About

Roy has been providing strategic guidance and advice to clients in a variety of complex and sophisticated legal transactions for over 20 years. He advises domestic and foreign companies, multinationals, and entrepreneurs on their business activities and investment considerations in the United States and throughout Latin America, Asia, and Europe, including in cross-border transactions.

Prior to founding CLG, Roy worked with various US and international law firms in New York, Puerto Rico and Shanghai, China. Roy began his career as an associate of the New York office of Fried Frank where he represented foreign and domestic issuers with their capital markets, securities and corporate needs. He has also been a partner with Akerman LLP, Fox Rothschild and Cozen O’Connor. He was also the Secretary of the Board of Directors of First BanCorp (NYSE: FBP), the financial holding company of FirstBank Puerto Rico and a member of the Board of Directors of Metro Puerto Rico, LLC and the Afro Latin Jazz Alliance in New York.

Roy has counseled domestic banks and international financial entities, as well as their operating subsidiaries, affiliates and holding companies, on domestic and international activities and relationships. He has also advised boards of directors, executive management and chartered committees in the exercise of their powers and performance of their duties to these institutions, their creditors, shareholders, and the bank regulatory agencies. He has also represented numerous institutions in the filing and processing of applications for the creation of international financial entities in Puerto Rico.

Roy leads CLG’s Opportunity Zones Practice and CLG’s EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program Services and Compliance Practice. He has experience in the formation of Qualified Opportunity Zone Funds and assisting clients in the incorporation of opportunity zones funding in their projects or transactions. He also represents public and private clients using EB-5 as a source of capital, filing for an EB-5 Regional Center designation from USCIS, as well as developers seeking to raise capital using the EB-5 investor visa program. He is experienced with public-private partnership projects using opportunity zones funding, EB-5 funds and other economic and tax incentives, as well as the combination of these with other programs, such as U.S. federal tax credits (i.e., LIHTC, NMTC, and HTCs) or bond financing.

Roy assists clients in equity and debt offerings registered under U.S. securities laws, the issuance of equity and debt in global transactions not subject to the registration requirements of U.S. securities laws — principally Rule 144A, Regulation S and Regulation D offerings, 1934 and 1933 Act compliance — and with corporate governance and securities regulation matters.

Roy also advises clients on mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, corporate finance, real estate transactions, and infrastructure development, with an emphasis on Puerto Rico and the Latin American region. He routinely counsels U.S. and foreign clients and high net worth individuals seeking to relocate to Puerto Rico on maximizing available opportunities under the Puerto Rico economic tax incentives pursuant to Puerto Rico Acts 20 and 22 and other incentives now included under Act 60, the new Puerto Rico Code of Incentives.

Roy also provides guidance in the development and finance of affordable multifamily, elderly, and single-family housing, including mixed financing developments to developers, LIHTC syndicators, and financial institutions.