Ascend Wellness Holdings Removes CEO, Terminates CFO

NEW YORK, Aug. 27, 2024 – PRESS RELEASE – Ascend Wellness Holdings Inc., a multistate, vertically integrated cannabis operator, announced significant leadership changes as the company continues to align its operations with its long-term strategic goals and financial priorities. As part of this transition, John Hartmann will no longer serve as CEO, and Mark Cassebaum has been terminated as chief financial officer (CFO), effective immediately.

The board of directors appointed Samuel Brill, current director, as CEO.  Brill brings extensive experience in the cannabis space and a deep understanding of the company's financial and strategic priorities as well as robust capital markets knowledge. During his tenure on the board of directors,  Brill helped guide the company through its recently announced refinancing transaction.

Francis Perullo, co-founder and current director, has been appointed as president. Perullo has deep cannabis and operational expertise and will focus on driving operational excellence across all business segments. Perullo has led the company from inception to over a half a billion dollars in revenue over the past five years.

Roman Nemchenko, previously Ascend’s chief accounting officer (CAO), has been appointed as CFO. In his expanded role, Nemchenko will lead the company's financial operations, with a keen focus on improving margins, cash flow and driving financial excellence. During his tenure as CAO, Nemchenko built out the company's accounting and financial operations, led the company through its initial public offering, numerous M&A transactions and the company's tax and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission compliance requirements.

These leadership changes are part of Ascend's commitment to enhancing its operational efficiency and financial performance. The new leadership team is dedicated to driving sustainable growth and delivering long-term value for shareholders, employees and customers.

“We are confident that this hands-on leadership team, with their diverse expertise and deep industry knowledge, will guide Ascend through this next phase of growth,” Ascend Executive Chairman Abner Kurtin said. “The leadership changes come as part of a broader effort to realign our strategy and address recent performance challenges. We are confident that the changes will bring our focus back to the basics with an emphasis on the fundamentals and will position AWH for future success. Our focus will be on improving our operational performance and continuing to deliver high-quality products and services to our customers. The board of directors is committed to supporting the leadership team as they lead the company through this important transition.”