Azimo
Dutch money transfer company
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Azimo B.V. was an online remittance service headquartered in Amsterdam, Netherlands. It also had offices in Kraków, Poland.[1]
| |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Financial technology |
| Founded | 2012 |
| Founders | Michael Kent, Marta Krupinska, Ricky Knox, Marek Wawro |
| Defunct | August 1, 2023[citation needed] |
| Fate | Acquired by PAPAYA Global |
| Headquarters | Amsterdam , Netherlands |
Area served | Europe (sending); worldwide (receiving) |
Key people | Michael Kent (Founder, EC) Richard Ambrose (CEO) |
| Services | Money transfer |
| Website | azimo.com |
Azimo offered money transfers to 190 receiving countries in over 80 different currencies. The company had half a million customers connected to its platform and offered more than 270,000 cash pick-up locations globally.[2] As of October 2019, sending countries were limited to Europe.[3][4]
In March 2022, Azimo was acquired by the New York–based payroll and payments solutions provider, Papaya Global, incorporating its licensed payment services to support global transactions.[5]
History
Azimo was founded in October 2012 in London, United Kingdom,[6] and initially operated as a direct-to-consumer money transfer service, allowing customers to send money across borders.[7]
In 2012 and 2015, Azimo raised significant funding, including $31 million in Series A and B funding from investors including Frog Capital, Greycroft, MCI.TechVentures, e.ventures, and Quona Capital.[8][9][10]
In 2016, an updated version of its app was launched with features including in-app chat and biometric security.[11]
As of early 2016, Azimo had raised $31 million in Series A and B funding[12] from investors including Frog Capital, Greycroft, MCI.TechVentures, e.ventures and Quona Capital. In May 2016, Japanese e-commerce company Rakuten invested in Azimo to accelerate the company's expansion into Asia.[13][14][15]
In 2020, Azimo moved to the Netherlands as a result of Brexit,[16][17] while its development office was in Kraków, Poland.[18][19]
Acquisition and current operations
In March 2022, Azimo was acquired by Papaya Global, a global workforce management platform.[20] The acquisition marked a shift in Azimo's business model, from a direct-to-consumer money transfer service to the licensed payments arm of Papaya Global.[21][22] In August 2022, the company discontinued its consumer money transfer services.[23][24]
Operations
Azimo offered money transfers to 190 receiving countries in over 80 different currencies. The company had half a million customers connected to its platform and offers more than 270,000 cash pick-up locations globally.[25] In 2016, an updated version of its app was launched with features including in-app chat and biometric security.[26]
As of October 2019, sending countries were limited to Europe that are primarily in the EU. The list of sending countries was:
As part of Papaya Global, Azimo now provides the regulatory and technical infrastructure for workforce-related payments. The company holds licenses in five top-tier jurisdictions, including the UK and European Economic Area (EEA), enabling Papaya Global to offer compliant payment services across multiple territories.[27][28]
Following the acquisition of Azimo, Papaya Global integrated Azimo's payment infrastructure and licenses to create a comprehensive global workforce payments solution. This integration enabled Papaya Global to become a payment solution specifically designed for workforce-related payments including net salaries, contractor payments, local tax authorities, vendors, etc.[29][30]