About Us

EB-5 project financing is a fast growing, highly fragmented industry with substantial room for creative solutions in terms of overall EB-5 project strategy, investment criteria, deal structure, and project marketing.

Our team has extensive experience in business strategy, investment evaluation, securities/tax and immigration law.

Our team has advised companies on growth and investment strategies and has worked on securities offerings and private equity buyouts in the past 20 years.  We encourage foreign nationals to work with us to successfully immigrate to the United States and transition to the American lifestyle.

We work together with committed developer partners who are interested in creating impact to target employment areas.

Our Team

International EB-5 Experience

The First America EB-5 team has a presence in Asia and Latin America with reps based in India, Brazil, China, and other countries.

Our team is on the ground working directly with our clients and gathering the most up-to-date information on the EB-5 investor market. This unparalleled presence allows us to provide strategic early advice to our clients.

Immigration Advisor

Christian Triantaphyllis is a partner at Jackson Walker LLP. Triantaphyllis concentrates his practice on business immigration matters and is a member of the firm’s EB-5 legal team.

Attorney Triantaphyllis possesses first-hand experience assisting foreign nationals from around the world through the EB-5 visa program. He has prepared and filed many I-526 petitions and I-829 petitions for regional center investors and direct investors. He is also experienced in preparing I-924 applications for regional center designation and reviewing EB-5 project documents for compliance with USCIS requirements. Attorney Triantaphyllis makes it easier for his clients to work through the demanding EB-5 immigrant investor process by assisting them in pursuing their immigration goals with a thorough, knowledgeable and enthusiastic approach. He also represents clients on matters pertaining to USCIS, Customs and Border Protection, and Department of State immigration requirements.

Economic Advisor

Michael Kester is Impact DataSource’s lead EB-5 economist, focusing on EB-5 jobs studies, TEA analyses and business plans. He provides EB-5 consulting, services, and deliverables that reflect the evolving needs of EB-5 clients and also the changing requirements of the USCIS. Michael has led a team of economists that have performed more than 450 comprehensive economic studies for EB-5 applications. He also leads the firm’s EB-5 targeted employment area (TEA) team, which has analyzed thousands of sites for TEA-eligibility and assisted clients in obtaining more than 1,000 TEA certifications.

Corporate Real Estate Attorney

Brian Kilb represents companies across a wide range of industries in mergers and acquisitions and other corporate transactions. Brian also represents borrowers and lenders in leveraged acquisition financings and other secured and unsecured senior, mezzanine, and subordinated loan transactions, second-lien financings, asset securitizations and other financing transactions across a wide range of industries, including extensive experience in media and entertainment financing transactions. He also has substantial experience with troubled debt restructurings and pre-bankruptcy workouts, and in connection with equity and debt derivatives.

Founder & CEO

Tala Booker is a managing director at one of the world’s largest financial services institutions. She has been a senior banking executive in Asia-Pacific, the US and Australia.

Tala’s expertise is in reputation management, corporate affairs and communications with a specialization in crisis communications, digital media, and regulatory issues for a complex and listed multinational firms. Tala’s experience also spans brand, employee communications, large-scale change programs and ESG. She is regularly advising and counseling executive teams and boards on reputation and communications matters. 

Tala is a passionate mentor and people leader, priding herself on building globally-connected and high performing teams. She is focused on advancing gender balance both in and out of work.

Tala has a BA in Communications, News, Media and Society from the University of Southern California. Tala is a mother of two, keen traveler and foodie as well as tennis player.