Edinburgh-based fintech Modulr has announced the backing of online payments giant PayPal.

Modulr received £9 million in funding from the firm, which it said will be used to develop additional products, grow its team, and expand its customer base.

Commenting on the announcement, Modulr chief executive Myles Stephenson said the investment marks a milestone for the company’s payments infrastructure.

“Modulr lowers the barriers to bringing payments into a platform, creating endless new possibilities for our customers while allowing them to focus on their core competencies – the investment from PayPal Ventures enhances our ability to execute on that vision,” he said.

To date, the company has raised a total £63.3m, from PayPal, Highland Europe, Frog Capital and Blenheim Chalcot as well as a £10m grant from the Capability and Innovation Fund.

Anil Hansjee, partner at PayPal Ventures, said: “More digital businesses are looking to incorporate payments into their existing user experience but either don’t have the expertise or the resources.

“Modulr is well-positioned to be an enabler of this trend and will undoubtedly expand end-users’ access to fast, reliable and secure financial services.”

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The firm is building on previous successes, and from its move to an Edinburgh office in 2018.

In October 2019, the company announced plans to create 53 highly skilled jobs in Edinburgh as part of a £20 million investment package.

The company has also seen several successes in 2020, announcing partnerships in mid and early June with Edinburgh-based cryptocurrency wallet and exchange platform Zumo and ethical fintech disruptor Soar.

Modulr is using the partnerships to deliver a real-time payments solution to support responsible lenders in Scotland, and aid in the development of a seamless fiat-to-cryptocurrency payments system complete with a sterling (GBP) functionality.

Within the last year, Modulr became a “directly connected participant” of the Bacs scheme, alongside participation in the Faster Payments scheme, enabling Modulr to settle and hold funds at the Bank of England.