1. Without the trade mission format, it would be impossible to set up 20-30 LP meetings in one day with pre-qualified potential LPs. It would require multiple days and multiple trips. This is a major benefit in terms of dollars, time and energy saved.
2. The same level of meetings would probably require a minimum of two to three trips to meet the same number of high-level people. These additional trips alone are equivalent to or will cost more than the Trade Mission in terms of airfare and hotel.
3. A placement agent would also charge you a commission on your earned management fee and on your performance fee. There are no commissions charged on ANY investments you receive during the Trade Mission.
4. There is a cost in time and energy involved in identifying prospects, securing contact info, contacting the prospects, convincing them to meet and then coordinating the schedule in an efficient manner. The Trade Mission takes place on one day and all the LPs come to your hotel. This is a major advantage and a significant save in time, expense and opportunity cost. As we all know, "Time is Money".

Juan Carlos Lara is the Executive Director of Point5 Family Office, a leading professional services network with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, dedicated to advising Latin American individuals, SMEs, and NGOs to incorporate environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors in an investment portfolio and corporate strategy. As a strategic planner and team head, Mr. Lara leads the effort to solve their clients’ most difficult ESG challenges, achieve their greatest ambitions in the impact investment ecosystem, capitalize on transformative opportunities, and fulfill regulatory requirements.

Taking the reins of this global organization came with the demand for developing a comprehensive, strategic growth plan. A blueprint that draws on the organization’s history while galvanizing it forward with long-range and short-term goals that support the Board of Officers, its global professional services network, and its two sister platforms, the ESG-LAB NGO, and the Fulbright Institute.

Mr. Lara’s strategy has recently spearheaded Point5’s sustainable assessment footprint with the collaboration with the Swiss Government on the Responsible Business Initiative (Konzernverantwortungsinitiative), the Mexican Government of Guanajuato, Instituto Estatal de Capacitacion (IECA), the University of Geneva Master of Environmental Sciences and Master in Wealth Management groups, and the ESG rating ecosystem of Spanish solar farm startups.

Mr. Lara also participates as an anti-money laundering (AML) expert in different investment forums, including the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, and collaborates with the State of Oklahoma to promote and assist foreign companies in relocating to the USA. 

Mr. Lara is a Mexican and an American citizen, is married with three daughters, and has a passion for Social Impact research and Motorcycles.