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Tag: vape

  • Greentank Gets Millions for Vape Technology

    Greentank Gets Millions for Vape Technology

    Image: Tobacco Reporter archive

    Vape hardware manufacturer Greentank Technologies closed a Series B financing round worth $16.5 million with an unspecified “strategic investor group” that includes Canadian cannabis producer Organigram Holdings.

    The funding will be used to launch new vape technology, which Greentank CEO Dustin Koffler said in a statement, “moves away from the traditional ceramic and wicked coil systems commonly used in most vaporizer products today.”

    The technology “is expected to launch later this year and serve multiple markets beyond cannabis,” Toronto-based Greentank said in a news release, according to MJ Biz Daily.

    The $16.5 million funding round includes a $14.5 million equity investment from the investment group plus $2 million in debt financing from existing shareholders.

    The terms of the debt financing were not disclosed.

    In a statement, Greentank said its new vape technology “will expand its reach beyond cannabis to serve the broader vape category, including nicotine, e-liquids, pharmaceuticals and more.”

  • Vape Manufacturers Must Register

    Vape Manufacturers Must Register

    Image: chrisdorney | Adobe Stock

    Following the removal of nicotine e-liquid or gel from the Poisons Act 1952 to allow for e-cigarettes and vaping products to be taxed in Malaysia, local manufacturers producing e-liquid or gel products containing nicotine must register their manufacturing activities with the Customs Department by April 30, according to the Ministry of Finance (MOF), reports The Edge Markets and Free Malaysia Today.

    “Early registration within this prescribed period may prevent manufacturers from being charged a compound for the offense of late registration. This early registration will ensure comprehensive industry compliance and smooth tax collection by May 2023,” the MOF said in a statement.

    This follows the imposition of an excise tax of 40 sen ($0.004) per milliliter on nicotine e-liquids or gels.

    Prime Minister and Finance Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced the government’s plan to impose an excise tax on liquid or gel products containing nicotine when he re-tabled Budget 2023 in February.

    The previous government under Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s administration also proposed to extend tax collection from gel or liquid products containing nicotine for vapes and e-cigarettes in the tabling of Budget 2022 by imposing a tax of RM1.20 per milliliter. However, the plan was postponed because nicotine vape liquid was still classified as a Class C poison under the Poisons Act.

    The new excise duty, the MOF said, would enable the government to tax the vape industry, which is estimated to be worth over RM2 billion ($454 million), and at the same time help discourage the use of vapes.

    It will also help improve rules and control of excise duty goods by customs to avoid leakage of national income, according to media reports.

  • Taiwan Set to Ban Nicotine Vapes

    Taiwan Set to Ban Nicotine Vapes

    Image: Tobacco Reporter archive

    Taiwan is set to become the next Asian country to ban nicotine vaping products, reports Filter.

    The Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act cleared the legislative floor earlier this month and now awaits presidential approval, which is expected because President Tsai Ing-wen is a member of the party that proposed the act.

    Taiwan seems to be following behind Japan, which banned nicotine vapes but allows heated-tobacco products. India and Thailand have also banned vapes.

    Taiwan’s ban will include use of e-cigarettes, and violators will face penalties of up to $330.

    “The issue did not have enough public discussion, and the approach to harm reduction should be more thoroughly debated,” said Simon Lee, the Taiwan policy fellow at the Consumer Choice Center, a global consumer advocacy group in Washington. “For instance, we have seen misinformation, especially with regard to nicotine, circulating among anti-tobacco activists. It is beyond reasonable doubt that Taiwan’s consumers deserve a much better outcome.”

  • Vape Merchants Must Register with BIR

    Vape Merchants Must Register with BIR

    Image: Tobacco Reporter archive

    The Philippine Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has requested that vape merchants register their businesses to avoid serious consequences in the future, reports the Manila Bulletin.

    Criminal tax evasion charges will be filed against merchants that do not comply with revenue regulations, according to BIR Commissioner Romeo D. Lumagui Jr. Tax evasion charges were previously brought against five major importers and distributors of vapor products, totaling over PHP1 billion ($18.2 million).

    Under the law, first-time offenders face a fine of PHP2 million and up to two years in jail. Second-time offenders face a fine of PHP4 million and up to four years in jail. Third-time offenders face a fine of PHP5 million and up to six years in jail. Foreign nationals caught breaking the law would face immediate deportation after serving the appropriate jail term.

  • China: Flavored Vape Ban Takes Effect

    China: Flavored Vape Ban Takes Effect

    Image: Arcady

    China’s ban on flavored vapor products takes effect on Oct. 1 along with other new vaping product standards that were decided on earlier this year, reports Vaping360.

    In November 2021, Chinese law was amended to bring the vapor industry under control of the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration (STMA), which regulates China’s tobacco products.

    Vapers are rushing to buy and hoard flavored vapor products before the ban takes effect on Saturday, according to Vaping360. It is not clear yet if the ban will create a large black market in the country; China is known to punish illicit sellers harshly.

    Products meant for export will not have to meet Chinese standards unless the destination country does not have its own specific standards.

    China’s new rules also require domestic e-cigarette manufacturers and traders to obtain a license before operating their business, according to The Global Times.

    E-cigarettes cannot be sold to customers under 18, and the sale points cannot be near schools or kindergartens. Warning signs must also be placed at the e-cigarette sale points, and self-service sales are banned.

    Manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers of e-cigarettes, vaporizers and e-liquid are required to conduct their business on specific platforms that are subject to STMA supervision.

    The rules also forbid the advertising of e-cigarettes in the mass media or in public places.

    The iiMedia Research Institute expects China’s e-cigarette market to be worth RMB25.52 billion ($3.57 billion) by the end of 2022 and RMB45.43 billion by the end of 2023.