Razorpay can now move money abroad from GIFT City under one regulator

Bengaluru fintech start-up Razorpay has received its final Payment Service Provider licence from the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA), the regulator for GIFT City in Gujarat, the company's news was reported on Monday, 2 November 2026. The licence lets Razorpay move money into and out of India for its customers from GIFT City under a single set of rules. It comes about six to seven months after IFSCA gave the company in-principle approval in April 2026.

A payment service provider is a company that handles the movement of money on behalf of businesses and individuals: collecting payments, holding them briefly and passing them on. In India such firms are normally licensed by the Reserve Bank of India. GIFT City is different. It houses India's International Financial Services Centre, a zone built to handle finance in foreign currencies, and there the single regulator is IFSCA. A licence from IFSCA therefore lets a firm build products that work in dollars, euros and other currencies from Indian soil, rather than routing that business through a company set up abroad.

For Razorpay, the final licence completes a two-track approach to cross-border payments. The RBI licence it received in December 2025 covers cross-border payments processed within India's regular financial system. The IFSCA licence adds a second base in GIFT City for services such as multi-currency accounts and global investing, where customers hold or move money in foreign currencies. Together they give one Indian company permission to handle both sides of a cross-border payment under Indian regulators.

The approval also matters beyond one company. GIFT City has been drawing payment firms that want to serve exporters, freelancers and investors who send or receive money abroad. Skydo's final licence in October and Razorpay's now show that IFSCA is moving applicants from the in-principle stage to full approval. For small businesses outside the big metros that sell to overseas buyers, more licensed providers can mean more choice in how they receive foreign payments and what they pay for it. That choice is what this sub-page tracks: openings that start-ups and small entrepreneurs can actually use.

Peepals timeline: In December 2025 Razorpay received the RBI's Payment Aggregator-Cross Border licence. In April 2026 IFSCA gave the company in-principle approval for a PSP licence in GIFT City. In October 2026 Skydo, another payments firm, received its final IFSCA licence. On 2 November 2026 Razorpay's final IFSCA licence was reported, roughly six to seven months after its in-principle approval.

Short-term: Razorpay can begin offering its GIFT City services through the banks it has already connected with, RBL Bank and ICICI Bank, and investment platforms are expected to join soon.

Long-term: If more payment firms complete the IFSCA process, GIFT City could become a common base for Indian companies' cross-border payment products, keeping that business and its regulation within India.

Who is affected: Exporters, freelancers and small businesses that receive money from abroad; Indian investors who invest overseas through apps; investment platforms looking for a licensed partner in GIFT City; and other fintech start-ups applying to IFSCA.

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