Another marijuana company is paying big to get in on the Illinois market. Chicago-based Grassroots Cannabis to be sold for $875 million.

Grassroots Cannabis is set to be acquired for $875 million, becoming the latest Chicago-based marijuana company to draw a blockbuster price tag from an out-of-state operator.

Curaleaf Holdings, based in Massachusetts, announced Wednesday morning its plan to acquire Grassroots.

The acquisition will allow Curaleaf to expand its presence into states where it does not already operate, including Illinois. Grassroots operates a cultivation facility in Litchfield and has affiliations with eight dispensaries around the state.

For Grassroots, the deal means a farther reach into states on the East Coast, such as New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Florida, where Curaleaf has focused growth, said Grassroots co-founder and CEO Mitch Kahn. Grassroots operates in 11 states, and Curaleaf in 12. Combined, they will be in 19 states.

“The places we overlap are very minimal, so this really is kind of a perfect match from an asset perspective,” Kahn said

The deal is expected to take six to 12 months to close, Kahn said. It comes as Illinois prepares for recreational marijuana sales, set to begin Jan. 1.

The Illinois marijuana market is expected to reach $1.3 billion by 2023, rivaling Colorado’s, according to data from Chicago-based cannabis research firm Brightfield Group. Overall, U.S. cannabis sales are expected to reach $22.7 billion by 2023, including $16.8 billion in recreational sales. [Read More @ The Chicago Tribune]