Shopify will ban the sale of vape products across its US platform after pressure from a coalition of 25 state attorneys general pushing the company to crack down on unlicensed e-cigarettes sold online. The AGs singled out Shopify in an effort to curb illegal vapes, usually made in China, that remain widely available in the US despite being illegal to import or sell, with the broader illegal market estimated at $9B. The ban will apply to all vapes and related products regardless of whether they hold regulatory authorization, though it’s unclear whether it extends beyond the US. Shopify, which provides the infrastructure merchants use to run their online stores, has seen its stock fall 31% this year.
