Hemp executives with White House ties allege First Citizens Bank swept $70K, defaults AMEX

Big banks continue to balk at US cannabis vendors due to federal laws. Meanwhile, a small number of mid-sized trusts dedicate divisions to the industry, despite the associated risk. First Citizens Bank is litigating against a debtor alleging overdue funds in one example. The defendant is a hemp-compliant cannabis company with executives close to the White House. They denied claims of overdue payments and further alleged that First Citizens negligently swept funds from their accounts last September. The suit follows closely behind a default motion by AMEX against the same executive and an adjacent franchise.

Amex

Reports indicate that big banks have closed or refused vendor accounts of marijuana or Delta-8 brands. American Express Company, for example, began following more stringent risk-averse practices once it surpassed its asset goal two years ago. The bank is known for avoiding hemp retailers involved in minor cannabinoid sales. In a credit collection case filed by AMEX in Denton County, however, Jeffrey Worley and MC Botanicals are listed as defendants. A presiding Judge disposed of the matter on a default judgment before it ordered a new trial.

We have access to a public docket summary. (1) Claims, defenses, and details — such as the value of alleged debts owed by the defense — are confidential. With that said, county courts generally litigate smaller sums under $250,000. An MC Botanicals webpage functions as a hemp-compliant THCa retailer, although Congress will not federally enforce acids and isomers of D9-Tetrahydroncannabinol as marijuana until after November 12.

The reason why AMEX filed the collection suit remains undisclosed to the public. We found two unrelated suits filed by American Express subsidiaries against a hemp grower and a hemp-oil retailer from 2021 and early 2024, respectively. AMEX then surpassed a $250B asset requirement in the third quarter of 2024. Its policies always restricted marijuana-related entities. But after the upgrade, the bank included “…& cannabis–related” as an addition to its list of prohibited and restricted businesses.

The two earlier cases that we found were each filed in a county court in New York and occurred before AMEX became a Category III bank. The Denton County lawsuit stood out as an exception in our research because Worley registered MC Botanicals in 2025. Hemp is a federally legal classification of cannabis based on a 0.3% THC threshold. Whereas Marijuana is listed under Schedule 1 of the Controlled Substances Act (with a planned change to Schedule 3 enforced by Executive Order 14370.) Despite federal law, the bank’s policy update defines CBD oil as a derivative under a UK exemption for marijuana/cannabis-related entities –

“Any individual or Entity that manufactures, processes, distributes, or dispenses marijuana, or byproducts or derivatives of marijuana, whether for recreational or medicinal purposes, and whether or not subject to a governmental licensing regime. *For the EEA/UK, this excludes products manufactured using marijuana derivatives within legal limits to the extent permissible by Applicable Law, for example, cannabidiol (CBD) drinks and oils.” — AMEX Merchant Regulations. (October 2024 to current at the time of publication.)

SAFE

The American Express Company spent $860,000 on lobbying efforts in Washington, DC across a breadth of issues in 2024. In contrast to its policies, corporate filings indicate that the financial services company included the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act in its scope of issues. If passed, the Act would allow them to do business with marijuana-related entities on a Federal level. Lobbying records by AMEX, at least, suggest a level of openness to the industry.

First Citizens BancShares, Inc., with its headquarters in North Carolina, is a member of the Mid-Size Bank Coalition of America. Alessandro DiNello, Chairman of the coalition, wrote a letter to Congress supporting the SAFE Banking Act in 2019. Ryan Palmquest, Senior Vice President of First Citizens, was later appointed as the bank’s Director of Cannabis Business in 2021. Unlike AMEX, the North Carolina bank remains slightly below Category III status. With assets of $230B reported at the end of last year, though, Bancshares will likely upgrade its policies in time for H.R. 5371 this November.

First Citizens Trust and Bank

MC Nutraceuticals exists as separate Colorado and Texas entities under the MC Global umbrella. It features a European entity known as MC Wellness (International) Limited, which was established in Ireland by Bret Worley as its Director and President. Subsidiaries under the Wellness brand include, but are not limited to, a Czech franchise known as STRATUM 8 RE EUROPE s.r.o. Keep in mind that the structure of the minor cannabinoid franchise features recent changes. Jeff Worley registered an MC corporation in Texas, for example, one week after the Appropriations Bill entered the public record last September. More recently, his son took over as the Registered Agent for the Colorado branch.

First Citizens Bank and Trust Company filed a suit against MC Global Holdings LLC and its franchises on February 27. (2) Litigation is rooted in a commercial lending dispute between the parties, stemming from a $1,000,000 loan issued in September 2023. Stratum 8 Enterprises Inc., a Texas corporation registered by Jeffrey Worley, received a summons alongside MC-affiliated entities. First Citizens seeks to recover funds that it alleges are overdue.

MC alleges damages

MC Nutraceuticals denied defaulting under the terms of the promissory note in response to the complaint against it by First Citizens. The cannabinoid wholesaler essentially denied that it is overdue on over $900,000 in credit. The defendants contest both the validity of the claimed default and the bank’s entitlement to enforce the loan. MC and its executives assert that the circumstances surrounding the alleged default are disputed and attributable, in significant part, to the bank’s own misconduct.

They further claim that the bank committed unclean business practices that negated their ability to fulfill inventory orders. The cannabinoid wholesaler, specifically, contends that the bank did not properly comply with standard fiduciary practices. Defendants assert that the bank failed to satisfy contractual responsibilities to enforce the loan and, therefore, deny that First Citizens is entitled to relief.

MC Nutraceuticals argument further asserts that any alleged default or damages were caused by the bank’s actions during the course of the contract. They allege that the bank conducted unauthorized account sweeps, failed to timely fund loan advances, and interfered with operations by freezing incoming customer payments. As a result, Defendants deny that the complaint establishes a legally sufficient basis for recovery and assert that claims filed by First Citizen should be dismissed, in whole or in part. Plaintiffs have not yet responded to the defense and still have time to accept or deny the allegations. Courts quickly scheduled the case to move into a discovery period that will proceed over the next twenty-eight weeks.

Retriever Consulting

We previously discussed a one-step-removed work association between Worley’s spouse and Pat Summerall, the late father of the White House Chief of Staff, Susie Wiles. Both family members worked for CBS Sports or an affiliate network as a broadcaster.

The old connection came to light in our investigation after court filings alleged that Worley’s son and business partner is in a relationship with the Chief of Staff’s daughter — Caroline Wiles. A Politico profile highlighted that the two met at Trump’s 2025 inauguration, despite the coincidental family connection leading back to 1983. A countersuit filed by Asterra Labs suggested that MC Botanicals' executives used family ties to the White House to leverage a $2.5M partnership. (3)

Business filings published by the State of Florida days after Asterra amended its countersuit proved ties between the Worley and Summerall families. One week after the hemp-redefining Appropriations Bill first entered the House last year, Jeffrey Worley registered Retriever Consulting. It is an LLC formed in Florida last year managed by Caroline Wiles. Worley then registered a new corporation in Texas named MC Nutraceuticals Inc. one day later on September 23.

The collection suits do not mention the Florida LLC or the new MC corporation. With that said, courts have now scheduled both — the First Citizens' complaint against the cannabinoid wholesaler and the contract dispute between hemp executives — for discovery. Subpoenas and other records exposed in the process might reveal more information regarding District and County collection suits against the hemp-compliant cannabis company.

Sources

1. CV-2026-00018

2. 4:26-cv-00213

3. 5:25-cv-00400