Fiuu, one of Southeast Asia’s largest fintech platforms, has secured a JCB Direct Acquiring license across Malaysia, Singapore, and the Philippines, with plans to expand into Thailand next.
The license enables Fiuu to connect directly to JCB, Japan’s primary global card payment scheme, allowing transactions to be processed entirely in-house without relying on third-party intermediaries.
Direct processing and operational impact
With direct acquiring capabilities, Fiuu gains direct control over its transaction processing, settlement operations, and payment performance. By eliminating third-party intermediaries from the chain, the platform can support operations that deliver faster settlement timelines and clearer transaction visibility via direct data feeds from JCB Cardholders.
For merchants operating across Fiuu’s online and offline channels, this simplified pipeline also translates to higher transaction reliability, reducing potential failure points during payment processing.
According to Fiuu, the expansion comes on the back of processing USD13 billion (~RM53.15 billion) in Total Payment Volume (TPV) in FY2025, reflecting the platform’s processing capacity across regional markets.
Card payments remain resilient in Southeast Asia
While QR payments and eWallets continue to see rapid adoption across Southeast Asia, credit card payments maintain a significant share of transaction volume, supported by established rewards programmes and user habits.
Data cited in the announcement highlights a maturing digital payment landscape across Southeast Asia, where over 60% of all transactions are now digital and three in five people actively shop online. On a global scale, JCB brings significant volume to this ecosystem, currently counting 181 million cardmembers and acceptance across 72 million merchants worldwide.
“Businesses expanding across Southeast Asia need payment partners that can combine local market understanding, direct scheme connectivity, and operational depth. Our direct acquiring relationship with JCB strengthens that foundation, allowing us to support merchants with broader acceptance and greater consistency.” said Eng Sheng Guan, CEO of Fiuu.
Shimpei Yamaguchi, Managing Director of JCB International Asia Pacific, noted that Fiuu’s multi-channel infrastructure and growing merchant footprint make it a key regional partner in expanding JCB’s acceptance network.
Expansion to Thailand planned
Following the current deployment across Malaysia, Singapore, and the Philippines, Fiuu confirmed it is actively working to extend its JCB direct acquiring capabilities into Thailand as part of its ongoing regional expansion strategy.
