Acquirers Say Risk and Readiness Challenges Are Slowing Agentic Commerce

Agentic commerce allows AI agents, with consumers’ authorization, to compare prices, select products and complete payments autonomously. Acquirers sit between merchants and card networks. Existing payment rails can handle these transactions, but legacy systems, integration costs and questions of liability continue to shape whether the model can scale. PYMNTS Intelligence and Visa Acceptance Solutions have therefore focused on governance and risk-control readiness.

PYMNTS Intelligence surveyed 75 acquirers in the United States, Brazil and the United Arab Emirates from January 16 to 30, 2026, and released the findings on March 24. Some 80% said they were prepared, while more than 90% prioritized authority governance, consent and data frameworks. An April 27 report with Paymentology identified identity verification, fraud monitoring and reversible transactions as critical to expansion; it did not disclose integration costs.