The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on Wednesday, said Azimo and Transfer Wise are not among those registered to operate as International Money Transfer Operators (IMTOs) in the country.

A statement by Osita Nwanisobi, its Acting Director, Corporate Communications, warned that neither of them “is licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria to operate as an International Money Transfer Operator (IMTO).”

While urging the public to desist from patronizing the companies forthwith, the apex bank further warned that “anyone who patronizes the unregistered companies, does so at his or her own risk.”

According to Wikipedia, “TransferWise is a London-based online money transfer service founded in January 2011 by Estonians Kristo Käärmann and Taavet Hinrikus (and) supports more than 750 currency routes across the world including GBP, USD, EUR, AUD and CAD, and provides multi-currency accounts.”

On its part, Azimo, founded by Michael Kent in 2012, describes itself as “the faster, cheaper way to send money abroad. Instant or one-hour money transfers to 80+ countries,” and offers the first two transfers fee-free.