8B, a Central Asia-based fintech infrastructure company, and PayU, an India-based diversified fintech platform, have announced a strategic partnership to integrate UPI and other Indian payment methods into 8B's merchant network across Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and the broader Central Asian region.
Through the integration of PayU's APIs into 8B's merchant infrastructure, Central Asian businesses can now accept UPI, net banking, and Indian debit and credit cards, including those on the RuPay network, from Indian customers without requiring new hardware or separate merchant onboarding.
The transaction flows through existing merchant infrastructure with Indian payment rails added as an additional acceptance option. In Kazakhstan, the arrangement is facilitated through Zesta LLP, a locally licensed payment organisation, ensuring regulatory compliance for transactions processed in the country.
Tourism growth and trade context
The partnership addresses a growing mismatch between rising Indian visitor numbers in Central Asia and the payment infrastructure available to support those travellers. Kazakhstan received an estimated 250,000 Indian visitors in 2025, up from 146,000 in 2024, while Indian arrivals to Uzbekistan rose 22.7% in the first five months of 2025 compared to the same period the prior year. India has emerged as the top source market for Almaty's foreign arrivals. India's outbound travel expenditure reached USD 18.82 billion in 2024 and is forecast to reach USD 55.39 billion by 2034.
Beyond tourism, India-Kazakhstan bilateral trade reached USD 923.3 million in 2025, and the partnership is designed to support Indian consumers purchasing goods and digital services from Central Asian merchants, with funds remitted to merchant accounts abroad.
Commenting on the news, Bogdan Zadorozhny, Co-Founder and Chief Innovation Officer at 8B, said enabling cross-border commerce to feel as intuitive as domestic commerce improves the travel experience and creates a foundation for a broader commercial relationship. Nikhil Mehta, Senior Vice President of Partnerships at PayU, said the collaboration lays the foundation for digital payments infrastructure connecting India's digital consumers with Central Asia's rapidly growing travel and commerce sectors.
