Kratom Stocks: Can You Invest in Kratom?

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Kratom Stocks: Can You Invest in Kratom?

Can you buy and sell kratom stocks? The short answer is no. Kratom companies cannot currently participate in public trading on the stock exchange. This means that kratom investments are all but impossible to make, save for private equity negotiations. As such, there are no stocks to buy in the kratom market. If you wish to invest in kratom, you may have to wait years or more.

But it’s crucial we learn why kratom isn’t available on the public stock exchange. To do so, we must examine what it means to “take a company public.” We must learn about IPOs. We need to know about the SEC. Furthermore, we’ll need to examine reasons not to take your company public in the first place.

Why Can’t Kratom Companies Participate in Public Trading?

Before we talk about kratom stocks, specifically, let’s take a look at the stock exchange. What does it mean to take a company public? According to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC):

“A company that goes public typically refers to when a company undertakes its initial public offering, or IPO, by selling shares of stock to the public usually to raise additional capital. After its IPO, the company will be subject to public reporting requirements and its shares often become listed on a stock exchange.”

When you subject your company to public trading, you sacrifice privacy, among other things. After “going public” on the stock exchange, your company must:

  • Annually report to the SEC. This report must contain detailed information about exchanges, securities, finances, and more. These reports are available to shareholders and the public.
  • Regularly address shareholders about company directives, finances, and more. Shareholders in a public company also get a say in the company’s direction moving forward. This is true even if shareholders do not share the same goals for the company as the employees.
  • Practice extremely “stringent and complex accounting rules” that differ from private accounting rules. These complex accounting rules often require companies to pay a more experienced accountant, adding to their overhead costs.
  • Subject themselves to regular third-party auditing. If you don’t already know, an audit is an official inspection of a company’s financial accounts.

In short, you sacrifice a great deal of privacy when taking your company public on the stock exchange. So do companies not offer kratom stocks because they’re scared of public scrutiny and SEC reporting? Not exactly.

Why Kratom Investments Don’t Exist in Public Trading

Kratom derives from the Mitragyna speciosa tree, a species of tropical trees native to Southeast Asia. This plant has a storied history. It’s been used as a traditional medicine in Southeast Asia for thousands of years. It only found its way into American markets in the last decade. Because of this, government bodies like the DEA and FDA are still unsure how to treat kratom compounds.

In case you didn’t know, publicly-traded companies have a determined value based on the value of their stocks. If that company becomes involved in controversy or receives bad press, their stock price usually drops. And as you may already know, kratom operates in a legal gray area. The compound is legal to possess and use in most of the U.S., but places like San Diego have banned it over the years. Furthermore, it’s illegal in a handful of countries worldwide.

Selling kratom stocks while kratom legality is still volatile would only lead to scattered stock prices. Furthermore, kratom companies offering shares to buy would be put under increased scrutiny from the DEA, FDA, and SEC. As much as we wish you could invest in kratom, it’s not feasible at this time. 

Will Kratom Stocks Become Available in the Future?

Time will tell! We’re excited and optimistic about the future of kratom investments. However, a lot needs to happen before kratom stocks can begin public trading. For starters, the DEA, FDA, and other government agencies have to implement comprehensive kratom regulations. These regulations would:

  • Regulate kratom markets like other supplements, eliminating kratom scams from the market, and increasing your kratom products’ quality.
  • Implement required third-party lab testing for all kratom products currently on the market. This would remove untrustworthy kratom sellers from the marketplace as well.
  • Provide protections for both kratom consumers and manufacturers, similar to those offered to cannabis companies.
  • Allow kratom companies to access banking. This would expand the overall market, as well as make the market safer.

It’s difficult to foresee kratom stocks entering the public stock exchange before these regulations are enacted. But don’t worry: we’ll be the first to tell you which kratom stocks to buy when such options become available! We’re certain that you’ll be able to invest in kratom one day. But for now, it’s a waiting game.