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Canopy Growth, a cannabis company publicly traded in Canada and the United States, on Wednesday terminated its finance chief, Judy Hong, "without cause."
In a July 9 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, company officials said Hong has been terminated, effective immediately. Canopy Growth noted the move is "not related to the company's financial or operating results or to any disagreements or concerns regarding the company's financial or reporting practices."
The news comes as Canopy Growth faces an ongoing class action lawsuit brought by investors who claim the company misled them on the business's prospects. The suit, filed in April 2025 in the U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of New York, names Canopy Growth, former CEO Bruce Baron and Hong as defendants. Plaintiffs allege the company downplayed the costs of launching a new line of joints and acquiring a vaporizer company.
Canopy Growth officials said Hong's termination has nothing to do with the class action suit. "Judy Hong's departure was not related to performance or to any ongoing legal matters," the company said in an email.
A Goldman Sachs alum, Hong first joined Canopy Growth as vice president of investor relations in December 2019, according to her LinkedIn page. By November 2021, she was promoted to interim CFO. She took on the position permanently in March 2022.
In a news release, Canopy Growth officials spoke positively of Hong's tenure at the firm, noting she "played a key role in improving the company's capital structure and significantly strengthening its financial position."
"Canopy Growth thanks Ms. Hong for her leadership and support of its strategic vision," the company said in the release.
The company has appointed Tom Stewart, previously vice president of finance, to serve as interim CFO. In an email, Canopy Growth said his appointment "aligns with our focus on operational efficiency and disciplined capital management."
Canopy Growth has struggled to maintain profitability, having recorded six-figure net losses in each of the last two fiscal years. Shares of the company are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange in Canada and Nasdaq in the United States. Cannabis businesses face a unique set of challenges in the United States. For one, section 280E of the Internal Revenue Code prohibits companies that deal with federally controlled substances from deducting business expenses, complicating the effective tax rates for cannabis firms.