LOS ANGELES, March 5, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- P. Vincent Mehdizadeh, founder and current majority shareholder of Medbox, Inc. (OTCQB:MDBX) announced today that an agreement has been executed with Lizada Capital LLC, an investor in the field of legal cannabis products, that would result in the transfer of the majority of Mr. Mehdizadeh's shares of MDBX to that firm.
Under the agreement, Lizada would purchase 22,160,000 shares, representing 2,000,000 preferred shares and 12,160,000 common shares of Medbox for upwards of $15 million. A total of $5 million of the funds have been designated for purchase of Medbox restricted shares of common stock, directly from Medbox, at $2 per share in the name of Mr. Mehdizadeh's holding company, PVM International, Inc.
"Bringing on Lizada will help take Medbox to the next level while staying true to the principles that the company was founded on," stated Vincent Mehdizadeh, founder and current majority shareholder of Medbox. "I have sought out and executed this deal in order to fund the company with $5 million in capital infusion. This capital will help build out the infrastructure necessary to implement a business model of sustained and perpetual revenue for many years to come. Funding the company and bringing in a player like Lizada is a huge shift in the right direction for Medbox and its shareholders."
Under the deal, Mr. Mehdizadeh will keep and acquire in excess of five million total shares of Medbox common stock.
The transaction has 6 separate closings over the course of 18 months, with each of the first 5 closings being in the amount of $2 million dollars to be paid to Mehdizadeh's holding company and Medbox equally, to satisfy the $5 million dollar direct investment component of the transaction. The 6th and final closing has a performance contingency and is in the amount of $5 million dollars paid directly to Mehdizadeh's holding company.
A representative of Lizada will join Medbox's board of directors within the next 90 days, after the first closing is set to occur.
A spokesman for Lizada Capital LLC noted, "We see incredible opportunity for growth at Medbox and look forward to working with our fellow board members to realize all of the possibilities that exist for this already well-established legal cannabis enterprise."
Mehdizadeh further commented, "I look forward to developing assets within the cannabis sector, outside of Medbox, with the hope to someday bring those assets to Medbox for consideration as potential acquisition targets. My loyalty, allegiance, and consulting talent will always have precedence for Medbox and I will make myself available to the board and management team in perpetuity."
About P. Vincent Mehdizadeh, Founder and Majority Shareholder at Medbox, Inc.
P. Vincent Mehdizadeh founded Medbox's main subsidiary, Medicine Dispensing Systems, in February 2008. He commenced operations for that company in 2010, and in December of 2011 sold that company to what became Medbox, Inc. Mr. Mehdizadeh served as senior consultant from December 2012 until May 10, 2013 for Medbox, Inc. and then transitioned to Chief Operations Officer and Board Chairman for Medbox, Inc. through May of 2014. Mr. Mehdizadeh was responsible for creating the two main patents behind the company's technology, helping to assemble the talented board/management team at Medbox, and also developing the concept behind the business models driving revenue for the company. Mr. Mehdizadeh was responsible for funding and the creation of the Marijuana Policy Project "Consume Responsibly" campaign, as well as the Americans For Safe Access "Medicate Responsibly" campaign. Mehdizadeh has donated over $2 million dollars to Americans for Safe Access (ASA), Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), Drug Policy Alliance (DPA), Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
About Lizada Capital LLC:
Lizada is a privately held entity formed in 2004 for the principal purpose of investing in emerging market opportunities. In 2013, following a two-year period of industry evaluation, the company started primarily focusing on the cannabis industry, Since then, Lizada has invested in public companies including GW Pharmaceuticals, AmeriCann and CannLabs and private companies, CDX, MJIC, Panther Capital, New Frontier, Noble Blends, Medicine Man Technologies, Las Vegas CannaPlex and Quigley's.