Ghana’s Central Bank has suspended nine money transfer organizations (MTOs) from offering remittance services without regulatory approval. The barred companies include Wise, Zeepay, XOOM, LemFi, TransferGo, Sendvalu, Boss Revolution, BTC-Aza Finance, and Supersonicz.
According to a notice by the Bank of Ghana, it has warned the general public, commercial banks, dedicated electronic money issuers (DEMI), and enhanced payments service providers (EPSP) about dealing with the listed companies.
According to the Bank of Ghana, the suspension is part of its efforts to enforce the Payment Systems and Services Act, 2019 (Act 987), which regulates the provision of payment services in Ghana. The Bank of Ghana claims that Wise and other international money transfer companies are not licensed or authorized to operate as electronic money issuers or payment service providers in Ghana. These companies are also charged with violating the Foreign Exchange Act 2006 (Act 723), which prohibits using foreign currency as a medium of exchange in Ghana.
The suspension implies customers cannot use Wise and other international money transfer companies to send or receive money to Ghana.
From now on, the Bank of Ghana has advised customers to use alternative channels licensed and regulated by the central bank, such as banks, mobile money operators, and remittance companies like Western Union, MoneyGram, Ria, WorldRemit, or Xpress Money.
