Banking issues for the marijuana industry have been nothing short of a nightmare and a pain in the neck.

With medical or recreational marijuana legal in more than 50% of the country, wouldn’t you think the Federal Reserve would be anxious to get its hands on some of the cash being generated?

What’s The Issue With Marijuana Banking?

The federal government’s unreasonable demand for keeping marijuana a Schedule 1 drug adds to the uncertainty that has produced a sickly gray area, exposing the millions who are employed in the industry to an endlessly confusing, inconvenient and, worse yet, critical legal situation.

“This business environment is an invitation to tax fraud, robberies, money laundering and organized crime,” lawmakers wrote in a letter at the end of last year in the hope of convincing the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) to lighten up.

Still, alas, FinCEN and the rest of the federal government, dug in their ruthless pot-hating souls.

However, a small light of hope has been spotted at the end of the tunnel.

A marijuana credit union was victorious in its quest to provide banking services to marijuana businesses in Colorado.

The Fourth Corner Credit Union had announced it plans to serve Colorado’s predominately cash-only marijuana industry back in 2014, with the purpose of them opening in 2015, which would have made it the world’s first bank built specifically for the marijuana industry.

Fourth Corner’s first bureaucratic hurdle to clear was to open a master account with the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, which is required to provide banking services in the United States.

The credit union’s request was denied by a lower court.

However, on the plus side, the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals vacated the lower court’s ruling.

This new verdict means that Fourth Corner can re-apply for the master account, and if rejected, it can take the case to court again, and again.