Why APAC is emerging as an ideal testing ground for AI agent-led shopping: Mastercard

AI assistants can already find the most suitable flight based on your preferences.

Letting them pay is the next step – and global payments network company Mastercard has been testing it in live trials across Asia-Pacific since January 2026. (See below)

The aim is to pave for “trusted transaction execution”, said Matthew Driver, executive vice-president for services at Mastercard Asia-Pacific. This is where shoppers let AI agents buy on their behalf – within the limits they set.

Driver said the next phase is to scale that capability across more use cases and markets, while keeping consumers in control and feeling confident.

Why test in APAC?

Readiness for agentic commerce, said Driver, is less about geography and more about ecosystem maturity. By that measure, APAC has a head start.

Mastercard’s New Payments Index 2024 found that more than half of APAC consumers surveyed prefer new and innovative payment methods – a higher share than in any other region. It surveyed over 19,000 consumers globally.

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Consumers in many Asian markets are also used to highly digital, connected payment systems, he said, moving between cards, digital wallets and real-time payments as part of daily life.

Other key factors to scaling agentic commerce include clear governance and strong public-private partnerships, Driver said.

Singapore, in his view, combines these ingredients, as the Republic sets out mostly broad principles to encourage innovation while protecting consumer privacy and security.

That is needed to build trust, he said, which will “ultimately determine how quickly consumers and businesses adopt agentic commerce”.

One initiative tied to that focus is BuildFin.ai, led by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. It brings together financial institutions, technology firms and research institutes to develop AI solutions for real-world use.

Through the platform, Mastercard is working with fellow payment network Visa and Ant International, the global arm of Chinese fintech firm Ant Group, on shared standards for identifying and verifying AI agents that make purchases on consumers’ behalf.

Such standards matter because AI agents will transact across many merchants, banks, payment providers and countries, he added.

Without a shared framework, Driver said, each player would need its own way to identify and authorise agents, leading to friction and fragmentation.

Mastercard will continue investing in the ecosystem through its regional Innovation Centre of Excellence in Singapore, which brings together AI, cybersecurity, and innovation resources, Driver said, with centres planned in Kuala Lumpur and Tokyo.

“These investments help us co-create solutions with customers across APAC while contributing ideas and frameworks that can scale globally.”

This was produced in partnership with the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Global Finance & Technology Network.

For more stories, go to bt.sg/sff26