Argentina’s Ministry of Economy recommends a four-company consortium for the CBI master agent contract

The Ministry of Economy of Argentina has recommended awarding a master agent contract under the citizenship by investment program (CBI) to a consortium led by Asesorías Legal Advisor Limitada – UT Consorcio AAPA. The consortium includes Apex Capital Partners, AIM Global, Passport Legacy, and Arton Capital.

According to the bid evaluation report dated March 5 and published in Argentina’s procurement system COMPR.AR, the group ranked first with 88 points. By comparison, Henley & Partners secured second place with 48.0889.

Out of six bidders that submitted offers for tender 34-0001-CPU25, four companies were deemed non-compliant. The final stage included only the consortium and Henley & Partners.

Why the four applicants were disqualified

The reasons for the rejections are set out in detail in a technical and economic report by the Secretariat for Legal and Administrative Affairs of the Ministry (document IF-2026-22913277-APN-SLYA#MEC).

Hong Kong Qian Cheng Business Co., Ltd. and Salzburg International For Law LLC failed the eligibility threshold due to the status of the bid security bank guarantees. The report, referencing guarantee data (document IF-2026-11998157-APN-DC#MEC), states that the companies did not meet the guarantee submission deadlines. The deficiency was considered non-remediable, and the companies’ proposals were not evaluated.

Specifically, Hong Kong Qian Cheng deposited a US$1.25 million guarantee into its own account at China Construction Bank (Asia), rather than into the Banco Nación account designated by the Ministry. The transfer arrived only on January 30, i.e., 10 days after the deadline (January 20).

Salzburg International (Reach Immigration) uploaded the bank guarantee in COMPR.AR via SWIFT, but did not submit the original document with the required translation and notarization.

Latitude Consultancy Limited was excluded on grounds related to financial standing. Reviewers found that the company did not meet the economic solvency indicators required by the technical specifications—Section 2 (Indebtedness) and Section 4 (Solvency).

The indebtedness ratio was 1.36, against a permitted maximum of 0.50. The liquidity ratio was 1.73, below the minimum requirement of 2.00.

Ancova Associates FZCO received disqualification for two reasons. During clarification requests, the company submitted a document titled “Rectification of the Technical and Financial Proposal”. The evaluation committee concluded that this amounted to a change to the original offer, which conflicts with the principle of maintaining bids unchanged in administrative procurement, as established in Article 15 of the General Terms and Conditions (approved by Resolution ONC N° 63/2016).

Additionally, the company did not meet minimum requirements for the profit-to-revenue ratio, and it also failed to disclose contract capacity information. Even if these issues had been overlooked, the report noted that the proposal would be economically unfavorable, which could ultimately have prevented it from being included among the top-ranked winners.

How the two finalists were assessed

Both approved bidders met eight requirements regarding content and eligibility. The technical evaluation, weighted at 60% of the final score, produced the same result for both: 80 out of 100, which—after applying the weighting factor—translated to 48 points each.

The consortium received high scores for uniqueness, expertise, and its international network, while scoring average on experience and its business plan. The committee noted that combining several specialized firms provides added value for the contracting authority.

According to the report, the consortium’s senior management team has 10 to 30 years of experience in residency and citizenship by investment.

At the same time, the committee indicated that the evidence of experience provided by some members relied largely on standard licensing contract templates without exclusivity and without the role of marketing agents. Asesorías Legal Advisor Limitada also did not provide verified experience in this specific area; however, this was not grounds for disqualification because the consortium was assessed as a whole. The scoring also included recent program developments and implementation efforts attributed to Arton Capital Holdings Ltd. and Passport Legacy PTE. LTD.

Henley & Partners earned high marks for expertise, experience, and its international network, but average scores for uniqueness and the business plan. The supporting documents included contracts and certificates from at least seven governments, starting from 2017.

On uniqueness, the committee found that Henley’s proposed financial execution model would be labor-intensive within Argentina’s national public-sector financial administration. The business plan was described as logical, structured, and global in scope, but the forecasted total costs were higher.

Price proved decisive

The main difference between the two offers was cost. The economic evaluation (weighted at 40%) effectively outweighed the technical results.

The consortium proposed US$10,000 for each batch across all five batches (i.e., 1,000 applications per batch), for a total of US$50,000 for the full contract. Henley & Partners indicated US$2 million for the first batch, increasing up to US$8 million for the fifth, for a total of US$25 million.

After applying the tender documentation coefficients, the consortium’s weighted amount was US$75,000, while Henley’s was US$33.75 million. Under the formula—where the lowest weighted price is divided by each bidder’s price and multiplied by 100—the consortium scored 100 points on the economic component (after the 40% factor: 40). Henley scored 0.2222 (after the factor: 0.0889).

Final totals: Consortium — 88.00; Henley — 48.0889.

The recommendation was approved by three committee members: María Cristina Castillo, Claudia Silvana Cochello, and Martín Alexis Salomón. The technical and economic report was signed by José García Hamilton, Secretary of the Secretariat for Legal and Administrative Affairs of the Ministry of Economy.

Note: the recommendation is not yet a final contract award. Under Article 73 of Decree 1030/2016, bidders may file challenges within three days from notification of the report.

After reviewing any objections and issuing the official adjudicación (award decision), the winning consortium will work for four years, with an option to extend for an additional fifth year, or until it delivers 5,000 recommendations for citizenship approval. The contractor will be responsible for designing, launching, marketing, and ensuring the operation of Argentina’s first CBI program through the Agencia de Programas de Ciudadanía por Inversión (APCI).

At the same time, the program parameters—including minimum investment thresholds, permitted sectors, and processing routes—have not yet been set. In practice, the consortium will help shape these elements from scratch.

If you’re considering citizenship by investment as a route to a new status for travel and business opportunities, it’s crucial to monitor how tenders, agent requirements, and legal criteria are structured. At Digital Nomad, we help you understand the CBI process and assess market players more confidently—so you can move forward with fewer risks. Learn more: https://digital-nomad.gr/en/goldenvisa.

Our Telegram channel about various types of Greek residence permits, digital nomad programs, and the Greek Golden Visa: @digitalnomadgr