payments

HSBC and Ant Group tested a system that allows AI agents to access digital services and complete small payments using tokenized bank deposits, with transactions settled in real-time on a blockchain test network. This test combined HSBC's tokenized deposit service, Ant Group's Anvita Flow network, and the layer two blockchain testing environment Jovay Testnet. HSBC provided settlement capabilities and real-time risk checks, while Ant Group's network coordinated service access and payments. In the demonstration, an AI agent selected a digital service and completed the payment, with both parties referring to such transactions as small payments, typically defined as being under $2. Both companies stated that this test was limited to technical validation and does not represent a commercial release or actual services for customers.Currently, several banks are testing AI agents to initiate financial transactions on behalf of clients. In March, Spain's Santander Bank completed AI agent-initiated payments in a controlled test using Mastercard's Agent Pay infrastructure, involving the bank's real-time payment system. In May, Swiss digital asset bank Sygnum tested AI agent-driven transactions on the main blockchain network, requiring client approval and signature for each transaction. Spain's CaixaBank also completed AI agent-initiated card transactions using Visa Intelligent Commerce with existing merchant payment systems. However, Augustus Bank CEO Ferdinand Dabitz believes that traditional clearing banks rely on systems designed for manual operations decades ago, making it difficult to adapt to the demands of automated, round-the-clock transactions.

According to the WeChat public account "Du Jia," ByteDance's AI assistant Doubao has added a utility payment feature. Users can initiate payment instructions for water, electricity, gas, and other services through voice or text in the Doubao app, with other life service scenarios also in development. Sources close to Doubao told "Du Jia" that Doubao is gradually building capabilities for handling tasks in life scenarios, including travel services and utility payments."Du Jia" claims to have tested that after issuing commands for paying electricity and water bills in the dialogue box, corresponding service cards pop up and redirect to the utility payment page. The interface is divided into electricity, water, and gas fees, with some regions showing that services are not yet available, while some cities have fully or partially opened them. The relevant framework has been established, and city coverage and service provider integration are still in progress, with actual payments requiring further permission to be granted.Currently, the dialogue only serves to invoke services; steps such as binding account numbers, confirmation, and payment will still be retained, and users will not be charged directly with a single command. Alibaba's Tongyi Qianwen integrated utility payments earlier and can complete payments within the dialogue; Doubao at this stage redirects to handle tasks after invoking the card, and capabilities like food delivery have not yet been launched. The above content comes from "Du Jia" reports and tests, not an official announcement from Doubao.

Circle announced a partnership with Tereina, a financial services company supported by SAP, to integrate its USDC and EURC stablecoins into enterprise payment processes. Companies using SAP financial software can directly send and receive USDC and EURC within their applications used for managing payments. USDC will serve as the preferred stablecoin for dollar-denominated transactions, while EURC will be used for euro-denominated payments.Tereina provides payment infrastructure that can be embedded in enterprise software, allowing companies to complete payments without switching to a separate financial platform. Both parties stated that they plan to test the stablecoin integration solution with customers in the coming months, covering global payment and cash management operations. According to the announcement, the SAP ecosystem supports 84% of global business activities, which brings extensive enterprise reach potential for this integration.This collaboration comes less than a month after Circle launched its Layer 1 blockchain Arc mainnet, focused on stablecoin payments and financial markets. Arc uses USDC to pay transaction fees and supports over 20 fiat-backed stablecoins, including USDC and EURC.

Executives from World Liberty Financial (WLFI), a cryptocurrency project supported by the Trump family, revealed at the stablecoin-themed roundtable forum during the Token2049 conference in Singapore that they plan to introduce USD1 stablecoin payments to large online merchants. WLFI CEO Zach Witkoff attended alongside co-founder Zak Folkman and Bam Azizi, co-founder and CEO of payment infrastructure provider Mesh. Azizi announced that Mesh has partnered with WLFI, allowing USD1 holders to spend the stablecoin within Mesh's merchant network, with related features set to launch this quarter.Folkman stated that in addition to World Liberty's own application, the team plans to promote the same technology to some of the largest Web2 enterprises in the market. USD1 is issued by BitGo, with reserves including cash, U.S. government money market funds, and other cash equivalents, designed to maintain a 1 dollar peg. According to CoinGecko data, its market capitalization is approximately 4.45 billion dollars.In August, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) granted conditional approval for WLFI to establish a national trust bank, which is intended for issuing dollar-backed stablecoins and custodial services for digital assets. Witkoff stated that this move will enable WLFI to assume the issuance responsibilities of USD1, which is currently managed by BitGo.

Dragonfly Managing Partner Haseeb Qureshi stated during his speech at the TOKEN2049 summit today that the narrative from earlier this year that "agents will fully adopt cryptocurrency payments" has been debunked; the reality is that traditional channels like credit cards are already prepared.The real shift is that------agents do not need cryptocurrency; you do. Agents will make cryptocurrency reliable (like banks preventing your foolish actions), while in an era of panoramic prisons where AI significantly reduces monitoring costs and physical attacks surge, cryptocurrency and private AI become the last line of defense for individuals against state power and the reclamation of privacy.

The TOKEN2049 official Side Event "Stablecoins & Payments: Funds Flow," hosted by the global stablecoin payment infrastructure service provider WasabiCard, grandly opened today in Singapore. The event gathered industry guests from traditional finance, blockchain, stablecoins, payments, and AI fields, focusing on cutting-edge topics such as asset tokenization (RWA), real payments with stablecoins, and AI Agents.Guests from institutions and companies such as Circle, Plume, Mirae Asset, NIUM, Lotus Tech, Safeheron, AWS, and WIDTH participated in on-site discussions, sharing industry practices and cutting-edge viewpoints around three main directions: tokenized capital markets, the transition of stablecoins from settlement to real-world payments, and autonomous execution and payment infrastructure in the era of AI Agents.In addition, WasabiCard will appear as a Gold Sponsor at TOKEN2049 Singapore 2026 from October 7 to 8. During the conference, the WasabiCard team will showcase its two core businesses, global card issuance and global remittance, at booths PB4-24 and 25, and engage with partners from the global finance, payment, and digital asset industries to explore more collaboration opportunities.

According to The Block, the Ethereum Foundation has launched zkAPI on the Ethereum mainnet, a solution co-authored by Vitalik Buterin.zkAPI allows users to pay for artificial intelligence and other APIs using pre-stored ETH or USDC through zero-knowledge proofs, making it impossible for service providers to associate specific requests with the payer.

According to Bitcoin Magazine, Jack Dorsey's payment company Block has announced the launch of its first Bitcoin consumer advertising campaign, aimed at encouraging people to use Bitcoin as a medium of exchange and to make Bitcoin "everyday currency." The campaign slogan is "Some things don't make sense. Bitcoin does." The advertisements depict scenes of Americans complaining about rising living costs and Wall Street bankers receiving government bailouts.Miles Suter, head of Block's Bitcoin business, stated that the company focuses on creating financial products that make everyday life more convenient, and this advertising campaign is the first large-scale showcase of a centralized financial system for Bitcoin. The campaign will run from Thursday on YouTube, X, Meta, Instagram, and Fox Sports television channels until December 31, and will be aired before select screenings of "Avengers: Endgame" and "Dune Part 3."Dorsey left Twitter in 2021 to focus on payment business and Bitcoin adoption, and has expressed a desire for Bitcoin to become a global currency. Block's Cash App allows users to buy, sell, and send Bitcoin, while Square accepts Bitcoin payments through the Lightning Network. The company also launched a modular Bitcoin mining machine last year to reduce costs for miners in maintenance and equipment replacement.

The core provisions of the regulatory framework for payment stablecoins in Florida, USA, will take effect on October 1, 2026.According to the state's Bill 2026 Chapter 176, engaging in the business of qualified payment stablecoin issuers in the state generally requires a license or must meet exemption conditions; qualified issuers must maintain at least a 1:1 identifiable reserve, which includes cash, funds in Federal Reserve accounts, qualified bank deposits, U.S. Treasury securities with a remaining maturity of no more than 93 days, and qualified government money market funds, among others. They must also publicly disclose redemption policies, disclose reserve composition monthly, accept monthly audits by certified public accountants, and be certified by the CEO and CFO.If the total issuance of payment stablecoins by state-level issuers reaches $10 billion, unless a federal exemption is obtained, they must transition to the corresponding federal regulatory framework within 360 days or suspend new issuances until the scale falls below the threshold.

From September 29 to October 1, the stablecoin infrastructure platform Interlace made its debut at the 2026 Korea Blockchain Week (KBW), deeply participating in events such as The Next Onchain Economy and HSC Conference Seoul, engaging with global Web3 partners and financial industry practitioners to discuss stablecoin payments and next-generation financial infrastructure.Cat Lucci, the business leader of Interlace, stated that the key to the implementation of stablecoin payments lies in the deep integration of stablecoin channels with bank cards and local clearing systems. Interlace provides efficient and secure capital flow experiences for exchanges, wallets, and B2B trade scenarios through modular capabilities such as cards, accounts, and clearing.During KBW, Interlace also set up a product experience session where attendees could receive Stablecoin Card gift cards to experience the convenient payment of on-chain assets in real-world consumption scenarios, attracting the attention and engagement of many participants.It is reported that Interlace's next stop will be at TOKEN2049 in Singapore, participating in events such as Stablecoin Happy Hour and AI & Emerging Onchain Assets, continuing to share innovative achievements in on-chain financial infrastructure on the core stage of Web3.

U.S. Senator Steve Daines (Republican from Montana, member of the Senate Finance Committee) has officially introduced a 56-page digital asset tax bill, named the "Aligning Digital Assets with Tax Principles Act" (ADAPT Act). The bill aims to establish clearer tax rules for scenarios such as stablecoin payments, network fees, staking, and lending, and plans to extend existing tax rules like wash sales and constructive sales to apply to digital assets.The core provisions of the bill state that taxpayers generally do not need to recognize gains or losses when using compliant U.S. dollar stablecoins to purchase goods and services, while exempting brokers from information reporting obligations for qualifying consumer transactions; however, this exemption does not apply to traders and market makers. The bill also extends wash sale rules and constructive sale rules to digital assets, with compliant stablecoins excluded from the constructive sale provisions to limit loss harvesting behavior in crypto assets.Additionally, the bill proposes to exempt digital assets used to pay for network, transaction, or gas fees of $10 or less from gain or loss recognition and allows qualifying digital asset traders and dealers to choose to account for them at fair market value. The bill also stipulates rules for income sources from staking and mining, a non-recognition framework for digital asset lending, a safe harbor for foreign investors' transactions, and definitions for digital asset classifications; most provisions will apply to tax years or transactions after December 31, 2026. Previously, the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee passed its own "Digital Asset Tax Certainty Act" on September 16 by a vote of 38 to 5.

Aztec Network developer Aztec Labs has relaunched the self-custody wallet zk.money, which can hide payment amounts, balances, and recipient information through the Aztec Network, and supports transfers via readable names or links. Users can deposit DAI, USDC, or USDT from Ethereum, where USDC and USDT will be converted to DAI.Deposit records can still be publicly tracked, while subsequent transaction activities remain private. The early Alpha version stipulates that single deposits, payments, and withdrawals are all below $2,500 and screens addresses according to sanction policies. The software has not yet completed a comprehensive audit and carries security risks.

According to Cointelegraph, the European Central Bank (ECB) has announced the launch of a new round of applications for the digital euro innovation platform, inviting fintech companies, payment institutions, and other organizations to explore AI agents participating in digital euro payments.The project will be divided into two parts: practical testing and future application seminars. The practical testing will take place from January to June 2027, where participants will develop prototypes for electronic receipts, multi-party transactions, conditional payments, and more.The seminars will explore AI payments, micropayments, machine-to-machine transactions, and the application of the digital euro in public services. In addition, the ECB has selected 36 banks and payment institutions, including Revolut, Stripe, and Deutsche Bank, to participate in another 12-month digital euro pilot, which is scheduled to launch in the second half of 2027. The final issuance of the digital euro still requires EU legislation and subsequent decisions from the ECB.

HashKey, a digital asset financial services group, is evaluating more acquisition targets, strategic investment opportunities, and potential collaborations in Asia and the Middle East.Eric Zhu, Chief Financial Officer of HashKey, stated in an interview with Mergermarket that capital deployment over the next 12 to 24 months will focus on transactions and liquidity, custody, clearing and settlement, payments, and tokenization, with priority markets including Singapore and Southeast Asia, Japan, and the Middle East. HashKey is evolving from a single trading platform into a comprehensive provider of digital asset and financial services infrastructure.

The fee-sharing platform Paid announced that its web application portal is now online. Users can claim eligible new fees, and the related assets will be distributed according to the quoted assets corresponding to the fees, which are mostly SOL.Paid stated that other claiming methods will be introduced later, including through private messages or tagging the official account in posts. X Money payments are still suspended, and the recovery time will be notified separately; users' historical balances will be retained independently, and the team is developing a separate claiming plan for this portion of the balance, hoping to restore X Money payments in the future.

The Circle Foundation announced two grants to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the World Food Programme (WFP) to explore the application of digital payments and digital financial infrastructure in humanitarian aid and development projects.The Circle Foundation stated that the relevant programs will study how to utilize digital payments and regulated payment-type stablecoins to disburse funds to aid recipients more quickly, transparently, and at a lower cost.For the UNDP, the grant will be used to establish and operate a "Digital Asset Innovation Pool," helping country offices expand previous digital payment pilot projects conducted in Syria, Haiti, Guatemala, and Gambia from single projects to regular project execution, and provide support such as regulation, operations, and beneficiary protection; this mechanism will not replace traditional banking channels but will serve as a complementary option outside the existing payment system.For the WFP, the grant will support the establishment of governance, risk management, funding, reconciliation systems, and compliance tools necessary for stablecoin payments, and integrate local fintech and mobile payment services. Over the next three years, the WFP plans to test 2 to 3 payment channels connecting its payment system with local financial service providers and markets to assess the performance of stablecoin payments in terms of efficiency, transparency, and resilience.

Bitcoin News posted on the X platform that Block has joined the x402 Foundation and is providing Bitcoin Lightning Network support for the AI agent-oriented open payment standard x402.x402 embeds payments directly into HTTP, allowing AI agents to autonomously pay for goods, services, and other agent tool fees. Block stated that the Lightning Network is suitable for the billions of instant, low-cost micropayments expected to be generated by the agent economy.