IFC has an active equity investment of up to USD $25 million in Valor Venture Fund III and up to USD $10 million in Valor Opportunity Fund. Valor Venture and Valor Opportunity invest in early-stage technology companies and international technology companies seeking to expand into Latin America, and specifically into Brazil. Valor has an active investment in Tembici, the largest bike-sharing company in Latin America. In 2020, Tembici partnered with iFood—a mobile platform where customers can find and order food from restaurants—to implement the project “iFood Pedal”. According to information on Tembici’s website, the project includes flexible plans for iFood delivery partners to use Tembici’s bikes and to create support points—where delivery partners can check-in and return e-bikes, eat, and charge their phones, among other services.

An individual submitted the complaint to the CAO on behalf of himself and the residents of the building in which he resides in São Paulo, Brazil. The complaint raises concerns related to the establishment of a Tembici/iFood support point in October 2020, close to the building, which resulted in crowding the sidewalk to the point where residents had to walk on the road, putting their physical integrity at risk, according to the complainants. These concerns were exacerbated by the pandemic because delivery partners using the support point allegedly did not comply with restrictions and regulations to prevent COVID-19 infections. Furthermore, the complaint alleges that delivery partners rode their bicycles carelessly, generating additional risks to residents’ safety.

In March 2021, CAO received a complaint from community members (“the Complainants”) in São Paulo, Brazil, raising health and safety concerns related to the operations of the country’s largest bike-sharing company(“Tembici” or “the Company”). IFC supports Tembici through an investment fund owned by Valor (“IFC Client”).

In April 2021, CAO determined that the complaint met its three eligibility criteria and began its assessment. The Complainants and Tembici expressed an interest in engaging in a CAO dispute resolution (“DR”) process to resolve the issues raised in the complaint. Per the CAO Policy, the complaint was transferred to the CAO Dispute Resolution (“DR”) function in August 2021.

Due to COVID-19-related restrictions on travel and social gatherings, both the assessment and the DR process were held virtually, with the consent of the Complainants and the Company (“the Parties”). During the DR process, the Parties reached an agreement through shuttle diplomacy and two joint meetings facilitated by CAO. On February 9, 2022, the parties electronically signed the agreement document, which is confidential.

On February 4, 2022, Tembici informed the Complainants and CAO that it would discontinue its operations in the premises neighboring the Complainants' building and move to another location in another area of the city. The move was completed on August 30, 2022. 

CAO monitored the agreement until then at the request of the Parties and subsequently closed the case in October 2022. The conclusion report is available in the "Case Documents" section on this page.