BUDGET 2025 WISHLIST
The upcoming Budget 2025 is built on three core pillars of the Ekonomi MADANI, focusing on raising Malaysia’s economic stature (Raise the Ceiling), improving the quality of life for all Malaysians (Raise the Floor), and enhancing governance and public sector reform.
The “Raise the Ceiling” pillar emphasises digital and innovation-led industries, aiming to intensify local innovation and technology to compete globally. Meanwhile, the “Raise the Floor” initiative seeks to enhance the quality of life for Malaysians, ensuring equality in opportunities.
Curlec by Razorpay, Malaysia’s leading FinTech payment gateway service provider, supports these initiatives. The company processes up to 10,000 transactions per second and serves nearly 3,000 merchants locally and over 10 million businesses globally.
Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Curlec, Zac Liew, highlights several key priorities, including promoting financial inclusion, fostering cross-border opportunities, enhancing cybersecurity measures, and creating a robust ecosystem for startups in Malaysia.
1. Supporting Seamless Payment Infrastructure to Promote Financial Inclusion
Malaysia has risen to 18th out of 42 markets in the 2023 Global Financial Inclusion Index, thanks to significant improvements in its digital economy, particularly in real-time transactions and online connectivity.
Curlec by Razorpay facilitates seamless payment solutions for businesses of all sizes, providing tools to collect payments, automate payouts, and manage cash flow, while enabling secure and convenient consumer transactions.
Combining Razorpay Group’s technological capabilities with Curlec’s deep understanding of Malaysia’s payment ecosystem, the platform offers innovative services such as recurring payments and subscription management.
“Our partnership with TNG Digital has benefited many businesses and consumers in Malaysia, where up to 88% of Malaysians prefer TNG eWallet as a payment method,” said Liew. “We look forward to seeing the Government create more opportunities for payment solution providers to bridge the gap between businesses and financial institutions, reaching underbanked and underserved markets.”
2. Driving Cross-Border Opportunities and Real-Time Retail Payments Platform (RPP)
As part of its commitment to digitalisation and automation under the Ekonomi MADANI framework and the NIMP 2030, the Government is focusing on creating new opportunities for economic advancement, including the development of the Real-Time Retail Payments Platform (RPP) and cross-border payment linkages within ASEAN.
Curlec by Razorpay is inspired by India’s success with the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), a platform that drives nearly 50% of the world’s real-time payments. Curlec aims to replicate this success in Malaysia by leveraging the DuitNow system to facilitate real-time payments and support businesses in their digital transformation.
“In line with Budget 2025’s focus on innovation, we urge the Government to prioritise digitalisation and real-time payments infrastructure,” said Liew. “A supportive regulatory framework will be essential to drive these advancements, ensuring collaboration between FinTechs and traditional financial institutions.”
3. Strengthening Cybersecurity Measures Amid Digital Growth
The rapid growth of digital payments has led to increased cyber threats, including data breaches, ransomware attacks, and fraudulent transactions. Malaysia has experienced significant data leaks across various sectors, including telecommunications, government, and banking.
“We encourage the Government to provide stringent measures and guidelines for businesses dealing with sensitive data and to offer tax incentives for companies investing in cybersecurity,” Liew said. “Collaboration between industry peers, cybersecurity communities, and government agencies is vital to improving the national cybersecurity framework.”
Curlec by Razorpay prioritises security through its PCI-DSS Level 1 certification, SOC 2 Type 2 compliance, and SSL certificates, ensuring that sensitive data is protected at every stage of the transaction process. With a 99.9% system uptime, Curlec guarantees business continuity for its clients.
4. Creating a Robust Ecosystem for Startups in Malaysia
As the Government seeks to establish Malaysia as a global startup hub by 2030, Curlec by Razorpay exemplifies the potential for local startups to scale globally. Launched in 2018, Curlec’s goal is to provide businesses with seamless payment solutions. Now part of India’s Razorpay Group, Curlec has benefitted from India-Malaysia collaborations in emerging technologies.
“We are grateful for the opportunities that have allowed us to grow from a local player to a global presence,” said Liew. “We encourage the Government to continue investing in startups, creating a comprehensive ecosystem that fosters innovation, agility, and access to both local and international markets.”
With Budget 2025, Malaysia is poised to strengthen its digital economy, promote innovation, and create new opportunities for businesses and startups across the country.
