EB5 Investors Magazine | Page 40

TRUST There’s a lot at stake when it comes to EB-5 projects. Your reputation, for starters. 1/2 pageAd We started AISA with a simple goal: give our EB-5 clients the highest standard professional support to enable them to select the right project for their needs. Our senior team members developed expertise at world-class institutions. We bring extensive financial knowledge and institutional quality due diligence to the EB-5 market while ensuring full compliance with U.S. and international financial regulations. To learn more, visit AISAeb5.com. 312 S. Fourth Street, Suite 700 // Louisville, Kentucky 40202, USA // aisaeb5.com AISA_IIUSA_HalfPage_TRUST_FIN.indd 1 Continued from page 37 6/8/15 2:22 PM Over that last two quarters, there has been an increase in the number of countries within Latin America where investors are coming from. The charts also show a dramatic increase in investor flow from Brazil. So much so that it has emerged as the largest source for EB-5 investors within Latin America. While the number of non-Chinese investors is still comparatively very small, this is particularly interesting given that Brazil was the 14th country behind China on the USCIS list. Moreover, in the last quarter, the number of investors from Brazil was greater than Mexico and equivalent to the number of investors from South Korea, which has historically been the second largest market. This surge may be attributable to recent political and economic uncertainty in Brazil stemming from a massive scandal that involves allegations of kickbacks and corruption by the president’s political party. The scandal has also impacted the country’s largest construction companies and paralyzed infrastructure development. From an economic point of view, the currency is at its lowest point in over a decade. GDP is projected to contract, interest rates are high, and inflation is over 8 percent. For example, it is likely that differences in investor motivation from one region to another will impact the types of offerings that can be marketed successfully. This might mean that in order to meet the needs of investors, issuers will have to structure their offerings for the same project differently according to the market. If this emerges as a trend, it will be interesting to see whether terms in one market impact another. Only time will tell how all of this will play out. ★ Source: https://iiusa.org/blog/research-analysis/economic-impact-research-analysis/ department-state-dos-fy2014-statistics-reveals-important-trends-eb5-visa-usage-market-diversification/ 1 Reid Thomas It is not expected that growth in any of these other markets will impact the overall investor flow from China. However, it will be interesting to see if there are other factors that influence the industry as a result. 38 EB5 INVESTORS MAGAZINE Reid Thomas serves as the executive vice president for NES Financial. Responsible for global sales and marketing, he brings over 20 years of sales and marketing leadership in both public and private high-growth Silicon Valley technology companies. Thomas has been instrumental in the growth of the company’s EB-5 business, providing innovative solutions specifically built for the industry. Thomas’ active participation in t he EB-5 community makes him a frequent speaker at events and conferences across the country. He has written numerous articles, blogs and white papers on the topics of escrow and fund administration.