The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has drawn the attention of the general public to Money Transfer Organisations (MTOS) operating within the Remittance and the Ghana Forex Market without approval.

These MTOs include ACE MONEY TRANSFER, REMIT UNION, REMIT HOME, ROZE REMIT, MONTY GLOBAL.

The other five are NAIRAGRAM, I-TRANSFER, HURUPAY, EVERSEND and IZI SEND.

The public, banks, Dedicated Electronic Money Issuer (DEMI) and Enhanced Payment Service Providers (EPSP) have been cautioned to desist from dealing with any of these institutions.

Approved MTOs have been entreated to terminate their foreign exchange flows through their partner institutions only and to adhere strictly to all the guidelines in respect of their operations.

Section 3.1 of the Foreign Exchange Act, 2006 Act 723, states that "a person shall not engage in the business of dealing in foreign exchange without a licence issued under this Act."

Further, section 15.3 of the Foreign Exchange Act states, "each transfer of foreign exchange to or from Ghana shall be made through a person licensed to carry out the business of money transfers or any other authorised dealer."

All market players have been instructed to comply with the directives.

"Non-compliance will result in severe sanctions including the withdrawal of the licence of the institution in breach," the BoG added.

Earlier this month, the Bank of Ghana (BoG) blew the alarm on the operations of Yellow Card Financial Inc., an unapproved digital payment platform.

According to the central bank in a statement dated June 11, the unlicensed entity is actively promoting itself as a provider of digital payment services, cryptocurrency trading, and cross-border remittance solutions.

The platform purports to enable users to make payments, send and receive electronic money and stable coins across borders, as well as convert stable coins into local currency.

These activities, the central bank says, require appropriate licensing from the Bank of Ghana.

The Bank of Ghana has also discovered that YellowPay is engaged in an ongoing collaboration with HanyPay, an entity that claims to be licensed by the Africa Diaspora Central Bank (ADCB).

This partnership reportedly seeks to develop and integrate a new stable coin, AKL Lumi, into the global financial ecosystem.

According to the central bank, this development raises significant regulatory concerns, as HanyPay is neither licensed nor authorized to operate within the jurisdiction of Ghana.