TLDR:
- Denver settles lawsuit with DEMI Fund, pays nearly $800,000 owed
- Contract between city and VC firm terminated
Two years after Denver hired a venture capital firm, DEMI Fund, to invest marijuana tax dollars in local businesses, the city has settled a lawsuit with the firm. The settlement includes Denver paying almost $800,000 that DEMI Fund claimed was owed to them after fronting money to contractors. The contractual relationship between Denver and DEMI Fund has also been terminated.
DEMI Fund was tasked with investing 1 percent of marijuana tax revenue to support minority and women-owned businesses from 2022 to 2025. However, Denver and DEMI Fund have decided to end their partnership, with DEMI Fund investing in companies with city dollars, including those with no physical presence in Denver. Despite repeated requests, DEMI Fund did not provide a report detailing the current valuation of Denver’s investments.
Denver and DEMI Fund released a joint statement acknowledging the effort to create an investment fund for Denver minority businesses. The city plans to announce future programming at a later date. The decision to stop transferring tax dollars to DEMI Fund and paying their invoices was made under DEDO’s new leadership to gain a better understanding of how DEMI Fund was administering the Herman Malone Fund.
For more information, please refer to the original article on BusinessDen.
