Razorpay
Company History
Razorpay History: Founding, Growth & Key Milestones
Founded 2014 in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India
When was Razorpay founded?
Razorpay was founded in 2014 in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India by Harshil Mathur and Shashank Kumar, making it 12 years old.
- Founded
- 2014
- Founding place
- Jaipur, Rajasthan, India
- Founders
- Harshil Mathur and Shashank Kumar
- Headquarters today
- Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
- Milestones documented
- 10 (2014–2026)
- Current CEO
- Harshil Mathur
- Acquisitions
- 5
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 2014 | Razorpay Founded |
| 2015 | Y Combinator Winter 2015 |
| 2018 | RazorpayX and Razorpay Capital Launch |
| 2019 | Thirdwatch and Opfin Acquired |
| 2020 | $100 Million Series D |
| 2021 | $375 Million Series F |
| 2022 | Acquires Curlec (Malaysia), Ezetap (offline POS), IZealiant and PoshVine; RBI pauses new |
| 2023 | RBI Payment Aggregator Authorisation |
| 2025 | Converts to Razorpay Software Limited and completes reverse flip of its parent from the |
| 2026 | Appoints IPO bankers (February) and confidentially files draft IPO papers with SEBI |
- Where was Razorpay founded?
- Razorpay was founded in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India in 2014.
- Who founded Razorpay?
- Razorpay was founded by Harshil Mathur and Shashank Kumar.
- When did Razorpay start?
- Razorpay was founded in 2014.
- How old is Razorpay?
- Razorpay is 12 years old as of 2026.
Founding Story
In 2014 Harshil Mathur and Shashank Kumar, friends from IIT Roorkee, were working on a crowdfunding idea when they found that getting an online payment gateway in India meant heavy paperwork and long delays. They dropped the original project to fix payments, got into Y Combinator's Winter 2015 batch, and built Razorpay around a simple, self-serve API.
Founders
Harshil Mathur
Harshil Mathur co-founded Razorpay in 2014 with Shashank Kumar after struggling to set up online payments for a crowdfunding project. As CEO he has led the company through Y Combinator, funding rounds up to a $7.5 billion valuation in 2021, expansion into banking and POS, the 2025 reverse flip and the 2026 IPO filing. Harshil Mathur was born in 1991.
Shashank Kumar
Shashank Kumar co-founded Razorpay in 2014 alongside Harshil Mathur. Frustrated by the absolute nightmare of integrating archaic, highly bureaucratic bank payment gateways (which took weeks of paperwork) while trying to build a crowdfunding site, he built Razorpay. As the technical architect, he designed the incredibly simple, developer-friendly API that allowed any Indian startup to accept payments in less than an hour. (Exact birth year remains publicly undisclosed).
Key Milestones
Razorpay Founded
Harshil Mathur and Shashank Kumar found Razorpay to simplify online payments in India.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgRazorpayX and Razorpay Capital Launch
Launches RazorpayX business banking and Razorpay Capital.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgThirdwatch and Opfin Acquired
Acquires fraud-detection startup Thirdwatch and payroll software startup Opfin.
Source: en.wikipedia.org$100 Million Series D
Becomes a unicorn after a $100 million Series D led by GIC and Sequoia Capital India.
Source: en.wikipedia.org$375 Million Series F
Raises $375 million Series F at a $7.5 billion valuation; acquires TERA Finlabs.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgAcquires Curlec (Malaysia), Ezetap (offline POS), IZealiant and PoshVine; RBI pauses new
Acquires Curlec (Malaysia), Ezetap (offline POS), IZealiant and PoshVine; RBI pauses new online merchant onboarding pending its payment aggregator licence.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgRBI Payment Aggregator Authorisation
Receives final RBI authorisation as an online payment aggregator.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgConverts to Razorpay Software Limited and completes reverse flip of its parent from the
Converts to Razorpay Software Limited and completes reverse flip of its parent from the US to India (May); FY25 revenue rises 65% to ~$439 million (₹3,783 crore).
Source: economictimes.indiatimes.comAppoints IPO bankers (February) and confidentially files draft IPO papers with SEBI
Appoints IPO bankers (February) and confidentially files draft IPO papers with SEBI (June).
Source: startup.economictimes.indiatimes.comMajor Acquisitions
Ezetap
2022Acquired offline payments and POS company Ezetap to enter in-store payments.
Curlec
2022Acquired Malaysian recurring payments startup Curlec to expand into Southeast Asia.
IZealiant Technologies
2022Acquired banking technology firm IZealiant to offer payment processing software to banks.
PoshVine
2022Acquired loyalty and rewards platform PoshVine.
Thirdwatch
2019Acquired AI fraud prevention startup Thirdwatch.
Keep researching Razorpay
Razorpay Company History FAQ
What are the major historical milestones in the evolution of Razorpay?
Key milestones: founded in 2014; Y Combinator W15; RazorpayX and Razorpay Capital in 2018; Thirdwatch and Opfin acquisitions in 2019; unicorn status in 2020; $7.5 billion valuation in 2021; Curlec and Ezetap acquisitions in 2022; final RBI payment aggregator authorisation in 2023; reverse flip to India in May 2025; confidential IPO filing in June 2026.
How did Razorpay become a fintech unicorn in October 2020 during the pandemic?
In October 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the digital transformation of Indian commerce, Razorpay raised $100 million in Series D funding co-led by GIC (Singapore) and Sequoia Capital India at a $1.0 billion valuation, officially becoming India's newest fintech unicorn.
How did the launch of Razorpay 2.0 in 2017 transform the company beyond a payment gateway?
In 2017, Razorpay unveiled 'Razorpay 2.0', evolving from a pure payment gateway into a complete financial suite by introducing automated recurring subscriptions, smart payment routing, marketplace invoicing, and instant merchant settlements.
What was the significance of launching RazorpayX Neobanking in 2018?
In November 2018, Razorpay launched RazorpayX, transforming business banking in India by providing business current accounts, corporate expense cards, automated vendor payouts, and automated tax compliance on a single unified platform.
How did Razorpay power the rapid rise of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI)?
Since the launch of UPI by NPCI in 2016, Razorpay was among the first gateways to support UPI, optimizing checkout speed and developing innovations like UPI AutoPay and Turbo UPI, processing billions of UPI transactions monthly.
How did Razorpay grow from a startup gateway into a multi-product fintech?
Razorpay grew by expanding from online checkout into payouts, payroll, offline POS and lending. FY25 revenue reached ~$439 million (₹3,783 crore), up 65% year on year.
What was the significance of Razorpay's 2025 reverse flip to India?
In May 2025 Razorpay merged its US parent, Razorpay Inc., into its Indian entity after Ministry of Corporate Affairs approval, making India its home base ahead of an Indian IPO. Press reports estimated the tax cost at about $144 million (₹1,245 crore).
What is Razorpay's strategic vision for the future of digital finance in emerging economies?
Razorpay's forward vision is to build the ultimate financial technology operating system for emerging markets, democratizing financial access, empowering 50 million small businesses, and driving frictionless commerce across India, Southeast Asia, and beyond.
When and where was Razorpay founded?
Razorpay was founded in 2014 in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India, by IIT Roorkee alumni Harshil Mathur and Shashank Kumar, before relocating operational headquarters to Bangalore, Karnataka.
What inspired the founders to start Razorpay in 2014?
While attempting to build a crowdfunding platform in Jaipur, the founders discovered that integrating Indian bank payment gateways took months of paperwork, in-person bank visits, and outdated APIs, inspiring them to build a developer-first payment gateway with a simple 30-minute integration.
What was the significance of Razorpay’s acceptance into Y Combinator?
In 2015, Razorpay became only the second Indian startup ever accepted into Silicon Valley’s prestigious Y Combinator accelerator (Batch W15), securing early mentorship and seed funding from top US angel investors.
When did Razorpay become a unicorn?
In October 2020, Razorpay achieved unicorn status after raising a $100 million Series D round co-led by GIC and Sequoia Capital India, valuing the company at over $1.0 billion during the COVID-19 digital payments boom.
What was Razorpay’s landmark valuation in 2021?
In December 2021, Razorpay raised a massive $375 million Series F round co-led by Lone Pine Capital, Alkeon Capital, and TCV, valuing the company at $7.5 billion.
How did Razorpay expand into banking with RazorpayX?
In 2018, Razorpay launched RazorpayX, a neo-banking platform providing business current accounts, corporate credit cards, automated vendor payouts, and automated employee payroll (Opfin acquisition).
How did Razorpay expand internationally into Southeast Asia?
In February 2022, Razorpay acquired Malaysian recurring payments provider Curlec for $20 million, rebranding it as "Curlec by Razorpay" to serve digital merchants across Southeast Asia.
When did Razorpay receive its Payment Aggregator (PA) license from the RBI?
In December 2023, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) granted final authorization to Razorpay to operate as a Payment Aggregator, enabling it to onboard new merchants after an industry-wide regulatory pause.
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