The IOC team is comprised of experts familiar with the rapid growth, complexity, and demands of offset policies that lead to the discharge of current and future obligations including tighter implementation timelines. Each member of the IOC team provide a foundational understanding of the make-up of offset criteria by providing strong transactional strategies and creativity in dealing with an increasingly sophisticated and demanding customer.
Team
Management Team
Matthew Talbert
Chief Executive Officer
Matthew Talbert is a senior corporate executive who has built his reputation by applying his management and creative skills to a variety of successful business ventures.
He founded International Trade Finance Corporation, an international extension of his previous successful business venture, ABS Worldwide, Inc., a U.S.-based corporate barter company serving the Fortune 500.
Mr. Talbert founded Flight Environments, the worldwide leader in aviation insulation and acoustics, Sunswept Pacific Communication which produces and manages special events throughout the U.S. for corporate and non-profit associations and other clients. Mr. Talbert founded Contract Publishing, a sponsored publishing firm publishing 23 titles. Titles included the Beverly Hills Telephone Book, BMW Magazine, PGA Directories, the Los Angeles Advertising Club Belding Awards program and several publications for the Economic Development Corporation of Los Angeles.
Mr. Talbert also founded Associated Outdoor Services which became the second largest Outdoor buying service in California. He has had a successful career in the jewelry industry graduating from the Gemological Institute of America, and has been a Senior Member of the National Association of Jewelry Appraisers. Mr. Talbert has a degree in business management from California State University Northridge and attended California Polytechnic University in San Luis Obispo with an accounting major.
He is owner of Pritchard Hill Vineyards in Paso Robles, California and was the owner of Veris Cellars. Veris is one of the area’s most prestigious wineries, producing high quality estate wines from 200 acres of various grape varietals.
Mr. Talbert has been featured in the Los Angeles Business Journal and quoted in such nationally respected publications such as Nation’s Business and Entrepreneur. He’s made appearances on numerous radio programs and CNN. He has sat on the boards of the Corporate Trade Council (CTC) and the International Reciprocal Trade Association (IRTA).
In the spirit of philanthropy he has seen the need and desperation of people in third world countries, and the devastating effects of what the lack of clean water create. In hopes of helping and leaving a legacy of giving back, he has pursued and developed the least expensive drilling equipment for retrieving water, specific for third world applications. As Chief Executive Officer, Matthew Talbert oversees all business operations, strategies, and partnerships at Aquafor. He funded and built Borelite which organizes and creates this wonderful tool to restore new life to these dire conditions and is proud to leave behind a footprint of hope.
Talbert is an avid pilot and flies a King Air airplane. He’s also a scuba enthusiast holding advanced levels of certification including deep diving, search and recovery and rescue diver. Further, Mr. Talbert is a semi-professional race car driver, owning race teams and driving in such prestigious events as the 24hrs of Daytona. He is also a student of martial arts and has been practicing for over 20 years.
Scott Nates
Chief Development Officer
Scott Nates is a proven leader, entrepreneur and dealmaker specializing in fostering profitable relationships with his clients that yield long-term growth and exceptional returns. At International Offset Corporation, Nates will be responsible for leading business development, trade fulfillment and creating and maintaining capital and strategic partnerships. Nates most recently founded a real estate consulting company in 2007 focused on the sourcing and structuring of distressed and performing whole loan transactions primarily in the United States. In recent years, his firm has gone on to exclusively represent two of the largest and most respected private equity groups in the world, closing on approximately $1 billion in note transactions representing over 700M in equity disbursed by his clients. He has been instrumental in creating and structuring large transactions by and between some of the largest institutions in the world. He remains very deeply connected to the finance and capital world with hundreds of relationships with key decision makers at the largest investment and commercial banks, as well as private equity and hedge funds around the globe. Nates graduated from the University of Maryland, Robert H. Smith School of Business with a B.S. in Marketing and Finance, where he also served as a mentor to inner city children. He now resides in Los Angeles with his wife and son. Nates is also a former nationally ranked tennis player who still enjoys playing competitive tennis and golf in his leisure time.
John Kneisel
Chief Financial Officer
John Kneisel brings more than three decades of business management experience to Aquafor. In 2009 he established a consulting firm to provide quality professional financial management for small to medium entrepreneurial concerns. He has served as CFO/Controller for several companies, including a software development and professional services company that delivers high-tech solutions and services to the US Military and other agencies, middle-market manufacturing entities, and the financial liaison between owners and their accounting departments. He focuses on business process, financial and operation efficiency.
As Regional Controller for a Fortune 500, company, he provided financial support to operational management while managing the monthly and quarterly close of four business units. He created a regional accounts payable department, and coordinated the consolidation of several subsidiaries into a regional accounting center. Kneisel also served as a general business consultant to his clients, assisting in the implementation of operational controls. His experience has benefited clients from several industries, including medium to high-technology manufacturing and distribution companies, software developers, professional service providers, automotive agencies, financial institutions and finance companies.
Kneisel graduated from California State University, Northridge with a B.S. in Business Administration. He was the founding President of a professional business fraternity and has served on the Boards of Directors of several non-profit.
Collin Subbotin
Senior Project Manager – Agriculture and Organics
Collin oversees the development and management of all Agricultural and Organic projects for IOC globally. Currently Collin is managing projects in the United States, Middle East and Micronesia.
While in the process of obtaining his Agricultural Business degree at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Collin was instrumental in the development and management of several agricultural projects and developments including the founding the first Mycology Association at the university. He also conducted intensive research on vegetative crops and the symbiotic relations of mycelium networks.
While attending school he also began his first business venture which was the creation of a very successful landscape operation operating both on the Central Coast of California and in the Northern Sierras. Additionally, Collin managed the design and building of a solar powered pasteurizer with cross application in multiple industries.
Growing up in Northern California with close proximity to Lake Tahoe, Collin is a zealous snowboarder and is keen about a handful of hobbies pertaining to the outdoors. He thoroughly enjoys backpacking the Northern Sierra Foothills in California and the coastlines of Big Sur. His appreciation for anything in the natural world runs deep and aids to a unique ability to solve
business ventures of any scale.
Gregory Tosi
Director – Caribbean and Latin America
Gregory Tosi is a campaign tested, Washington, DC attorney. Prior to joining IOC, Greg served as General and Legislative Counsel for Senator Mark Kirk (R-IL) and Legislative Director for Puerto Rico’s Resident Commission, Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colon (R-PR). In advancing the legislative agendas of these lawmakers, Greg wrote new, original initiatives for reforming the U.S. Export-Import Bank, taxation, Iran sanctions, appropriations, combating human trafficking, interrupting ISIS financing, in addition to guiding U.S. District Court and Assistant U.S. Attorney nominees through committee their testimony, votes, and confirmations. In support of these efforts Greg organized supporting stakeholder coalitions and overcame the objections of Washington’s most powerful lobbying interests.
Greg transformed the Washington image of a 70 year old, 30,000 member engineering-technical society into a well-known, Capitol Hill force and a leading advocate for improving public and private infrastructure and delivered the association’s first legislative successes with first of its kind transportation legislation, which saved millions of taxpayer dollars. Further, Greg spearheaded the creation of a political action committee and provided legal advice regarding the PAC’s formation, fundraising, and strategy.
While working at the National Republican Campaign Committee, Greg advised 435 U.S. House of Representatives campaigns on laws pertaining to elections, voting rights, recounts, campaign advertising, campaign finance, and fund raising.
Prior to his coming to Washington, for fourteen years Greg operated a multi-office law practice, litigating securities, commercial investment, environmental, zoning, land use, and taxation issues. Additionally, Greg negotiated and drafted commercial contracts pertaining to business transactions, film financing, distribution, product merchandising, literary options, and employment.
Greg is a graduate of the University of San Diego School of Law, receiving both a J.D. (1989) and LL.M., in taxation (1990). Additionally, Greg has a M.A. from Southern Methodist University (Dallas, TX 1986) and a B.A. from Calvin College (Grand Rapids, MI 1979).
Bradley Alden
Project Manager – Middle East Region
Bradley joined the IOC team summer of 2015 in order to assist the company with its ongoing development of projects in the Middle East region. Shortly thereafter, proving himself to be able to manage the existing contract to develop new relationships, Bradley was promoted to Project Manager
Bradley attended Pepperdine University graduating with a degree in International Business followed by a short stint at Thunderbird University in Arizona and then finally obtaining his Masters degree from San Diego University.
Bradley’s interest are that of scuba diving, motorcycle racing and developing “out-of-the- box” investment opportunities. He resides in San Diego California.
Legal Team
Tim C. Bruinsma
Tim Bruinsma is a corporate and transactional attorney with extensive experience in international transactions. Tim has been a partner in the Los Angeles office since 1990. He has a broad legal practice which emphasizes corporate finance, mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures, strategic alliances and project finance matters. His practice also includes real estate, licensing, distributorships and other commercial transactions, particularly in an international context.
Tim has special knowledge and experience in cross-border transactions, particularly in developing countries. He has represented numerous clients in Russian trade matters, including Fortune 500 companies. Additionally, he has handled transactions in the European Union, Central and Eastern Europe, Turkey, the Middle East, Canada, China and other parts of Asia, and South and Central America.
Robert S. Rein
Robert Rein obtained his B.A. cum laude in economics in 1966 from Brandeis University. He attended Harvard Law School and received his J.D. cum laude in 1969. Following his graduation, he practiced law briefly with the law firm of Kaplan, Livingston, Goodwin, Berkowitz & Selvin in Beverly Hills and then returned to his home state of New Jersey for a clerkship with Judge Milton Conford, the senior judge of the New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division.
During his last two years at Harvard Law School, Robert was involved in several special programs which were available in Massachusetts which allowed him to try cases as both a member of the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau and as an assistant District Attorney. These programs enabled him to obtain an unusual amount of both civil and criminal litigation experience prior to his graduation.
In 1970, Robert returned to Los Angeles and became an associate with the law firm of McKenna and Fitting. He remained with this firm until 1974, when he joined several attorneys to become a partner in a predecessor of the current firm of Rein & Associates.
Robert’s practice involves all areas of transactional work, including a vast array of business, corporate and real estate matters, tax issues and estate planning. He has lectured on estate planning matters and counselled homeowners’ associations.
He has been involved in all types of business transactions, from acquisitions and sales, reorganizations and financings, to a vast array of corporate and tax planning. Because of his extensive business experience, his clients often contact him at the business planning level just to obtain a “second opinion” or to discuss business strategy. He is known as a problem solver who looks for creative solutions to resolve disputes without the necessity of litigation. His clients include all levels of the business community, from banks and savings and loan associations to smaller manufacturing and service businesses. He has represented many companies in the computer software field and has also been involved in complex real estate projects and environmental matters.