Crypto Firms Join Mastercard's Push Into AI-Driven Payments

Mastercard launched Agent Pay for Machines (AP4M), a service that lets AI agents make programmatic payments. The system handles micropayments as small as a fraction of a cent and settles across multiple rails, including card networks, bank accounts and stablecoins.

More than 30 companies are already integrated. The partner list includes Coinbase, Stripe, OKX, Ripple, Adyen and the Solana Foundation. The mix spans crypto-native exchanges, traditional payment processors and blockchain infrastructure providers.

The stablecoin settlement piece is the draw for crypto firms. It lets AI agents pay or receive funds in USDC or similar tokens, then settle through Mastercard's existing network. That bridges the gap between blockchain-based micro-transactions and the legacy card system.

Mastercard has been deepening its crypto ties. The New York Department of Financial Services recently proposed stablecoin rules aligned with the federal GENIUS Act, a regulatory step that could make stablecoin-based services like AP4M more predictable for compliance teams.

In a related move, a16z hired an AI-payments specialist from Dragonfly, signaling venture interest in exactly this intersection of agent payments and crypto rails.

Mastercard itself holds an Alpha Score of 62 out of 100 at AlphaScala, a moderate reading reflecting the financial sector's cautious but growing engagement with digital assets.

The service is live now. Mastercard said the initial focus is on machine-to-machine payments in sectors like data processing, content delivery and IoT billing, where volumes are high and individual transaction values are low.