Overview
- The World Bank’s arbitration body, ICSID, issued its final award on March 26, 2026, dismissing a more than $2.1 billion claim over a Mexico City digital taximeter and taxi app project.
- The tribunal found no breach of Mexico’s treaty duties and said there was no proof the government harmed the investment, concluding the project failed because of the claimants’ decisions.
- Espíritu Santo Holdings LP and L1bre Holding LLC were ordered to pay the costs of the arbitration, and the award is undergoing a confidentiality review before publication on ICSID’s portal.
- The investors alleged city officials suspended a 2018 concession and sought to copy their technology through the later “Mi Taxi” app, while Mexico’s defense said no final concession existed and cited technical and financial flaws at the related firm Lusad.
- President Claudia Sheinbaum welcomed the outcome, and the case highlights how investor–state disputes can challenge city tech procurements under North America’s trade rules.