Malaysia's e-commerce market was estimated at $21 billion in 2021 and was projected by industry analysts to cross $35 billion by 2025, with Malaysian shoppers increasingly comfortable with cross-border purchases. That growth has pulled in a crowded field of payment gateways, each quoting a headline transaction rate that rarely tells the full story. Setup fees, settlement speed, FPX handling, and chargeback costs all move the real number, and they show up on different pages, or not at all. This comparison looks at five gateways operating in Malaysia in 2026 on total cost and practical fit, not just the number on the pricing page.
Key Takeaways
- Headline transaction rate is not the same as total cost. Setup fees, FPX surcharges, and settlement speed can add up to more than the percentage difference between two gateways' card rates.
- Billplz remains the lowest-cost option for FPX-heavy Malaysian SMEs, with per-transaction bank transfer fees as low as RM0.70 to RM1.25 depending on plan tier.
- Stripe's Malaysia card rate of 3% + RM1.00 is among the highest in this list once international card and currency conversion surcharges are added, though its global reach and developer tooling remain strong.
- Fiuu and iPay88 both settle slower than the newer entrants, weekly and five business days respectively, which matters more for cash-flow-sensitive businesses than the transaction rate itself.
- Curlec is the only gateway on this list built around Bank Negara Malaysia-regulated infrastructure with native recurring billing (e-Mandate direct debit), making it the strongest fit for subscription and recurring-revenue businesses.
Quick Summary
| Gateway | Setup Fee | Typical Transaction Fee | Settlement Speed | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Curlec (by Razorpay) | RM99 (Basic tier) | 2.5% domestic cards, 1.5% or RM1 FPX | T+2 | Recurring billing, regulated businesses |
| Billplz | RM0 (Basic plan) | RM0.70-RM1.25 FPX, 1.8% cards | T+2 | FPX-heavy SMEs, bootstrapped stores |
| Stripe | RM0 | 3% + RM1.00, +1-2% international/FX | Rolling, ~7 days for new accounts | Global-facing developer teams |
| Fiuu | Quote-only | ~2.2% estimated | Weekly (settles following Thursday) | Broad SEA payment method coverage |
| iPay88 | RM488 | 2.9%-3.5% by category | 5 business days | Legacy enterprise integrations |
Rank 1. Curlec (by Razorpay)
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Setup Fee | RM99 (Basic tier) |
| Domestic Card Rate | 2.5% |
| International Card Rate | 3% |
| FPX | 1.5% or RM1, whichever is greater |
| E-Wallets | 1.5% |
| Settlement | T+2 |
Curlec operates as a Bank Negara Malaysia-regulated payment gateway and is a non-bank member of PayNet, the national payments network behind FPX and DuitNow. Its transaction rates sit in the middle of the market rather than at the bottom, but the product suite extends past a checkout: payment links, payment pages, subscription billing, and an e-Mandate direct debit engine for automated bank-to-bank recurring collections are bundled into one dashboard alongside real-time payouts and reconciliation tools. That combination matters most for businesses billing customers on a recurring basis, where a dedicated direct debit rail avoids repeated card retries and failed renewals.
One point worth flagging before onboarding: quoted setup fees for Curlec vary by source. This payment gateway in Malaysia own pricing page lists RM99 for the Basic package, while some third-party review sites cite RM500, likely reflecting a higher tier or an older rate card. It is worth confirming the current figure directly during onboarding rather than relying on any single published number, including this one.
Pros: BNM-regulated and PayNet member, native recurring billing via e-Mandate, T+2 settlement, unified dashboard for gateway plus payouts.
Cons: Setup fee figures are inconsistent across sources, domestic card rate is not the cheapest on this list.
Best for: Subscription businesses, marketplaces, and any Malaysian business that wants a single regulated provider handling both one-off and recurring payments.
Rank 2. Billplz
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Setup Fee | RM0 (Basic plan) |
| FPX (Basic) | RM1.25 B2C, RM3.00 B2B |
| FPX (Premium) | RM0.70-RM0.75 |
| Card Rate | 1.8% MYR, 3.8% non-MYR |
| Settlement | T+2 |
Billplz is built specifically around the Malaysian market and it shows in the fee structure. The Basic plan carries no setup or annual fee, and FPX transactions, the dominant online banking rail in Malaysia, drop to as low as RM0.70 to RM0.75 per transaction on the Premium tier. For a business processing high FPX volume rather than card volume, that flat-fee structure beats a percentage-based rate by a wide margin once monthly transaction counts climb into the hundreds. Card and e-wallet support exists alongside FPX, along with Buy Now Pay Later options through Grab PayLater and Atome, but the platform's core strength remains bank transfer processing rather than broad international card acceptance.
Pros: No setup or annual fee on Basic plan, lowest FPX cost on this list, transparent published pricing, easy integration with Shopify, WooCommerce, and EasyStore.
Cons: Card rates for non-MYR transactions run high at 3.8%, less suited to businesses with significant cross-border card volume.
Best for: Malaysia-focused SMEs and NGOs processing high volumes of FPX bank transfers.
Rank 3. Stripe
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Setup Fee | RM0 |
| Domestic Card / FPX | 3% + RM1.00 |
| International Card Surcharge | +1% |
| Currency Conversion Surcharge | +2% |
| Settlement | Rolling, typically around 7 days for new accounts |
Stripe entered Malaysia with no setup or monthly fee, which keeps the entry barrier low, but the per-transaction cost is the highest of the five gateways compared here. A domestic card or FPX transaction costs 3% plus RM1.00 before any surcharges apply, and a Malaysian business collecting USD from international customers and converting to MYR adds a further 2% on top of the 1% international card surcharge. For a business processing purely domestic transactions at moderate volume, that structure is expensive relative to Billplz or Curlec. Where Stripe earns its place on this list is developer experience and global reach: extensive API documentation, a mature webhook system, and acceptance of a wide range of international payment methods make it a common default for teams building products aimed at customers outside Malaysia.
Pros: No setup or monthly fee, best-in-class API and developer documentation, broad international card and wallet acceptance.
Cons: Highest combined fee structure on this list once international and FX surcharges apply, settlement is slower than Malaysia-focused competitors.
Best for: Malaysian businesses selling primarily to international customers who prioritize developer tooling over local transaction cost.
Rank 4. Fiuu
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Setup Fee | Not published, quote-only |
| Transaction Fee | Not published, estimated around 2.2% |
| Settlement | Weekly (Monday-Sunday settles the following Thursday) |
| Coverage | 110+ payment methods across 8 Southeast Asian markets |
Fiuu, formerly known as Razer Merchant Services and MOLPay before that, has the broadest payment method coverage of any gateway in this comparison, spanning cards, e-wallets, DuitNow QR, Alipay+, and even cryptocurrency payments across eight regional markets. That breadth suits businesses operating across Southeast Asia rather than Malaysia alone. The practical drawback is pricing opacity: neither transaction fees nor setup costs are published, and merchants need to register through Fiuu's merchant portal or contact sales directly to receive a quote, which slows down the evaluation process compared to gateways with public pricing pages. Settlement is also the slowest structural feature here, a weekly cycle where transactions from Monday through Sunday settle the following Thursday, a meaningfully longer cash-flow cycle than the T+2 offered by Curlec or Billplz.
Pros: Broadest payment method coverage in this list, supports offline, virtual terminal, and marketplace flows beyond standard checkout, minimum withdrawal of RM100 with no charges.
Cons: No published pricing, weekly settlement cycle is slow relative to competitors, settles in MYR only even for foreign card transactions.
Best for: Businesses operating across multiple Southeast Asian markets that need one gateway spanning all of them and can tolerate slower settlement.
Rank 5. iPay88
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Setup Fee | RM488 |
| Annual Fee | RM500 (SME), RM0 lifetime for qualifying startups |
| Transaction Fee | 2.9%-3.5% depending on category |
| Chargeback Fee | RM90 per dispute |
| Settlement | 5 business days |
iPay88 is one of the oldest payment gateways in Malaysia, founded in 2000, and in 2025 it was rebranded to NTT DATA eCommerce Solutions Sdn Bhd following its integration into NTT DATA's global payment ecosystem. The pricing structure reflects its legacy positioning: a RM488 setup fee, a RM500 annual fee for standard SME accounts, and transaction rates between 2.9% and 3.5% depending on merchant category, all higher than the newer entrants on this list. A five business day settlement cycle is also the slowest of the five gateways compared here, and each chargeback carries a flat RM90 fee on top of the disputed amount. The rebrand under NTT DATA may bring infrastructure changes over time, but as of mid-2026 the fee structure remains the least competitive of the providers profiled.
Pros: Long operating history in Malaysia, zero annual fee available for qualifying startups, established integrations across many local platforms.
Cons: Highest setup fee on this list, slowest settlement cycle at 5 business days, per-dispute chargeback fee adds up for high-volume merchants.
Best for: Established merchants with existing iPay88 integrations who prioritize continuity over switching to a faster or cheaper alternative.
How We Evaluated These Gateways
This comparison draws on publicly published pricing pages where available, third-party payment gateway comparison sites, and merchant-facing documentation as of July 2026. Where a provider does not publish setup or transaction fees, such as Fiuu, figures are presented as third-party estimates rather than confirmed rates, and are labelled as such. Settlement speed claims are drawn from each provider's own documentation or support pages rather than merchant self-reports, which tend to vary more widely. Fee structures in Malaysia's payment gateway market change periodically and can vary by merchant risk category, sector, and negotiated volume, so the figures here should be treated as a starting point for evaluation rather than a final quote. Businesses processing significant monthly volume should request a custom quote from each shortlisted provider before committing.
Which Payment Gateway Should You Choose?
For a subscription or recurring-billing business, Curlec's native e-Mandate direct debit and BNM-regulated status make it the strongest fit among the five, even though its card rate is not the cheapest available.
For an FPX-heavy Malaysian SME with modest card volume, Billplz's flat-fee FPX pricing and zero setup cost on the Basic plan deliver the lowest total cost at low to moderate transaction counts.
For a business selling primarily to customers outside Malaysia, Stripe's developer tooling and international payment method coverage outweigh its higher per-transaction cost, provided the currency conversion surcharge is priced into unit economics.
For a business operating across multiple Southeast Asian markets simultaneously, Fiuu's method and geographic coverage justifies the pricing opacity and slower settlement, provided cash flow can absorb a weekly cycle.
For an established enterprise already integrated with iPay88, the switching cost of moving providers may outweigh the savings available elsewhere, though new merchants evaluating options in 2026 will find cheaper and faster alternatives on this list.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the cheapest payment gateway in Malaysia for FPX transactions?
Billplz offers the lowest published FPX rates in this comparison, ranging from RM0.70 to RM1.25 per transaction depending on plan tier, compared to percentage-based FPX rates of 1.5% or higher charged by Curlec and Stripe.
Which payment gateway settles fastest in Malaysia?
Curlec and Billplz both offer T+2 settlement, the fastest cycle among the five gateways compared here. Fiuu settles weekly and iPay88 takes 5 business days, both considerably slower.
Is Stripe a good payment gateway for Malaysian businesses?
Stripe works well for Malaysian businesses selling internationally, given its developer tooling and broad payment method support, but its combined rate of 3% plus RM1.00, with additional international and currency conversion surcharges, makes it more expensive than Malaysia-focused alternatives for domestic-only transaction volume.
What is FPX and why does it matter for payment gateway fees?
FPX, short for Financial Process Exchange, is Malaysia's real-time online banking payment rail managed by PayNet, allowing customers to pay directly from their bank account. Because FPX is the dominant payment method for Malaysian online purchases, a gateway's FPX pricing structure, whether flat-fee or percentage-based, often matters more to total cost than its card transaction rate.
Does Curlec support recurring or subscription payments?
Yes. Curlec includes a direct debit engine called e-Mandate that automates bank-to-bank recurring collections, alongside subscription billing tools, positioning it differently from gateways that only support one-off card or FPX transactions.
Should a new Malaysian business choose the cheapest gateway or the fastest-settling one?
Neither factor should be evaluated alone. A gateway with a lower headline rate but a five business day settlement cycle, such as iPay88, ties up working capital longer than a gateway with a slightly higher rate but T+2 settlement, such as Curlec or Billplz. For early-stage businesses managing tight cash flow, settlement speed often has a larger practical effect on the business than a half-percentage-point difference in transaction fees.
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