Visa, Mastercard and Ant International have launched an initiative to establish common standards for identifying and verifying artificial intelligence agents that can make purchases on behalf of users. The companies said they have started working together on a Know-Your-Agent interoperability framework designed to help different participants in the payments ecosystem recognize trusted AI agents while retaining their own approval procedures and risk-management controls.
The initiative comes as the payments industry prepares for the expansion of agentic commerce, in which artificial intelligence systems are expected to move beyond recommending products and services to completing transactions for consumers. Under this model, an AI agent could potentially search for products, make purchasing decisions according to instructions from a user and complete payments without requiring the consumer to manually carry out every step of the transaction.
The proposed Know-Your-Agent framework is intended to create greater interoperability between card networks, digital wallets, agent platforms and online marketplaces. According to the companies, participating platforms would be able to recognize trusted AI agents operating across different payment ecosystems while continuing to apply their own authorization requirements and risk-management processes. This could provide payment providers with greater visibility into the agents attempting to initiate transactions.
The development addresses one of the key challenges associated with the growing use of AI agents in consumer payments: establishing trust between different platforms. As AI agents become capable of interacting directly with merchants and payment systems, companies need mechanisms that can help determine whether an agent is authorized to act on behalf of a user and whether the transaction meets the relevant security and risk requirements.
The framework builds on protocols that the three companies have already developed for their respective payment ecosystems. Visa has introduced its Trusted Agent Protocol, while Mastercard has developed Verifiable Intent. Ant International has also developed its Agentic Mobile Protocol. The new collaboration is intended to build on these existing approaches and create greater interoperability between the different systems rather than requiring every payment participant to develop separate connections for each AI agent platform.
Visa, Mastercard and Ant International said a common framework could reduce integration costs for businesses and payment providers. Greater compatibility between networks could also help companies introduce new agentic payment services more quickly by giving participants improved trust and risk visibility when AI agents interact with different payment systems.
The initiative reflects the broader changes taking place in digital commerce as companies explore ways to allow artificial intelligence to perform tasks on behalf of consumers. Traditional online payments generally require users to select products, provide payment details and confirm purchases themselves. Agentic commerce could shift some of those activities to AI systems, increasing the importance of authentication, authorization and transaction controls that can operate across multiple platforms.
The three companies will collaborate on the initiative through BuildFin.ai, a platform convened by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. The platform brings together financial institutions, technology providers and researchers to develop artificial intelligence solutions for financial services. Its involvement provides a forum for the participating companies to work with other stakeholders as they explore standards and practical applications for AI-driven financial services.
The collaboration between the three major payment companies comes as financial institutions and technology providers increasingly examine how artificial intelligence can interact with payment infrastructure. Establishing common mechanisms for recognizing and verifying AI agents could become an important component of this emerging payment environment, particularly as more consumers begin relying on AI systems to conduct purchases.
The proposed framework will allow the participating ecosystems to work toward a shared approach while preserving the individual approval and risk-management processes of each platform. As agentic commerce develops, the ability to establish trust between AI agents, payment providers, wallets and marketplaces could determine how quickly these systems can move from experimental applications into wider consumer use.
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