Alchemy and Visa have launched AgentCard: AI agents now have access to global payments
Alchemy platform, together with payment giant Visa, has introduced an innovative service called AgentCard. This solution radically changes the paradigm of artificial intelligence interaction with the financial system, allowing AI agents to independently make online purchases on behalf of the user.
Integration with the Visa Intelligent Commerce infrastructure provides neural networks with a full set of identification and payment data. This includes a virtual Visa card, an email address, a phone number, and a cryptocurrency wallet. Developers need less than a minute to configure an agent's access to pay for goods and services through a single API.
How It Works
AI agents running on OpenAI or Anthropic models will be able to perform routine tasks: booking airline tickets, ordering groceries, or renewing subscriptions. The user no longer needs to participate in every stage of the process — the agent acts autonomously within set parameters.
The system is equipped with flexible control mechanisms. Users can set spending limits, restrictions by store categories, and customizable budgets. By default, payments are processed through Visa tokens, preserving bank bonuses and credit lines. If the merchant accepts digital assets, the service automatically switches to the crypto wallet.
"Every technological shift creates new economic participants. AI agents are the next stage, and they vitally need access to the global economy," emphasized Alchemy CEO Nikhil Viswanathan.
Visa representatives note that their infrastructure guarantees the security and scalability of such transactions. The AgentCard protocol automatically selects the optimal payment method based on the merchant's capabilities.
This is not the industry's first step toward autonomous AI finance. Previously, MetaMask announced a wallet for the era of artificial intelligence, and Coinbase introduced a service for connecting AI agents to user accounts with set limits. Estonia also announced the creation of digital IDs for AI agents.
My Expertise: AgentCard from Alchemy and Visa is not just another payment tool, but a fundamental shift in the economy. We are moving from a "user manages money" model to a "user delegates management" model. In the next 2-3 years, we will see explosive growth in the number of autonomous AI agents managing personal finances, and the market for payment solutions for them will become one of the hottest in the crypto industry.