Visa, Mastercard and Ant Build a Shared Identity Standard for AI Buyers

Visa, Mastercard and Ant International have launched an initiative to create common standards for identifying and verifying AI agents that make purchases for users. The proposed Know-Your-Agent interoperability framework is intended to help card networks, wallets, agent platforms and online marketplaces recognize trusted software across different payment systems while preserving their own approval and risk controls. The work will proceed through BuildFin.ai, a Monetary Authority of Singapore-convened platform for financial institutions, technology providers and researchers.

The initiative addresses a basic problem in agentic commerce: today’s payment stack was built to authenticate people and merchants, not autonomous software acting under delegated authority. A merchant needs to know whether an agent is genuine, who authorized it, what it is allowed to buy and how disputes will be handled. Networks also need signals that distinguish a legitimate automated purchase from account takeover, scripted fraud or a model acting beyond its mandate.

The partners are not starting from zero. Visa has a Trusted Agent Protocol, Mastercard has Verifiable Intent and Ant International has an Agentic Mobile Protocol. A shared layer could allow those systems to exchange identity and authorization signals without forcing every participant onto one proprietary standard. That could reduce integration costs and speed the launch of agent services. It will only work if technical compatibility is matched by clear liability, revocation and consumer-consent rules.

The commercial stakes are significant. AI agents may move from recommending products to comparing terms, negotiating and completing purchases. That can lower search costs for consumers and increase conversion for merchants, but it can also create new gatekeepers. Networks that control agent credentials and transaction data may gain influence over which assistants and merchants are trusted. Regulators will therefore examine competition, privacy and whether users can understand or reverse automated decisions.

Why it matters

Identity is becoming the missing infrastructure for agentic payments. Without interoperable trust signals, merchants face fragmented integrations and consumers face inconsistent protections. A common framework supported by two global card networks and a major Asian payments group could shape de facto standards before legislation catches up. It may also help smaller wallets and merchants participate without building bilateral connections to every agent platform.

The announcement begins a collaboration; it does not establish a finished standard, launch date or universal liability regime. Each network will retain its own approval and risk-management processes, so interoperability may remain partial. The important next disclosures will cover credential governance, user consent, transaction limits, data sharing and dispute resolution. A technically elegant identity token is not enough if responsibility becomes unclear when an agent buys the wrong item or is manipulated by a third party.

Sources: Reuters · Visa · Mastercard · Ant International