In the last ten years, India has witnessed a massive shift in its digital payments ecosystem as fintech start-ups have successfully paved the way for faster, easier, and wider adoption of online transactions. One of the companies spearheading this revolution is Razorpay, a comprehensive financial services platform catering to businesses of all sizes across India.
At the heart of Razorpay’s growth is Harshil Mathur, the company’s CEO and co-founder. Since its inception under Mathur’s leadership, Razorpay has evolved from a payment gateway into a full-fledged financial ecosystem, offering banking, lending, payroll, payments infrastructure, and cross-border payment solutions for businesses of all sizes.
Razorpay has grown significantly. In 2026, the company processes hundreds of billions of dollars in annual payment volume, has received regulatory approval from the Reserve Bank of India, expanded its international presence, and confidentially filed draft papers for its IPO. Harshil Mathur’s entrepreneurship demonstrates how identifying a true market gap and continuously innovating can build an industry-leading business.
This article explores Harshil Mathur’s early life, education, and professional journey, how the idea for Razorpay was conceived and launched, and the key milestones that helped the company become one of India’s most prominent fintech startups.
Harshil Mathur: At a Glance
| Attribute | Details |
| Full Name | Harshil Mathur |
| Position | CEO & Co-Founder, Razorpay |
| Company Founded | 2014 |
| Co-Founder | Shashank Kumar |
| Headquarters | Bengaluru, Karnataka |
| Education | B.Tech. in Metallurgical Engineering, IIT Roorkee |
| Previous Experience | Wireline Field Engineer at Schlumberger |
| Industry | Fintech |
| Company Valuation | $7.5 Billion (Latest Reported) |
| Total Funding Raised | Approximately $742 Million |
Early Life and Education
Harshil Mathur was born and raised in Jaipur, Rajasthan. Even as a child, Mathur was very fond of mathematics, and most of his growing-up years were spent in Jaipur. From an early age, he showed a strong interest in mathematics and science while developing an analytical mindset that later proved valuable in his entrepreneurial journey.
Mathur was admitted to the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee, one of the country’s most prestigious engineering institutions, where he earned a B.Tech. in Metallurgical Engineering in 2013.
Although IIT Roorkee was not focused on financial technology, it provided him with a strong engineering foundation while nurturing his interest in innovation and entrepreneurship. During his college years, he became increasingly interested in solving real-world business problems through technology rather than pursuing a conventional engineering career.
These beliefs helped lay the foundation for Razorpay.
Career Before Entrepreneurship
After graduation, Harshil Mathur joined Schlumberger, one of the world’s leading oilfield services companies, as a Wireline Field Engineer.
The role exposed him to challenging work environments and complex engineering problems. While the experience provided valuable technical exposure and global opportunities, he knew he wanted to build technology products over the long term rather than remain in the energy sector.
In the meantime, the Indian startup scene was also transforming at a fast pace. Companies such as Flipkart, Ola, and Paytm were demonstrating to young engineers that technology-driven startups could create long-term value.
After leaving his corporate job, Mathur teamed up with his IIT Roorkee classmate, Shashank Kumar, whose complementary technical expertise and shared vision of simplifying digital payments laid the foundation for Razorpay.
The Problem That Sparked Razorpay
In 2014, accepting online payments in India involved numerous technical and operational challenges, making the process far more complex than it is today.
Businesses had to connect to several banks, complete extensive paperwork, and wait for weeks or even months before they could start accepting payments online. For many startups, small businesses, and developers, the payment infrastructure was slow, flaky and hard to implement.
Harshil Mathur and Shashank Kumar identified this challenge as an opportunity to build a more developer-friendly payment gateway that was easy to integrate and supported multiple payment
Founding Razorpay
In 2014, Harshil Mathur and Shashank Kumar officially launched Razorpay in Bengaluru.
At first, it was not easy to convince investors and financial institutions of the product’s potential. The Indian fintech ecosystem was still in its early stages, and payment companies had to navigate a complex regulatory and banking environment.
Nevertheless, the founders continued refining the platform while engaging closely with merchants to better understand their needs.
A major breakthrough came when Razorpay became one of the first Indian fintech startups to be accepted into Y Combinator, the renowned Silicon Valley startup accelerator. The funding, mentorship, and global exposure provided the founders with the opportunity to validate their business model and accelerate product development.
Following Y Combinator, Razorpay secured additional seed funding from leading venture capital firms and rapidly expanded its merchant base.
Building a Full-Stack Fintech Company
Instead of providing a simple payment gateway, Harshil Mathur sought to build a comprehensive financial platform for businesses.
Over the years, the company expanded its offerings by launching several financial products beyond payment processing:
- RazorpayX for business banking
- Razorpay Capital for business lending
- Payroll and employee management solutions
- Point-of-sale (POS) payment systems
- Cross-border payment infrastructure
- Subscription billing solutions
- UPI and QR-based payment products
This evolution transformed Razorpay from a payment gateway into a full-fledged financial platform.
Today, organizations ranging from startups to large enterprises use Razorpay’s integrated platform to manage payments, banking operations, payroll, and other financial processes.
Scaling During India’s Digital Payments Boom
The success of digital payments in India spurred the growth of Razorpay.
Government initiatives promoting a cashless economy, rising UPI adoption, increasing smartphone penetration, and the rapid growth of e-commerce created significant opportunities for digital payment infrastructure providers.
Harshil Mathur focused on building a technology platform that could scale with growing demand while maintaining reliability, security, and ease of integration.
During this period, the company expanded its customer base across industries including e-commerce, SaaS, education, healthcare, travel, retail, financial services, and logistics.
Through continuous innovation, the launch of new financial products, and enhancements to its payments ecosystem, the company established itself as one of India’s leading fintech companies.
Growing customer adoption strengthened investor confidence and helped Razorpay raise multiple funding rounds between 2015 and 2021. The capital enabled the company to launch new products, make strategic acquisitions, and expand internationally.
Razorpay’s Funding Journey
Entrepreneurs and businesses embraced the company as a new standard for digital payments. Investors recognized Razorpay’s long-term growth potential and backed the company through multiple funding rounds. The company attracted numerous investments, which supported its growth by enabling the development of new products, expansion into new markets, and continued improvements to its technology platform.
Razorpay has raised a total of around $742 million in funding as of July 2026. The company’s most recent private fundraising was its $375 million Series F announced in December 2021, which valued it at $7.5 billion, one of India’s most valuable fintech unicorns. Since then, the company has been preparing for its IPO.
Major Funding Timeline
| Year | Funding Round | Amount Raised |
| 2015 | Y Combinator | $120K |
| 2015 | Seed | $2.5 Million |
| 2015 | Series A | $9 Million |
| 2016 | Series B | $20 Million |
| 2019 | Series C | $75 Million |
| 2020 | Series D | $100 Million |
| 2021 | Series E | $160 Million |
| 2021 | Series F | $375 Million |
Based in India, Razorpay has raised funding from several leading global venture capital firms and institutional investors, including Tiger Global, Peak XV Partners (formerly Sequoia Capital India), Ribbit Capital, GIC, Lone Pine Capital, Alkeon Capital, TCV, Matrix Partners India, and Y Combinator.
Razorpay’s Financial Performance
Razorpay’s growth has closely mirrored the expansion of India’s digital payments ecosystem.
For FY25 (April 2024–March 2025), the company reported:
- Operating revenue: ₹3,783 crore
- 65% year-over-year revenue growth
- Gross profit: ₹1,277 crore
- Net loss: ₹1,209 crore
Although the reported loss initially appeared substantial, it was primarily driven by non-recurring expenses, including ESOP-related costs, tax adjustments, and expenses associated with the company’s reverse flip to India. The core payments business remained operationally strong, with payment volumes continuing to grow. As of July 2026, the company’s FY26 financial results had not yet been announced.
Major Milestones in 2026
In 2026, Harshil Mathur and Razorpay reached several significant milestones as the company advanced its IPO plans, expanded internationally, and strengthened its AI-driven fintech strategy.
Leading Razorpay’s IPO Journey
In June 2026, Razorpay confidentially submitted its Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).
The company is reportedly targeting an IPO worth around ₹5,000–6,000 crore (approximately $600–700 million), making it one of the largest public offerings by an Indian fintech company. CEO Harshil Mathur continues to lead Razorpay’s IPO process while maintaining a strong focus on long-term, sustainable growth.
Championing AI in Financial Services
Harshil Mathur has consistently highlighted the role of artificial intelligence in transforming financial technology.
At the India AI Impact Summit 2026, he discussed how India is rapidly embracing AI and how it can make digital payments smarter, more secure, and more efficient. Under his leadership, Razorpay continues to introduce AI-powered capabilities across its payments ecosystem to streamline merchant operations and enhance the merchant experience.
Expanding Razorpay’s Global Footprint
Razorpay’s expansion into Singapore further strengthens the company’s international growth strategy and supports its expansion across Southeast Asian markets. The company’s international expansion reflects its long-term vision of extending its financial infrastructure platform to global markets.
Advancing Regulatory and Business Growth
The company further strengthened its regulated fintech ecosystem by securing approvals from the Reserve Bank of India for Online Payment Aggregator, Cross-Border Payment Aggregator, and Physical Point-of-Sale (POS) Payment Aggregator businesses.
The company also expanded its consumer payments ecosystem by acquiring a majority stake in POP. Harshil Mathur has outlined the company’s next phase of growth through AI innovation, international expansion, new product launches, and preparations for becoming a publicly listed fintech company.
Leadership Style
Harshil Mathur has consistently focused on solving practical business challenges rather than following industry trends. As a product leader, he believes in building products that simplify financial operations for businesses while ensuring compliance with India’s evolving regulatory framework.
Instead of remaining just a payment gateway, he transformed Razorpay into a full-stack fintech platform offering banking, lending, payroll, payment infrastructure, and cross-border financial services. This long-term product vision has enabled Razorpay to diversify its revenue streams while strengthening customer retention.
Key Lessons from Harshil Mathur’s Entrepreneurial Journey
Harshil Mathur’s entrepreneurial journey offers valuable lessons for founders, entrepreneurs, and business leaders.
1. Solve Real Customer Problems
Razorpay was founded after identifying the challenges businesses faced while accepting online payments. Building solutions around real customer problems creates long-term value.
2. Think Beyond Your First Product
Although Razorpay started as a payment gateway, it has evolved into a full-stack fintech platform. Expanding beyond your core product can unlock new growth opportunities.
3. Adapt to Regulatory Change
Building a successful financial services company requires working closely with regulators and maintaining strong compliance standards. Razorpay’s ability to secure multiple RBI licences demonstrates how regulatory compliance plays a vital role in building a sustainable fintech business.
4. Build for Scale
Razorpay invested in scalable infrastructure capable of supporting growing transaction volumes while maintaining high reliability and performance.
5. Focus on Long-Term Growth
Rather than focusing solely on raising capital, Razorpay has strengthened its business operations, expanded internationally, and positioned itself for its IPO.
Conclusion
Harshil Mathur’s journey demonstrates how identifying a meaningful market problem and developing an effective solution can lead to the creation of an industry-leading company. Drawing on his engineering background, he co-founded Razorpay with Shashank Kumar and has remained focused on solving customer challenges through continuous innovation.
Today, Razorpay is one of India’s leading fintech companies, providing businesses with payments, banking, lending, payroll, and cross-border financial solutions. With continued financial growth, international expansion, key RBI approvals, and preparations for its public market debut, the company is entering its next phase of growth.
As the Indian fintech industry continues to develop rapidly, Harshil Mathur’s path holds important insights for entrepreneurs wishing to build innovative technology businesses that address needs on a national scale.
FAQs
1. Who is Harshil Mathur?
Harshil Mathur is the CEO and co-founder of Razorpay, which he founded with Shashank Kumar, the company’s Co-Founder and CTO. Razorpay is one of India’s leading fintech companies, offering payment, banking, lending, payroll, and financial infrastructure solutions for businesses.
2. When was Razorpay founded?
In 2014, Harshil Mathur and Shashank Kumar founded Razorpay in Bengaluru to help organizations accept payments online.
3. How much funding has Razorpay raised?
As of July 2026, Razorpay had raised approximately $742 million through multiple funding rounds. The company’s most recent private funding round took place in 2021.
4. What is Razorpay’s latest valuation?
The latest publicly announced valuation is $7.5 billion, disclosed during the company’s Series F funding round.
5. Is Razorpay preparing for an IPO?
Yes. Razorpay confidentially filed its draft IPO papers with SEBI in June 2026 and is preparing for its public market debut, subject to regulatory approvals and market conditions.
