KUALA LUMPUR: Razorpay Curlec Sdn Bhd, a payments solution provider for businesses of all sizes, is heading towards a smart, globally connected payment experience with streamlined, autonomous payments.
Country head and CEO Kevin Lee said the shift towards autonomous payments will involve artificial intelligence (AI) and agentic systems that handle transactions in the background.
“We are heading towards a smart, frictionless and globally connected payment experience where technology fades into the background, and the focus is simply on connection, convenience and trust,“ he told SunBiz.
He said cross-border payments will become part of everyday life, allowing users to send money to a friend in another country or pay an overseas supplier effortlessly.
“AI will handle currency conversion, compliance checks, and settlement in real time, making global commerce truly borderless.”
Touching on emerging technologies as enablers, Lee said central bank digital currencies (CBDC), digital wallets and AI-driven agentic payments will redefine how value is stored, moved and managed globally, noting that blockchain will ensure transparency and speed, while AI will bring intelligence and autonomy to every layer of the transaction journey.
“The move towards autonomous, AI-powered systems means the industry must build infrastructure that is open, interoperable, and capable of real-time coordination across markets. The direction is clear: a borderless future where the digital payments experience is intelligent, seamless, and built for inclusion,“ Lee said.
He noted that, as Malaysia’s digital exports recorded a historic RM6.8 billion (US$1.7 billion) surge between 2024 and the first half of 2025, the nation’s SMEs are racing to capitalise on global demand.
He said while domestic digital adoption is high, many struggle to scale internationally due to the complexity of accepting foreign payments and the “trust gap” with overseas buyers.
“Razorpay Curlec’s integration with Apple Pay and PayPal supports Malaysian businesses in delivering smoother, higher-converting payment experiences.
“Leveraging Razorpay Curlec’s global fintech ecosystem — serving millions of businesses worldwide – we enable Malaysian merchants to accept payments from international customers using globally recognised methods.
“As Asean moves towards a more unified and interoperable digital economy, our focus is on aligning our infrastructure, products and partnerships with the Digital Economy Framework Agreement’s core objectives so that businesses across Asean – especially MSMEs – can participate seamlessly in the regional digital economy.
“We aim to drive inclusion, ensuring that MSMEs have the tools, access, and confidence to scale beyond their domestic markets,“ Lee said.
He noted that Razorpay Curlec’s solutions have been widely adopted across all facets of business.
Solutions sduch as Payment Links allow merchants to send payment requests via email, WhatsApp, or Telegram, enabling faster transactions without complex integrations.
Apart from that, Razorpay’s Payment Pages allow businesses to create simple online payment pages without a full website.
Lee said, “This mix of ease, speed, and flexibility has helped us become the platform of choice for many local brands like BloomThis, Handmade Heroes and TudungPeople.
“Razorpay Curlec is also trusted by industry leaders like Axiata, CTOS, and the National Kidney Foundation. Whether it’s high-growth e-commerce, complex airline workflows, or financial services, our modular platform adapts to each business’s unique needs.”
Lee said SMEs account for 97% of Malaysian businesses, and that setting up an online payment system can be complex and time-consuming.
Technical integration, security requirements and regulatory compliance (Sales and Service Tax on fees) can require, on average, eight to 10 hours per week of manual reconciliation.
Lee said Razorpay Curlec empowers Malaysian SMEs to overcome this challenge by providing a full-stack digital payments infrastructure that simplifies transactions, automates collections, and enables businesses to scale beyond local markets.
“Cash flow management remains one of the most persistent challenges for SMEs. Industry groups have highlighted that many SMEs continue to operate on tight margins while navigating rising logistics and rental costs and the expanded Sales and Service Tax.
“Razorpay Curlec addresses this through direct debit and recurring payment solutions, which automate payment collections directly from customer bank accounts. This enables businesses to collect recurring payments automatically, reduce late or missed payments, spend less time chasing invoices and maintain more predictable cash flow,“ Lee said.
Elaborating, he pointed out that SMEs must be increasingly agile in how they engage with customers, monitoring how consumers shop, pay, and manage their finances. “Consumers today prefer seamless transactions, particularly QR payments, and have a growing expectation for flexibility in purchases.”
Lee said DuitNow QR adoption has surged, with volumes more than doubling in 2024 to 870 million transactions worth RM31.1 billion.
In 2025, this momentum extended across borders.
In the first half of the year, Malaysians made 11.8 million cross-border QR transactions valued at RM967 million as linkages with Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia, China and South Korea continued to deepen.
Meanwhile, Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) usage remains highly concentrated, with more than 90% of active users coming from three major platforms.
Today, there are 6.5 million active BNPL account holders – more than double from two years ago.
In the first half of 2025 alone, Malaysians made 102.6 million BNPL transactions worth RM9.3 billion, reflecting strong consumer appetite for short-term, flexible credit.
Lee also said that with household spending projected to climb from RM896.9 billion in 2024 to RM943.7 billion in 2025, consumers are increasingly seeking payment options that help them manage both planned and unplanned purchases without straining cash flow.
“This is why our partnership with Visa to integrate Visa Instalment Solutions (VIS) into the Razorpay Curlec platform is so timely. It empowers businesses to offer credit-card-based instalment plans on big-ticket items, addressing a clear and growing consumer expectation for flexibility.
“Consumers today don’t just appreciate payment flexibility; they expect it. By enabling EPP through VIS, we are helping thousands of Malaysian businesses enhance the checkout experience, deepen customer relationships, and unlock new growth opportunities in a fast-moving digital economy,“ Lee said.
