Newly-elected Makati mayor Nancy Binay halt what she dubbed as a “midnight settlement” obligating the city to pay P8.96 billion to the private partner Philippine InfraDev Holdings Inc., her sister former mayor Abigail “Abby” Binay-Campos administration entered seven days before the end of their term,

The questioned project will give Makati City full ownership of the corporate entity established to develop and operate the stalled underground train system in the city as part of proceedings with the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC),

Mayor Nancy Binay said the previous administration entered and signed a Settlement with Philippine InfraDev on June 23, 2025, a week before their term ended on June 30, 2025.

Binay said the new city administration found that the settlement agreement obligates the city government to pay P8.96 billion to InfraDev within 90 days from the issuance of a consent award by the SIAC.

She said the settlement also imposes an additional $30 million or an approximated P1.7 billion penalty plus interests should the city fail to meet the 90-day deadline.

“Malalagay po sa binggit ng alanganin ang pampinansyal na kalusugan ng ating Lungsod kung sakali mang ibaba ng SIAC ang nasabing settlement agreement,” she said.

“Sa katunayan, dahil sa nakanselang Makati Subway Project, hindi po kayang magbayad ng Lungsod ng humigit-kumulang P9 bilyon sa Philippine InfraDev Holdings,” she added.

Binay, who stepped into office on July 1, 2025, said it was not right for the previous council and city government to enter into an agreement without consultation or a bare minimum of due diligence to check if the government had the financial capacity to pay.

The City Mayor said she has already instructed the city’s law department to prepare the proper documentation to formalize the Makati City Government’s position to the SIAC.

“We can hardly accept a settlement of this magnitude without transparency, due diligence, and legal safeguards. Sa mga ganitong klaseng galawan, laging kawawa ang taumbayan (In these kinds of moves, it is the people who always suffer),” she said.

Meanwhile, Binay-Campos said the arbitration proceedings are expected to give Makati City full ownership of the Makati City Subway Inc. (MCSI) with a net value of $1.6 billion, free of liabilities and including land assets, after paying $160 million to its public-private partner (PPP).

“It’s a win for Makati. It will end years of legal uncertainty and positions Makati to drive the Subway Project forward on its own terms,” she said in a statement.

Binay-Campos said the expected resolution of the arbitration will include Makati having to pay $160 million to the private partner, approximating the actual investment made on the project as determined by auditing firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).

Other terms will then be contained in the award to be issued by the SIAC Tribunal, and declared before the proper regulatory bodies upon its receipt.”

The anticipated acquisition of the subway company is expected to boost Makati’s already substantial assets, Binay-Campos said.

According to her, based on the Commission on Audit (COA)’s 2023 Annual Financial Report on Local Governments, Makati had total assets of P243.444 billion. The amount represents an increase from P239.478 billion in 2022.

The former mayor added the conclusion of the arbitration proceedings will not affect existing projects and programs of the city as these have been already funded in the current budget.

The former mayor said the transfer of 10 EMBO barangays to Taguig has also resulted in savings for the city, since the city government allots P7.9 billion in subsidies to these barangays.

She Binay-Campos ran for the Senate in the May polls, but was unsuccessful to take a spot. Her sister, former Senator Nancy Binay, won the mayoral race in Makati.

“I will also be issuing an executive order calling for the formation of a fact-finding committee to investigate and look into all Public-Private Partnership projects entered into by the city government to ensure the best interest of the people of Makati will always be protected,” she added.

To recall, the Makati Subway System, then envisioned to be a 10-kilometer subway from EDSA-Ayala to Ospital ng Makati, broke ground in 2018.

InfraDev and its Chinese partners Greenland Holdings Group, Jiangsu Provincial Construction Group Co. Ltd. Holdings Ltd., and China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd. were awarded the public-private partnership deal to undertake the Makati City Subway project by the Makati City government in 2019.

Construction activities, however, were halted in 2022 due to the Supreme Court ruling that placed the jurisdiction of several areas to Taguig City.

The areas transferred to Taguig were Cembo, Comembo, East Rembo, Pembo, Pitogo, Post Proper Northside, Post Proper Southside, Rizal, South Cembo, West Rembo, and Fort Bonifacio.

Following the ruling, Philippine Infradev Holdings Inc. said the Makati Subway System was rendered unviable, with the depot originally set to be located in Barangay Cembo. It also had a planned station in the University of Makati in West Rembo, and another one in Ospital ng Makati in Pembo.

Philippine Infradev Holdings also sought international arbitration with the SIAC, “to enable an impartial resolution of the agreement with Makati.”

Binay-Campos in May said the city government was in talks with a new domestic partner for the project, which submitted an unsolicited proposal.

The Makati Subway project aims to ease traffic congestion in Makati by providing an alternative transport service for up to 700,000 commuters, and to reduce by 270,000 the number of vehicles plying the city.