Characteristics of an Emerging Market Investment Facilitator

Barriers to finding emerging market real estate are high. Traveling to the areas where there are opportunities are often involves unique challenges. These run the gamut from stress related problems to cultural differences as fundamental as the inability to converse with another person, to experiencing the risk of death from disease or poisonous animals.

We’re not saying the areas we go are not relatively safe to the natives but due to our immunological differences, and lack of savvy in how to live in remote places, the foreign First World investor takes a personal risk when attempting to do business in a foreign nation.

From the Board Room to the Jungle

An opportunity builder in emerging markets must possess a rare and eclectic group of talents. This person must have experience and comfort in the 50th floor boardroom: be at ease discussing technology in the server room with the tech people on the third floor and be able to converse and sleep with a team of tough foreign laborers or scouts in the jungle. We almost don’t exist as a business person demographic.

You have to like it –and not many do. We sleep in remote, risky places. We regularly get ill or suffer minor injuries. We love it. We’re successful in this type of venture because few would take on what’s required to find the opportunities. That’s our opportunity. We enjoy being here because of the adventure.

ETI is successful for a number of reasons –an important one of these is that there are few people able or willing to do what we do. We don’t see “traditional” business people developing emerging market opportunities. As we meet and get to know our contemporaries in business –the others having come to Panama to develop investments for First World investors -they are, as a group, frontier-types: quick-witted, tough, independent, extremely flexible and creative. When we’re investigating opportunities, we hang out with leather-skinned missionaries, Peace Corps workers, and local scouts.

Our Opportunity

Our biggest economic opportunity is we’re developing business where few are willing to go. We love creating opportunity in this environment. Knowing that not many others would, we have found a financially powerful niche opportunity.