Humans files international arbitration claim against Uzbekistan

Humans Mobile Ltd, the Singapore-registered parent company of Humans operating in Uzbekistan, has filed an international arbitration claim against the government of Uzbekistan.

According to the website of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), the claim was officially registered on May 30.

The Department for Legal Protection of Uzbekistan’s Interests under the Ministry of Justice is representing the Uzbek side in the proceedings.

The plaintiff is invoking the 2003 bilateral agreement between Uzbekistan and Singapore on the “Promotion and Protection of Investments” as the legal basis for its claim.

A press release circulated in foreign media outlets states that Humans Mobile is seeking compensation “to restore justice and the rule of law” in relation to damages allegedly caused by certain Uzbek state bodies.

In September 2024, the Central Bank suspended the operations of Humans’ payment subsidiary “Maroqand” JSC (which operates under the UPay brand) for six months. At the time, the regulator stated that Maroqand had facilitated payments for gambling activities. As a result, the company was temporarily barred from accepting and processing payments through bank accounts.

“Maroqand was summoned and warned three times for engaging in illegal transactions. We made it clear – they were processing payments to betting companies using the public’s money. That’s why we imposed a six-month suspension,” said then-Central Bank Chairman Mamarizo Nurmurodov at a press conference on October 31, 2024.

On March 26, 2025, the Central Bank announced that certain restrictions on Maroqand’s payment services had been lifted.

In addition, according to Spot, Humans filed a complaint with Uzbekistan’s Competition Committee on May 8, 2025, requesting the launch of an antitrust investigation against Uztelecom JSC.

In its letter to the committee, Humans noted that as a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), it does not own a transmission network and thus relies entirely on infrastructure provided by Uztelecom, based on a contract signed on May 22, 2020. Humans claims that despite a significant drop in internet prices since 2021, Uztelecom has not adjusted its base tariffs. The company considers this to be an abuse of Uztelecom’s dominant position in the wholesale internet market.

Humans further stated that due to competition in the retail market, it was forced to reduce its prices multiple times since 2021. However, Uztelecom’s refusal to lower wholesale tariffs has driven infrastructure costs to account for up to 58% of Humans' overall service expenses—undermining its business model and stifling fair market competition.

“There is no longer an economic justification for maintaining the previous pricing levels. This indicates that Uztelecom is generating unjustified profits at the expense of infrastructure users,” reads an excerpt from the company’s complaint, as quoted by Spot.

Humans also alleged that the high “monopoly pricing” led to an accumulation of debt, prompting Uztelecom to issue a formal warning. The state-owned telecom operator announced that, unless the debt was cleared, it would reduce internet speeds starting March 1, 2025, and fully terminate services and initiate legal action by June 1, 2025.

Previously, a letter dated March 27, 2024 – allegedly sent by Uztelecom to Humans – was circulated on social media. The letter demanded repayment of a 532 billion soum debt, comprising 361.7 billion UZS in principal debt and 170.3 billion UZS in penalties.

This is not the first case of foreign arbitration against Uzbekistan. In a recent instance, an international arbitration tribunal rejected a $700 million claim filed by a Turkish textile company against the Uzbek government.