Central Bank of Nigeria CBN has issued
license to 11 new International Money
Transfer Operators (IMTOs). This was
disclosed in a statement released by the apex
bank's Acting Director, Corporate
Communications, Isaac Okorafor yesterday
August 30th. The new entrants are joining
Western Union, MoneyGram and Ria, which
had been cleared by the CBN.
The new operators are Trans-Fast Remittance
LLC; WorldRemit Limited, UAE Exchange
Centre LLC; Wari Limited, Homesend S.C.R.L,
Small World Financial Services Group Limited
and Weblink International Limited. Others are
Cash Pot Limited, DT&T Corporation Limited,
Fiem Group LLC DBA Ping Express and CP
Express Limited. According to the CBN, the
new entrants were licensed as part of efforts
to liberalise the Foreign Exchange Market,
ensure liquidity and make foreign exchange
more readily available to low end users.
Part of the statement reads
“The CBN wishes to state, unequivocally, that
it has not foreclosed the licensing of
interested players in the IMTO space in
Nigeria. Therefore, interested applicants are
required to forward their requests for licensing
to the Director, Trade and Exchange
Department of the CBN, in line with the CBN
Guidelines on International Money Transfer
Services in Nigeria (2014), which among other
things, specifies the minimum technical and
business requirements for various participants
in the international money transfer services
industry in Nigeria. The CBN remains
committed to providing an enabling
environment for international money transfer
services in Nigeria. It is, however, important to
emphasise that a prospective player shall first
obtain the requisite licence to operate in
Nigeria as an IMTO. The CBN wishes to advise
Nigerians at home and in the Diaspora to
beware of the unwholesome activities of some
unlicensed IMTOs in Nigeria. This warning has
become necessary because of the activities of
some unregistered IMTOs, whose modes of
operation are detrimental to the Nigerian
economy".
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