PETALING JAYA: Malaysians made 18.4 billion e-payment transactions in 2025, up 25% from the year before.
As Budget 2027 approaches, the conversation should move beyond payment adoption towards how effectively businesses can use digital tools across their operations, says Razorpay Curlec country head and CEO, Kevin Lee.
“For enterprises and SMEs alike, a payment does not begin and end when a customer completes a transaction. It also involves confirming orders, reconciling records, understanding settlement, managing refunds and disputes, and maintaining visibility over cash flow,” he noted.
For large enterprises, he said, these processes may be supported by dedicated finance and technology teams.
“But for SMEs, the same responsibilities may sit with an owner or small team. When systems do not connect, businesses end up filling the gaps manually. With MSMEs contributing nearly 40% of GDP, those manual gaps carry a real cost,” said Lee.
He added this also affects wider commercial networks, where enterprises work with suppliers and distributors with different levels of digital capability.
Lee said the next phase of Malaysia’s digitalisation agenda should therefore focus not just on adoption, but on making end-to-end digitalisation for a Malaysian business practical. This
means connecting payments with accounting and operational systems, providing accessible
training and helping businesses manage new processes with ease and confidence.
The digital objective should be measurable business outcomes.
● Can a local business account for its online payments accurately?
● Can staff resolve exceptions efficiently and immediately?
● Can finance teams see what has been settled and what remains outstanding – in minutes
than in hours or days?
Lee said digitalisation creates economic value when it reduces friction and enhances speed in these everyday processes.
“AI can further support these outcomes, from retrieving transaction information and assisting with reconciliation to investigating exceptions and prioritising cases for review. But adoption should begin with a clearly defined business problem and a way to measure whether the technology actually improves the process,” he added.
He shared that this becomes particularly important as AI is increasingly used in activities involving money and there is a meaningful difference between using AI to find a payment record and allowing a system to initiate a refund or change an account setting.
As functionality increases, so must the controls around access, approval, authentication and accountability, Lee said.
Trust is under pressure: online scam losses nearly doubled to RM2.97 billion in 2025. AI can help detect fraud, prioritise alerts and support investigations. However, decisions on liability, compensation and disputes must remain with accountable decision-makers, with clear avenues for customers and merchants to challenge mistakes.
“As AI becomes embedded in how money moves, trust becomes the real currency. Every gain in capability must be matched by stronger controls over who can access, approve and authenticate a transaction, and who is accountable when something goes wrong.
“Budget 2027 should give Malaysian small and large businesses the infrastructure, skills and confidence to put AI and payment innovation to work, so they can run leaner, grow faster and compete well beyond Malaysia’s borders,” said Lee.
This principle of responsible innovation also aligns with the evolving regulatory environment.
Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) Technology Requirements for Payment Services Regulatees, taking effect in March 2027, reinforce the importance of technology risk management, security and operational resilience.
There is also an opportunity to connect Malaysia’s digitalisation agenda with regional competitiveness. For a Malaysian business entering a new market, payments are part of the commercial decision. Businesses need clarity on how customers can pay, the applicable fees and currency conversion, settlement timelines, and how refunds or disputes will be handled.
“Interoperability can help make that journey more seamless, while businesses also need clear information and predictable processes. BNM’s Interoperable Fund Transfer Framework provides an important policy foundation for connected payment services and fair access to shared infrastructure,” said Lee.
Ultimately, he added, Budget 2027 should help Malaysia move from digital adoption to digital capability, giving enterprises and SMEs the infrastructure, skills and confidence to use AI and payment innovation to operate more productively in Malaysia, compete in regional markets and strengthen trust in every transaction.
