Company:Azimo

From HandWiki
Azimo
TypePrivate
IndustryFinancial technology
FateAcquired by PAPAYA Global
Founded2012; 14 years ago (2012)
FoundersMichael Kent, Marta Krupinska, Ricky Knox, Marek Wawro
DefunctAugust 1, 2023 (2023-08-01)[1]
Headquarters
Amsterdam
,
Netherlands
Area served
Europe (sending);
worldwide (receiving)
Key people
Michael Kent (Founder, EC)
Richard Ambrose (CEO)
ServicesMoney transfer
Websiteazimo.com

Azimo B.V. was an online remittance service headquartered in Amsterdam, Netherlands. It also had offices in Kraków, Poland.[2]

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.[3] As of October 2019, sending countries were limited to Europe.[4][5]

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.[6]

History

Azimo was founded in October 2012 in London, United Kingdom,[7] and initially operated as a direct-to-consumer money transfer service, allowing customers to send money across borders.[8]

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.[9][10][11]

In 2016, an updated version of its app was launched with features including in-app chat and biometric security.[12]

As of early 2016, Azimo had raised $31 million in Series A and B funding[13] 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.[14][15][16]

In 2020, Azimo moved to the Netherlands as a result of Brexit,[17][18] while its development office was in Kraków, Poland.[19][20]

Acquisition and current operations

In March 2022, Azimo was acquired by PAPAYA Global, a global workforce management platform.[21] 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.[22][23] In August 2022, the company discontinued its consumer money transfer services.[24][25] 

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.[26] In 2016, an updated version of its app was launched with features including in-app chat and biometric security.[27]

As of October 2019, sending countries were limited to Europe that are primarily in the EU. The list of sending countries was:

  •  Austria
  •  Belgium
  •  Cyprus
  •  Denmark
  •  Estonia
  •  Finland
  •  France
  •  Germany
  •  Greece
  •  Ireland
  •  Italy
  •  Latvia
  •  Lithuania
  •  Luxembourg
  •  Malta
  •  Netherlands
  •  Norway
  •  Poland
  •  Portugal
  •  Slovakia
  •  Slovenia
  •  Spain
  •  Sweden
  •  Switzerland
  •  United Kingdom

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.[28][29] 

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.[30][31]

References

  1. ↑ Margolin, Alex (2022-03-28). "Papaya Global - how the world gets paid" (in en-US). https://www.papayaglobal.com/blog/papaya-acquires-innovative-money-transfer-company-azimo/. 
  2. ↑ "Azimo offers a cheaper way to send money home". The Washington Post. 24 November 2014. https://www.washingtonpost.com/posttv/business/azimo-offers-a-cheaper-way-to-send-money-home/2014/11/24/59b3f936-73c8-11e4-95a8-fe0b46e8751a_video.html. 
  3. ↑ Wall, Matthew (23 March 2015). "Money may make the world go round, but at what cost?". BBC News. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-31639262. 
  4. ↑ Mavadiya, Madhvi. "A Look At Azimo And How It Has Reached Profitability" (in en). https://www.forbes.com/sites/madhvimavadiya/2019/08/30/a-look-at-azimo-and-how-it-has-reached-profitability/. 
  5. ↑ "How to Build a P2P Money Transfer Mobile App Like Azimo" (in en). https://agilie.com/blog/how-to-build-a-p2p-money-transfer-mobile-app-like-azimo. 
  6. ↑ April 2022, 4th (2022-04-04). "Money transfer app Azimo acquired by Papaya Global" (in en-GB). https://www.fintechfutures.com/2022/04/money-transfer-app-azimo-acquired-by-payroll-and-payments-firm-papaya-global/. 
  7. ↑ "10 of the best money-saving apps". The Guardian. 12 April 2013. https://www.theguardian.com/money/2013/apr/12/10-best-money-saving-apps. 
  8. ↑ Jackson, Tom (2015-01-22). "Azimo launches Europe-West Africa remittance service" (in en-GB). https://disruptafrica.com/2015/01/22/azimo-launches-europe-west-africa-remittance-service/. 
  9. ↑ O'Hear, Steve (2013-09-29). "Azimo Raises $1M Seed Funding To Take Its Money Transfer Service To Europe" (in en-US). https://techcrunch.com/2013/09/29/western-who/. 
  10. ↑ Nair, Praseeda (2015-06-16). "Money transfer service Azimo raises $20m in Series B funding round" (in en-US). https://growthbusiness.co.uk/money-transfer-service-azimo-raises-20m-in-series-b-funding-round-12790/. 
  11. ↑ Dorbian, Iris (2015-06-15). "Frog Capital leads Series B round for Azimo" (in en-US). https://www.venturecapitaljournal.com/frog-capital-leads-series-b-round-for-azimo/. 
  12. ↑ "Azimo Launches New Version Of Mobile App" (in en-US). 20 October 2016. https://www.pymnts.com/mobile-applications/2016/azimo-launched-new-mobile-app/. 
  13. ↑ Ahmed, Murad. "Remittances group Azimo raises $20m on valuation of $100m". Financial Times. https://www.ft.com/content/1c34f6b6-0f75-11e5-b968-00144feabdc0. 
  14. ↑ Kharpal, Arjun (5 May 2016). "Azimo, a remittances start-up, raised $15M from Rakuten to expand into Asia". CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2016/05/05/azimo-a-remittances-start-up-raised-15m-from-rakuten-to-expand-into-asia.html. 
  15. ↑ Williams-Grut, Oscar (5 May 2016). "International money transfer app Azimo raises $15 million from Japan's Rakuten to crack Asia". Business Insider UK. https://www.businessinsider.com/azimo-raises-japan-rakuten-asia-2016-5. 
  16. ↑ Lunden, Ingrid (5 May 2016). "Remittance startup Azimo raises $15M from Viber owner, e-commerce giant Rakuten". TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2016/05/05/azimo-rakuten/. 
  17. ↑ Betlem, Rutger (4 February 2020). "Europese investeringsbank steunt uitgeweken Brits bedrijf Azimo" (in nl). Het Financieele Dagblad. https://fd.nl/beurs/1333321/europese-investeringsbank-steunt-uitgeweken-brits-bedrijf-azimo. 
  18. ↑ Du Pré, Raoul. "Groeiend aantal bedrijven komt wegens brexit naar Nederland" (in nl). Nederlands Dagblad. https://www.nd.nl/nieuws/nederland/535047/groeiend-aantal-bedrijven-komt-wegens-brexit-naar-nederland. 
  19. ↑ "Azimo expands European operations with new office" (in en). https://thepaypers.com/payments-general/azimo-expands-european-operations-with-new-office--775585. 
  20. ↑ Frog (2019-05-19). "Azimo expand in Europe" (in en). https://frogcapital.com/think-frog/portfolio-news/azimo-expand-in-europe/. 
  21. ↑ April 2022, 4th (2022-04-04). "Money transfer app Azimo acquired by Papaya Global" (in en-GB). https://www.fintechfutures.com/2022/04/money-transfer-app-azimo-acquired-by-payroll-and-payments-firm-papaya-global/. 
  22. ↑ Muhn (@julieschicktanz), Julie (2022-03-29). "HR and Payroll Company Papaya Global Buys Azimo" (in en-US). https://finovate.com/hr-and-payroll-company-papaya-global-buys-azimo/. 
  23. ↑ Lunden, Ingrid (2022-03-28). "Papaya Global to buy Azimo to expand its payroll payments" (in en-US). https://techcrunch.com/2022/03/28/papaya-global-to-buy-azimo-for-150m-200m-to-expand-its-payroll-payments-to-more-markets/. 
  24. ↑ "AZIMO SERVICING LTD filing history - Find and update company information - GOV.UK" (in en). https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/13574459/filing-history. 
  25. ↑ "Azimo Business Alternative in the UK" (in en-GB). 2022-09-14. https://wise.com/gb/blog/azimo-business-alternative-uk. 
  26. ↑ Wall, Matthew (March 23, 2015). "Money may make the world go round, but at what cost?". BBC News. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-31639262. Retrieved 4 May 2016. 
  27. ↑ Ginige, J. A.; Maeder, A. J. (2018-10-18) (in en). Transforming Healthcare Through Innovation in Digital Health: Selected Papers from Global Telehealth 2018. IOS Press. ISBN 978-1-61499-914-0. https://books.google.com/books?id=irh9DwAAQBAJ&dq=In+2016,+an+updated+version+of+its+app+was+launched+with+features+including+in-app+chat+and+biometric+security.&pg=PA59. 
  28. ↑ "Employer of Record Market Growth Research 2032 | Global Growth Insights" (in en). https://www.globalgrowthinsights.com/market-reports/employer-of-record-market-102101. 
  29. ↑ "Report: Papaya Global's Business Breakdown & Founding Story | Contrary Research" (in en). https://research.contrary.com/company/papaya-global. 
  30. ↑ "Published" (in en). https://financialit.net/node-statuses/published?page=968. 
  31. ↑ "BeSmartee Archives" (in en-US). 2022-04-05. https://finovate.com/category/besmartee/. 



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