Fintech unicorn Razorpay has acquired the licence to acquire merchants in Malaysia via its arm Curlec, a move which would help the company further strengthen its presence in the Southeast Asian country.

In a statement, Razorpay said Curlec has also become a non-bank member of Payments Network Malaysia Sdn Bhd (PayNet), the national payments network and shared central infrastructure for Malaysia’s financial markets. 

Razopay said its expertise in UPI, along with its extensive experience in understanding and innovating in a dynamic landscape like India, will empower Curlec to fast-track adoption of real-time payments in Malaysia through DuitNow.

Razorpay bought the Malaysian fintech startup Curlec in a $20 Mn deal in February last year. Following this, the unicorn launched its first international payment gateway with Curlec in July this year.

Utilising Razorpay’s technology, which serves 10 Mn businesses in India, the Curlec payment gateway aims to connect local and international payment gateways.

Commenting on the development, Rahul Kothari, chief business officer of Razorpay, said, “Malaysia is an important strategic market for us as we see plenty of similarities with the Indian payments market. Our extensive experience in navigating the diverse and dynamic landscape of the Indian market empowers us to continually leverage that expertise, tackling various challenges and resolving payment issues on a global scale.”

Zac Liew, cofounder & CEO of Curlec by Razorpay, said, “Since launching our Payment Gateway in July, we are now processing in excess of RM2 billion annually and serving over 1,000 merchants. This sets the platform for Curlec to bring further innovation to Malaysia’s digital payment landscape, as well as scale DuitNow to the next level with our expertise in real-time payments – both in India and Malaysia.” 

Razorpay is eyeing opportunities in Malaysia’s growing digital economy. In 2021 digital trade made up 22.6% of Malaysia’s GDP, which is expected to grow to 25.5% by 2025, as per a report. 

Razorpay, which offers a payment gateway platform, SME payroll management, banking, lending, payments, insurance, among others, posted a net profit of INR 7.3 Cr in FY22 on an operating revenue of INR 1,481 Cr.

Last month, Razorpay acquired Mumbai-based digital invoicing and customer engagement startup BillMe to engage better with end customers.