[PRESS RELEASE] – LAS VEGAS, March 3, 2025 – Planet 13 Holdings Inc., a leading vertically integrated multistate cannabis company, announced a settlement and recovery of US$2.1 million of funds, which were held at Bridge Bank, a division of Western Alliance Bank (collectively “WAB”), bringing the total recovery of funds held at WAB to US$5.5 million.
Additionally, the company, through a wholly-owned subsidiary, will obtain real estate (the “real property”) valued at approximately US$5 million based on recent comparable sales, which it intends to sell. In total, the company has recovered roughly $10.5 million, including the expected value from the sale of the real property.
This settlement does not conclude the company’s lawsuit against El Capitan Advisors Inc. and its founder and CEO, Andrew Nash, in which it is seeking approximately US$10.3 million, which is based on $15.3 million less than the expected net proceeds Planet 13 receives from the sale of the real property, in additional compensatory damages and other relief.
Planet 13 also provides the following comprehensive update.
As previously disclosed, the company engaged El Capitan, an investment adviser registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission, for cash management services in 2021. The funds managed by El Capitan were held at WAB. Pursuant to a dispute unrelated to the company, Casa Verde Capital L.P. and Casa Verde Capital EF L.P. (collectively “Casa Verde”) obtained a US$35 million default judgment against El Capitan. Casa Verde then levied that judgment causing approximately US$5.5 million of the company’s funds held at WAB (the “WAB funds”) and managed by El Capitan to be directed to the Orange County, Calif., Sheriff’s Office on Sept. 21, 2023. The company secured a partial settlement with Casa Verde for the release of US$3.4 million of the WAB funds, which the company received on Jan.31, 2024.
In January 2024, the company also initiated litigation in Santa Monica, Calif., to obtain the return of the approximately US$15.3 million in additional funds that it asserts were misappropriated by El Capitan and El Capitan’s founder and CEO. The litigation also named Casa Verde, Casa Verde’s managing member, Karan Wadhera, and Jamie Nash, the former spouse of Andrew Nash, as defendants. On Feb. 16, 2024, the court appointed a special-purpose receiver who has been tasked with investigating, tracing, and filing reports with the court regarding the location and disposition of the funds stolen from Planet 13.
On Feb. 28, 2025, the company secured a settlement with Casa Verde for the remaining approximately US$2.1 million of the WAB funds. The settlement is part of a broader resolution of ongoing litigation between the company and Casa Verde, Mr. Wadhera, and Ms. Nash. As part of the settlement, the company, through a wholly-owned subsidiary, will also obtain the real property formerly associated with the Nashes, which the company intends to sell. The real property is valued at approximately US$5 million based on recent comparable sales.
The settlement will not end the company’s lawsuit against El Capitan and Andrew Nash seeking approximately US$10.3 million, which is based on the $15.3 million less the expected net proceeds Planet 13 receives from the sale of the real property, in compensatory damages and other relief. El Capitan and Andrew Nash have not appeared or otherwise responded to Planet 13’s lawsuit, which has resulted in the entry of default against them and enables Planet 13 to pursue a default judgment.
At this time, the company is not able to predict what, if any, action may be taken by law enforcement or other regulatory authorities or what, if any, proceeds will be available to recover from El Capitan and/or Andrew Nash. The company will continue to vigorously pursue its rights to reclaim the funds that it entrusted to El Capitan and will continue to pursue recovery of its funds and additional compensation through all legally available means, including as appropriate, through cooperation with law enforcement and/or initiation of further litigation.
The company engaged legal counsel to conduct an internal investigation with respect to these matters, which has been completed, but as set forth above, the company continues to pursue additional information regarding the location of the company’s assets and/or available means of recovery. Given the ongoing nature of the claims and the actions taken by the defendants, the company may be limited in what information it can disclose following this announcement.
The company’s settlement and recovery are related to El Capitan, an investment adviser that Planet 13 is suing. Read More
