by July 1, 2018, there are still two dominoes that have to fall for legalization to come into force.
As you'll see in a second, full legalization is still a virtual certainty, but now we have some extra time - just a little - to take a look at our weed holdings with exposure to Canada...
... and make sure we're loaded up on the right stocks before this thing explodes into the markets.
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Just Dotting the "I"s and Crossing the "T"s
Pot has been prohibited in Canada since 1923. The results of that prohibition have been far from successful, and Trudeau and his supporters are eager to try a bold new approach - one that will bring the regulation and sale of cannabis into publicly accountable hands and serve as a test case for other big, industrial nations looking to do the same.
So, if you're tempted to feel disappointed or skeptical at the delay in implementing full legalization, I understand, but please don't be.
RELATED: Top five tiny Canadian pot stocks are set to skyrocket. Click here...
We really are in the home stretch here.
Prime Minister Trudeau, one of the Act's most adamant supporters, isn't likely to let a single member of Parliament go home for summer break before the Act is passed.
The pressure is ON.
To cross the finish line, the Senate bill needs to go back to the House of Commons, which will then need to approve the 45-odd amendments the upper house tacked onto Bill C-45, better known as the Cannabis Act.
The reconciled bill will then go to Governor General Julie Payette, the Queen's viceregal representative, to receive royal assent.
The upshot is: The Cannabis Act - the ultimate profit catalyst a small group of select Canadian pot stocks - should be in effect some 10 to 12 weeks after its passage.
We could be set to profit the entire time.
This Could Be a Watershed Moment in Market History
You see, Canada's moves to bring cannabis into the legal realm are going to rapidly fill the coffers of the best companies in this industry - among the fastest-growing in the world.
It's just simple arithmetic when you consider that according to Deloitte, Canadians are expected to spend up to $4.7 billion on legal cannabis products in 2019. And they're going to increase their already sky-high consumption rate - 12.3% in 2015, according to Statistics Canada - by up to 35% over the same time frame.
O, Canada! An earth-shattering weed announcement in Ottawa could help turn everyday Americans into pot-stock millionaires. Watch this for details...
Moreover, Canada's total legal weed market - when you add in the growers, the value-added product makers, the testing labs, security, tourism, exports, and all the rest - soon could reach $22.6 billion, Deloitte says.
Investors in the bellwether Horizons Medical Marijuana Life Sciences ETF (TSX: HMMJ) have seen their share price climb 11.7% in just the past month... more than 5% since I showed it to you just a week ago... and more than 71% since I first told you about it.
But that's just scratching the surface. For instance, my paid-up Nova-X Report subscribers get total access to my Roadmap to Marijuana Millions model portfolio and stock research, which includes a full briefing on no less than five small caps, each trading for around $5, that are poised to explode when, as expected, Canada passes legalization. This is the kind of potential than can turn a tiny stake into $100,000 or more.
Then, there's the even-more-profitable knock-on effect, which could be felt far south of the Canadian border much sooner than anyone realizes...
This Could Be the Start of an International "Farms Race"
Canadian MPs and policymakers have made no secret of the fact that to inform decisions they've made regarding the Cannabis Act, they've looked - hard - at the many American jurisdictions that have gone "fully legal," like Washington, D.C., Oregon, California, and Colorado, to name a few.
After all, in both countries, legalization is the great social experiment of the day... And the flow of ideas and inspiration is a two-way street.
Just think of it: By autumn, the United States could have a fully legalized cannabis market just across the border - and tens of millions of Americans, including many who live in places where pot is still illegal, live within just a few hours' drive of the boundary line they can cross with minimal hassle.
So it's not too much of a stretch to envision that soon, U.S. officials are going to be faced with a veritable hemorrhage of tax revenue and capital as the North American "pot tourism" industry is born virtually overnight.
I can't help but think this will apply enormous, maybe even irresistible political pressure for U.S. and state lawmakers to take steps toward legalization themselves - that is, if they haven't already. The prospect of all that tax, tourism, business, and investment revenue taking a leisurely stroll out of the country never to return should be all the motivation they need to legalize and foster a robust American legal cannabis industry.
When that day comes here in the United States, as I'm almost certain it will, we'll be ready.
When Canada Takes Weed Fully Legal...
It'll probably make our retrograde attorney general hopping mad, but there's really nothing on Earth he can do to stop these small cannabis companies from hitting the stratosphere. Sessions could be furious, but folks who park a few hundred dollars into these "north of the border" firms could potentially turn a small stake into $100,000 - and fast. Michael Robinson has the details for you - click here to hear what he's got to say...
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About the Author
Michael A. Robinson is a 36-year Silicon Valley veteran and one of the top tech and biotech financial analysts working today. That's because, as a consultant, senior adviser, and board member for Silicon Valley venture capital firms, Michael enjoys privileged access to pioneering CEOs, scientists, and high-profile players. And he brings this entire world of Silicon Valley "insiders" right to you...
- He was one of five people involved in early meetings for the $160 billion "cloud" computing phenomenon.
- He was there as Lee Iacocca and Roger Smith, the CEOs of Chrysler and GM, led the robotics revolution that saved the U.S. automotive industry.
- As cyber-security was becoming a focus of national security, Michael was with Dave DeWalt, the CEO of McAfee, right before Intel acquired his company for $7.8 billion.
This all means the entire world is constantly seeking Michael's insight.
In addition to being a regular guest and panelist on CNBC and Fox Business, he is also a Pulitzer Prize-nominated writer and reporter. His first book Overdrawn: The Bailout of American Savings warned people about the coming financial collapse - years before the word "bailout" became a household word.
Silicon Valley defense publications vie for his analysis. He's worked for Defense Media Network and Signal Magazine, as well as The New York Times, American Enterprise, and The Wall Street Journal.
And even with decades of experience, Michael believes there has never been a moment in time quite like this.
Right now, medical breakthroughs that once took years to develop are moving at a record speed. And that means we are going to see highly lucrative biotech investment opportunities come in fast and furious.
To help you navigate the historic opportunity in biotech, Michael launched the Bio-Tech Profit Alliance.
His other publications include: Strategic Tech Investor, The Nova-X Report, Bio-Technology Profit Alliance and Nexus-9 Network.