Visa's AI-powered agentic commerce framework raises compliance questions around authorization, disclosure and consumer protection

Visa's Intelligent Commerce platform enables AI agents to make purchases and complete payments on behalf of consumers without direct consumer-merchant interaction. Attorneys at Stinson LLP identified potential gaps in existing regulations, which generally assume a consumer directly initiates a transaction.

Visa predicts AI-driven purchasing will become mainstream beginning in 2026 and has completed hundreds of real-world agent-initiated transactions through pilot programs while working with merchants, fintechs and technology providers to establish standards.

Legal experts and industry groups have flagged that existing frameworks for dispute resolution, consumer disclosures and transaction authorization may not fully address purchases initiated by AI agents, potentially requiring new compliance controls and consumer safeguards as the technology expands.