Mastercard accelerates AI-powered commerce with Australia’s first authenticated agentic transactions using Agent Pay
JANUARY 28, 2026From proof to progress: Mastercard delivers Australia's first authenticated agentic transactions on its network, advancing its global Agent Pay program and commitment to trusted AI commerce across Asia Pacific
Agentic commerce – where AI-powered agents act on behalf of consumers to shop, manage subscriptions and complete everyday tasks – is poised to transform the way Australians shop online. Some research suggests that AI-powered, agentic commerce could influence more than half (55 per cent) of all Australian consumer transactions by 2030, worth up to A$670 billion in spending[1].
Mastercard is accelerating this future by completing Australia’s first fully authenticated agentic transactions on its network and expanding the company’s global Agent Pay solution to the Asia Pacific region.
By enabling fully recognized and authenticated agentic transactions, Mastercard’s trusted agentic framework process brings AI agents into the payment flow as visible, governed participants – ensuring that every transaction is secure, transparent, and trusted.
Unlocking agentic commerce: Interoperability and standards for consumers and businesses
Mastercard’s Agent Pay framework enables seamless interoperability between issuers, acquirers and merchants. By adhering to industry standards, consumers and businesses benefit from trusted and consistent agent-powered experiences – regardless of which partners or platforms are involved.
Australia’s first Agent Pay transactions saw a Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) issued debit card used to purchase cinema tickets from Event Cinemas. The transaction was fully authorised with cardholder consent, and every participant in the payment flow – issuer, acquirer and merchant – could see and recognize that an agent conducted the transaction.
Building on this, a Westpac-issued credit card was used to book accommodation in Thredbo, demonstrating how agentic payments could support travel bookings. Both transactions were processed through IPSI and completed using Maincode’s sovereign large language model, Matilda, reinforcing the flexibility and scalability of agentic commerce across different payment environments.
“Agentic commerce represents one of the most profound shifts in consumer behavior we’ve seen in decades,” said Paul Monnington, Division President, Australasia, Mastercard. “Our role is to ensure this future is built on trust, security and transparency – the same principles Australians expect from card payments. Today’s milestone shows what’s possible when technology and governance come together."
Accelerating agentic commerce across Australasia and beyond
Mastercard is focused on advancing agentic commerce across Australasia and Asia Pacific with additional efforts:
- Establishing a regional AI Centre of Excellence to accelerate innovation and governance for agentic commerce
- Building deep partnerships with leading LLM providers across Asia Pacific
- Deploying dedicated agentic commerce teams across the region to support financial institutions and merchants as they transition to agent-led experiences – including a dedicated team based at Mastercard’s Sydney Tech Hub
Australians are already moving early. Nearly half (48 per cent) have used AI assistants to help them shop online, and 78 per cent expect these tools to become mainstream. At the same time, more than nine in ten have concerns about privacy and security, and 30 per cent say they will only use AI shopping solutions from brands they already trust[2].
Delivering transparency and trust in every agentic transaction
Transparency in agentic commerce is vital for building trust, enhancing security, and protecting all parties involved in a transaction. When AI-powered agents lead purchases, ensuring visibility throughout the payment flow allows issuers, acquirers and merchants to apply robust controls, resolve disputes efficiently and detect fraud patterns more effectively. Mastercard Agent Pay recognizes and authenticates agents, paving the way for transparent, governed agentic commerce experiences and setting a new standard for security and reliability.
This latest milestone in Australia follows successful Agent Pay launches in the U.S., as well as pilots in the UAE and Latin America, and is part of Mastercard’s ongoing global commitment to responsible innovation and industry collaboration. Mastercard continues to work with leading technology partners and standards bodies to shape the future of agentic commerce worldwide.
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[2] PayPal Australia & YouGov, “Agentic AI Set to Redefine Commerce
Quotes from partners:
Monica Wegner, Executive General Manager Everyday Banking, said: “As Australians explore more AI‑powered ways to shop and pay, we’re proud to be participating in early, controlled trials with Mastercard to help shape secure and transparent agentic payment standards across the ecosystem.”
Carolyn McCann Chief Executive of Consumer at Westpac said: “Payments play an important role in our customers’ everyday lives, and giving our customers seamless, secure and simple ways to pay is a priority for us. Agent Pay will make those moments quicker and easier for our customers.”
Lukas Wesemann, AI Research at Maincode, said: “The partnership with Mastercard grew out of a shared commitment to ‘doing the hard thing’ when it comes to figuring out how to tie AI, agents and payments together. Maincode’s hardware, software and design can deliver real results in boosting customer experience and increasing efficiency – especially for payments. We’re already starting to push what’s possible for AI in Australia, building and testing models that could help define the next wave of innovation. We’re excited to help shape how agent-driven transactions evolve from early experimentation into real-world adoption.”
Andrew Turner, Group General Manager Technology and Digital Transformation at EVT said: “Agent‑powered commerce could fundamentally change how our guests engage with their favorite EVT experiences in the future, and we’re excited to be at the forefront of that shift with Mastercard. At EVT, we’re committed to creating seamless, intuitive digital interactions across our travel and entertainment divisions. Being part of Australia’s first authenticated agent‑led transactions shows how AI could one day simplify planning a night at the movies or a trip to the snow, while keeping transparency and security at the core. Agentic commerce demonstrates what could be possible when trusted innovation meets customer‑centric design as we continue to shape the future of digital experiences for our guests.”
Jarrett Baker, Head of Product at IPSI said: “Delivering safe, secure and seamless payment experiences to consumers is now, more than ever, front-of-mind for all of us. By leveraging the near limitless capabilities of Agentic AI, and coupling it with secure payment processing, Mastercard have unlocked a wealth of opportunity for consumers and merchants alike. As a leader in orchestrated, seamless payment technology and innovation in Australia for 20 years, we are proud to have continued our collaboration with Mastercard and its partners on this endeavor.”
About Mastercard
Mastercard powers economies and empowers people in 200+ countries and territories worldwide. Together with our customers, we’re building a resilient economy where everyone can prosper. We support a wide range of digital payments choices, making transactions secure, simple, smart and accessible. Our technology and innovation, partnerships and networks combine to deliver a unique set of products and services that help people, businesses and governments realize their greatest potential.
