In this episode, Eric Foster, Board Chairman of Cannas Capital Holdings and EquiRate AI, argues that NIL, collectives, and college revenue sharing should be understood as generational wealth pathways—not as threats to college sports.

For decades, universities, coaches, conferences, networks, merchandise companies, and athletic departments generated enormous value from student-athletes while limiting the ability of those athletes to share fairly in the wealth they created. NIL and revenue sharing began to change that. Now, powerful voices are pushing restrictions that would reduce athlete compensation and restore more control to institutions and old-line power brokers.

Eric makes the case that student-athlete compensation is earned income, not charity. He also explains why these opportunities matter for Black, Hispanic, Indigenous, Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, Arab American, multiracial, international, and poor white athletes who may never become professional athletes but can still use college sports to build savings, business experience, investment capital, and a stronger future.

This episode also connects the issue to the broader mission of EquiRate AI and Cannas Capital Holdings: building wealth pathways, strengthening economic opportunity, and supporting people and communities that have too often been blocked from fair access to markets.

Learn more: www.cannascapitalholdings.comContact: [email protected]

In this episode, Eric Foster, Board Chairman of Cannas Capital Holdings and lead on the EquiRate AI initiative, discusses why EquiRate AI opens a common-sense door to more inclusive lending.

The conversation focuses on how traditional underwriting often misses important indicators of stability, discipline, and long-term business potential. Eric explains why factors such as continuing education, financial behavior, housing security, healthcare access, transportation reliability, and community involvement deserve a place in a more complete underwriting framework.

This episode also highlights why that broader approach matters so much for minority-owned businesses and other qualified applicants who have too often faced barriers under narrow conventional lending standards.

Learn more: www.cannascapitalholdings.com  [email protected]

In this episode, Eric Foster, Board Chairman of Cannas Capital Holdings and lead on the EquiRate AI initiative, discusses why social and economic lending metrics represent such an important advance in the underwriting process.

The conversation focuses on how EquiRate AI expands beyond traditional lending criteria by incorporating factors such as continuing education, housing stability, neighborhood cohesion, access to healthcare, reliable transportation, multiple income streams, and community involvement. Eric explains why these dimensions can offer a far more complete and realistic picture of lending readiness and long-term business sustainability.

This episode also highlights why that broader underwriting lens matters so much for minority-owned businesses and why EquiRate AI is designed to support a more inclusive approach to capital access.

Learn more: www.cannascapitalholdings.com

[email protected]

In this episode, Eric Foster, Board Chairman of Cannas Capital Holdings and lead on the EquiRate AI initiative, discusses why understanding the reason behind a lending denial can be just as important as the lending decision itself.

The conversation highlights a major challenge in the business finance space: too many applicants are denied without meaningful feedback about what held them back or what they need to improve. Eric explains why this lack of transparency can become a serious obstacle to business growth and sustainability, especially for minority-owned businesses trying to reach the next stage of development.

Drawing from both EquiRate AI’s first Advisory Board meeting and his own past business experience, Eric explains why clearer output, better guidance, and a practical roadmap for improvement are such important parts of the EquiRate AI solution.

Learn more: www.cannascapitalholdings.com

[email protected]

In this episode, Eric Foster, Board Chairman of Cannas Capital Holdings and lead on the EquiRate AI initiative, discusses why businesses need more than a denial when they apply for funding.

The conversation focuses on a major gap in the lending process: too many applicants are told they do not qualify, but they are not given meaningful feedback about what held them back or what they need to improve. Eric explains why this issue matters, especially for minority-owned businesses, and how EquiRate AI is designed to provide greater clarity, support, and a practical roadmap toward stronger approval readiness.

Drawing from his own business experience, Eric also explains why understanding failure points is often the first step toward building a better path to long-term success.

Learn more: www.cannascapitalholdings.com

[email protected]

In this episode, Eric Foster, Board Chairman of Cannas Capital Holdings and lead on the EquiRate AI initiative, discusses the constant turbulence facing the cannabis industry and the need for practical solutions.

The conversation focuses on how federal and state-level developments continue to create uncertainty for cannabis businesses, and why capital access remains one of the most important structural issues in the industry.

Eric explains why Cannas Capital Holdings created EquiRate AI: many underwriting and lending models are still built for traditional businesses and do not fully account for the realities and strengths of minority-owned cannabis companies. EquiRate AI is designed to support a more inclusive and informed approach to lending in the cannabis sector.

Learn more at:www.cannascapitalholdings.com

EquiRate AI and the Need for Real Solutions for Minority Businesses

In this episode, Eric Foster, Board Chairman of Cannas Capital Holdings and lead on the EquiRate AI initiative, discusses the need for real, proactive solutions to help minority-owned businesses grow and sustain themselves.

The conversation focuses on persistent barriers facing businesses of color, including limited access to capital, insufficient institutional knowledge transfer, growth challenges, and the need for stronger policy support.

Eric explains why Cannas Capital Holdings created EquiRate AI: waiting and hoping someone else would solve these gaps was never a strategy. EquiRate AI was built as a practical tool to help address those barriers and support stronger opportunity for minority-owned businesses.

Learn more at:www.cannascapitalholdings.comContact: [email protected]

EquiRate AI is building an inclusive lending and social capital lending model that is on the ballot for ASTM International approval as a potential global standard for finance.

I’m Eric Foster, Board Chair of Cannas Capital Holdings and EquiRate AI. This video is a direct invitation to join our EquiRate AI Advisory Board.

Why this matters

If a model is intended to support financial inclusion at scale—across communities and across institutions—it needs more than a strong internal team. It needs external perspectives, real-world expertise, and cross-sector credibility.

Even with a committed board and a talented team, you can never have too many people who bring knowledge and experience—especially when the work touches:

* regulation and compliance

* financial risk and system design

* consumer trust and community adoption

* impact outcomes and equity execution

* capital infrastructure and lending practice

Who we’re looking for

We are recruiting advisors across several domains, including:

Policy & Regulatory LeadersPeople who understand how lending standards and governance frameworks intersect with public policy, consumer protections, and implementation pathways.

Risk, Financial Systems, and Insurance ExpertsProfessionals who can assess risk structure, system design, and how underwriting and insurance frameworks shape capital availability.

Social & Economic Impact LeadersCivil rights, community wealth builders, philanthropic leaders, and impact strategists who can help align outcomes with real community needs.

Academic & Research ExpertsFinancial inclusion researchers, university economic development leaders, and scholars working on the data and frameworks that drive measurable inclusion.

Capital & Financing InfrastructureBanks, CDFIs, credit unions, and other lending ecosystem leaders who know what it takes to deploy capital at scale—responsibly and effectively.

The goal

This is not about slogans or “pie in the sky.” This is about the real work:

* helping people access capital to build sustainable businesses

* supporting job creation and higher wages

* increasing community investment

* restoring real, tangible hope rooted in results

How to join

If you want to contribute your expertise and help shape the future of inclusive lending, reach out:

📩 [email protected]🌐 www.cannascapitalholdings.com

Please like, subscribe, and share this message with a leader who should be in the room.

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Inclusive lending can’t be built in a room with only one type of expertise.

I’m Eric Foster, Board Chairman of Cannas Capital Holdings and EquiRate AI (formerly Bank Black). I’m inviting leaders from across sectors to join our EquiRate AI Advisory Board.

Why we’re building an Advisory Board

EquiRate AI is focused on modernizing how access to capital works—especially for communities that have historically been underserved or evaluated through outdated lending assumptions.

But here’s what experience taught me (including as a former business owner who learned the hard way):You can’t limit the people in the room when you’re building something that has to work in the real world.

Inclusive lending isn’t only about underwriting.It’s also about:

* Communication and trust

* Community access and engagement

* Consumer understanding and adoption

* Regulatory alignment and compliance

* Practical pathways for borrowers to navigate the system

Why diverse backgrounds matter

As we build, we’re already seeing how valuable cross-sector voices are. For example, we have commitment from an elected State Board of Education member—someone who brings community insight and education experience. That matters because education and communication will be essential to help diverse applicants understand:

* what inclusive lending means

* how it works

* how to access it

* why it’s different from what they’ve experienced before

We need advisors who can help build bridges:

* Between lenders and communities

* Between regulators and innovators

* Between a model and the people it’s designed to serve

Who we’re looking for

We welcome individuals with experience in:

* Banking, lending, credit, underwriting, CDFIs, credit unions

* Compliance, risk, legal, governance

* State/local regulation and public policy

* Education and workforce development

* Labor and employer networks

* Community leadership and consumer engagement

* Communications and community-based outreach infrastructure

How to get involved

If you’re interested in joining our Advisory Board—or you know someone who should be in the room—reach out:

📩 [email protected]🌐 www.cannascapitalholdings.com

If this resonates, please like, subscribe, and share this video with someone who believes access to capital should reflect real potential—not outdated templates.

Common Sense by Eric Foster is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Thanks for reading Common Sense by Eric Foster! This post is public so feel free to share it.

In today’s economy, a lot of young adults, small business owners, and minority entrepreneurs feel the same pressure: the system doesn’t seem designed to include them—especially when it comes to capital.

I’m Eric Foster, Board Chairman of Cannas Capital Holdings and EquiRate AI (formerly Bank Black). This video explains why we built EquiRate AI and what problem we’re solving.

The problem: underwriting hasn’t evolved for modern reality

Traditional underwriting too often relies on narrow signals that don’t reflect the full story of a capable entrepreneur—especially for:

* Young founders early in their credit journey

* Minority entrepreneurs facing historical capital access barriers

* Small business owners building in emerging markets

* Builders with strong fundamentals but “nontraditional” profiles

That doesn’t mean risk isn’t real—it means the industry needs better tools to measure risk more accurately and evaluate applicants more completely.

The solution: EquiRate AI modernizes how lending decisions get made

EquiRate AI is structured around a simple question:How do we improve underwriting so qualified entrepreneurs are evaluated on the totality of what they bring to the table?

Our mission is to create a more inclusive, modern approach to lending decisions—so that opportunity is not limited to people who already have access.

Why we’re starting with the cannabis industry

We’re targeting cannabis first because it’s one of the few sectors where the runway for new entrepreneurs is still real.

In industries like automotive, the scale required to start and grow into a major market leader is extreme. But cannabis remains a market where—with the right structure, support, and access to capital—new entrants can still build companies that scale significantly.

The question isn’t whether entrepreneurs exist. The question is whether the capital system is built to support the best builders—or only the most connected.

Who should connect with us

If you are a:

* Financial institution leader (banks, credit unions, CDFIs)

* Impact investor or fund manager

* Operator or entrepreneur building in cannabis or adjacent regulated industries

* Policy, compliance, risk, or fintech leader interested in inclusive underwriting

…I want to hear from you.

Contact me at:

Eric Foster

Board Chairman

Cannas Capital Holdings, LLC

Email: [email protected]

If this message resonates, please like, subscribe, and share this video with someone building a business who needs to hear: don’t lose hope—solutions are being built.

Common Sense by Eric Foster is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Thanks for reading Common Sense by Eric Foster! This post is public so feel free to share it.