Visa adds Australian banks to AI payments programme

Visa has added Australian banks and fintechs to its Agentic Ready program, extending work already launched in Europe into the local market.

The programme lets financial institutions test and validate payments initiated by AI agents in a controlled environment. It uses Visa's existing payments infrastructure, including tokenisation, identity checks, risk tools and transaction controls, to assess how these transactions could be handled across different merchants, platforms and sales channels.

The aim is to address a growing question in the payments sector as automated shopping tools become more common: how an AI system can act on a consumer's behalf while that person retains control over consent, identity and spending limits.

Early participants in Australia include ANZ, Bank of Melbourne, BankSA, Cuscal, ING, Latitude Financial, NAB, St. George and Zip. Their involvement brings backing from large banks, payments providers and consumer finance groups spanning a broad section of the local market.

Visa expects the next stage of AI-driven shopping to move beyond purchases made within a single retailer's environment. It sees software agents searching, comparing and completing transactions across multiple sellers, shifting payment from a single checkout step to part of a broader automated process.

That shift increases the need for trust and oversight. A payment authorised by an agent may involve a chain of decisions across several services, requiring providers to link the transaction clearly to a real person and apply controls consistently wherever it takes place.

Alan Machet, Group Country Manager for Visa Oceania, outlined the company's view of the shift in online shopping and payments.

"Agentic commerce is more than technology. It's a fundamental shift in how people shop and pay that will become truly meaningful when it works across the real world of commerce," said Alan Machet, Group Country Manager, Visa.

He said cross-platform use is the point at which the model becomes more relevant to everyday spending.

"The Agentic Ready Program is about preparing the ecosystem for what comes next, when AI agents are making decisions across merchants, categories and platforms, not just within a single store," said Machet.

How it works

The programme is built around a trust layer that combines payment credentials with identity, risk and governance measures. The goal is to let banks and fintechs test agent-initiated payments in conditions that reflect real-world operations while preserving the consumer protections already used on the Visa network.

This approach suggests Visa is trying to avoid a fragmented market in which each retailer or platform develops its own isolated method for machine-led purchases. By anchoring these transactions in network-level controls, it is positioning itself at the centre of how autonomous commerce could be managed across different sellers.

Machet gave an example of a shopping task involving more than one merchant and more than one decision point.

"Imagine an AI agent helping a family plan their weekly grocery shop across several supermarkets, balancing price, dietary needs, availability and delivery, then seamlessly completing the payment in one go," said Machet.

He linked that scenario to the broader issue of safeguards around automated payments.

"That is where we think agentic commerce will truly shine, and where the foundations of trust and security really matter," said Machet.

Partner support

Several participating institutions described the programme as an early step in shaping how automated payments may develop in Australia. Their comments point to a market interested in experimentation but still focused on governance, customer confidence and compatibility with existing banking services.

"For ANZ, technology is a core enabler of digital experiences and long‐term value. This program represents a first practical step towards enabling agentic commerce and reflects our deliberate approach to engaging with emerging capabilities that will help shape the next generation of digital commerce," said Kate Britton, Acting Managing Director Retail Products, ANZ.

"Cuscal is proud to join Visa's Agentic Ready program to ensure the Australian Payment ecosystem remains trusted, secure and future ready. As a disciplined disruptor, this marks a major step for Cuscal to enable our clients to shape the world of agentic payments," said Bronwyn Yam, Chief Product Officer, Cuscal.

"ING is pleased to be working with Visa through the Agentic Ready Program to test and validate a secure, reliable and efficient approach to agent‐initiated payments. This reflects our long standing focus on digital innovation and delivering simple, seamless banking experiences for customers across Australia," said Jennifer Davies, Head of Retail Banking, ING Australia.

"Payments underpin the everyday moments that matter to our customers, and it's important they continue to evolve alongside customer needs. We're excited about the potential of agentic payments to deliver more intuitive experiences for customers," said Vipin Kalra, Managing Director of Consumer Finance, St George, Bank of Melbourne and BankSA.

"As more Australians turn to AI to help them discover, compare and decide what to buy, Zip sees an opportunity to better support customers across the purchase journey. Consumers are looking for fair, flexible payment options that give them confidence and control, and together with Visa, we're creating more opportunities to deliver trusted, seamless experiences wherever customers choose to shop," said Soraya Alali, CEO ANZ, Zip.