Artificial intelligence is no longer just a backend tool for customer service or analytics. It is now entering the transaction layer itself. Visa and Oracle have announced two initiatives that could transform how payments are made, verified, and settled in a world where software acts as an economic participant.
Industry analysts describe this moment as the start of “agentic commerce,” a new phase in digital finance where autonomous AI systems are trusted to perform real-world financial tasks. The idea is that machines, equipped with identity protocols and smart contract logic, will soon be able to buy, sell, and execute deals on behalf of humans and corporations.
The Concept Behind Agentic Commerce
Agentic commerce aims to create a system in which AI agents can independently handle payment verification, execute trades, and manage contracts. Instead of just supporting transactions, they will become trusted intermediaries. The shift could reduce human error, cut costs, and eliminate friction in global trade, but it also introduces new risks and regulatory questions.
Visa’s new Trusted Agent Protocol was developed with Cloudflare, Microsoft, Shopify, and Adyen. It focuses on ensuring that digital agents can prove who they are before they transact. This identity layer could be compared to a credit card chip for the AI era — a way to validate machine-to-machine trust at the moment of payment.
Meanwhile, Oracle’s AI Agent Marketplace is targeting the enterprise side. Working with partners such as KPMG, IBM, Wipro, Accenture, and Stripe, Oracle wants to standardize how companies deploy AI agents for internal financial operations. These include automated procurement, risk management, and supplier payments. Together, these frameworks form the early building blocks of an economy where AI handles the flow of value.
Bridging AI and Web3 Systems
The timing is significant. As blockchain and decentralized finance systems mature, the infrastructure now exists for autonomous systems to execute verified transactions. Developers have already begun to build bridges between AI and Web3, combining algorithmic reasoning with cryptographic verification.
In online discussions, terms like “AI wallets” and “autonomous payments” are becoming more common. These tools integrate artificial intelligence into decentralized systems, allowing agents to hold digital assets securely and act within programmable parameters. Some prototypes can already move funds across networks like Ethereum and Solana when triggered by market conditions or contract terms.
This intersection of AI and Web3 is seen by some experts as the next major growth engine in fintech. It enables systems that learn from data and adjust behavior in real time, without central control. If successful, agentic commerce could extend beyond payments into logistics, insurance, and even cross-chain trade finance.
Institutional Momentum and Public Skepticism
On social media, discussions around AI agents have grown to more than 50,000 daily mentions, reflecting rising interest among developers, analysts, and investors. Engagement metrics suggest that about 80 percent of the sentiment is positive, highlighting optimism about faster transactions and lower fees. Yet the surge in enthusiasm has also triggered warnings about overhyped claims and “agent-washing,” where companies rebrand traditional automation as intelligent systems.
Research firms such as Gartner have compared this phase to the early days of the dot-com bubble, when every startup tried to position itself as part of the internet revolution. The fear is that “AI agent” could become the next buzzword to inflate valuations without delivering genuine innovation.
Despite those concerns, established players like Visa and Oracle give the movement credibility. Their involvement provides a roadmap for standardization and compliance, especially in sectors where regulatory oversight is strict. Both companies are focusing on secure identity, verified permissions, and transaction traceability — elements that could make autonomous agents viable in mainstream finance.
The Road Ahead for AI-Driven Payments
In the near term, these developments are expected to influence how financial institutions, e-commerce platforms, and governments design their payment infrastructure. Analysts believe that agentic systems could reduce fraud, streamline cross-border transfers, and create new classes of programmable financial instruments.
For Visa, the Trusted Agent Protocol represents a long-term bet on interoperability. For Oracle, the marketplace is an attempt to capture the enterprise layer of AI automation. Combined, they position traditional tech giants at the center of a future where commerce runs continuously and machines are the participants.
Agentic AI is not replacing people but extending the reach of finance into an automated digital fabric. As these systems move from prototypes to production, the next question will not be whether AI can buy your coffee, but whether it can manage your portfolio — and do it better than you.
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