Travel between India and Malaysia is getting easier with a major leap in digital convenience. Indians visiting Malaysia can now use UPI (Unified Payments Interface) to pay local merchants directly through their regular apps, without needing international cards or currency exchange. This update, powered by Razorpay's Malaysian unit Curlec in partnership with NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL), brings India's most trusted payment system to Southeast Asia's popular travel hub. The move reflects how India's digital innovation is expanding globally, helping tourists spend easily and supporting local businesses to grow faster.
The partnership between Curlec and NIPL was launched during the Global Fintech Fest 2025, marking a major step in making cross-border digital transactions simple.
Under this setup, Indian tourists can pay Malaysian merchants instantly through their existing UPI-enabled apps like PhonePe, Paytm, Google Pay, or BHIM. Payments are processed in Indian rupees, while local merchants receive settlements in Malaysian ringgit (RM), ensuring smooth transactions without extra conversion steps.
In September 2025 alone, UPI processed almost 20 billion transactions, showing the massive scale and reliability of this system. Bringing that same infrastructure to Malaysia helps travelers experience familiar, secure, and fast digital payments even outside India.
Malaysia is among the favorite travel destinations for Indians, with over one million tourists visiting the country in 2024, spending more than Rs 110 billion -- a sharp 71.7% increase from the year before.
The new UPI integration will further enhance this tourism boom by making cashless payments easier, saving on foreign exchange fees, and letting tourists focus more on their travel experiences.
For local Malaysian merchants, especially small and medium-sized businesses, accepting UPI payments opens access to a massive customer base of Indian travelers who already trust and use this payment system daily.
For most Indian tourists, managing currency and payment options abroad can be stressful. The UPI-Malaysia connection removes that friction.
Now, visitors can:
The system also supports QR code scanning, similar to how UPI works in India, making it instantly familiar for travelers.
Malaysia gains not just from more spending but also from greater digital inclusion. Local businesses that once accepted only cash can now receive direct digital payments from Indian visitors.
This builds trust, improves payment efficiency, and contributes to the broader digital transformation of Malaysia's economy.
The move also strengthens financial links between India and Malaysia, creating a foundation for more cross-border digital collaborations across Southeast Asia.
If you're planning a trip to Malaysia, here are some quick payment-related tips:
This simple setup lets you travel lighter and enjoy a fully cashless trip across Malaysia's cities, beaches, and heritage spots.
This Malaysia expansion adds to a growing list of countries adopting UPI. The system is already active or being rolled out in destinations such as Singapore, UAE, France, Sri Lanka, and Nepal.
These partnerships are driven by NPCI International Payments Limited, which aims to make UPI a global digital standard for real-time payments.
With this new cross-border link, India's fintech innovation is not just supporting its own citizens but shaping how the world experiences payments.
As travelers move between Asian destinations, the shared use of UPI is expected to make digital tourism smoother, boost trade, and help economies transition toward cashless systems that are safe, efficient, and inclusive.
For Indian travelers, it's one more reason to explore Malaysia with ease -- digital wallet in hand and no worries about exchange counters.