Introduction#
Visa has announced the expansion of its Visa Agentic Ready program to issuers in Canada. This initiative aims to prepare the Canadian payments landscape for a future where artificial intelligence (AI) agents can initiate and complete transactions on behalf of consumers.
Program Overview#
The Visa Agentic Ready program allows banks and payment partners in Canada to test AI-initiated payments in a controlled setting. This means they can use real cards and merchants to validate various payment processes, such as card enrollment, tokenization (the process of replacing sensitive card information with a unique identifier), authentication, and transaction authorization.
Security and Collaboration#
This program provides a framework for issuers to evaluate security measures as AI agents handle transactions. It helps identify any operational gaps before these AI-led transactions become more widespread. Visa encourages collaboration with selected merchants to better understand how these transactions will work in real life.
Participation and Future Plans#
Early participants in the Canadian program include major banks like BMO, CIBC, RBC, Scotiabank, and TD. More Canadian issuers are expected to join as the program progresses. Visa's Agentic Ready program is already operational in regions such as Europe, Latin America, and Asia Pacific, with plans to expand to additional markets this year. This initiative is part of Visa's broader strategy, known as Visa Intelligent Commerce, which focuses on AI-driven commerce solutions.
Recent Performance#
In its latest fiscal report, Visa Inc. exceeded earnings expectations, reporting earnings per share of $3.31 and revenue of $11.2 billion. Additionally, Visa Canada has launched a pilot program with Wealthsimple to enable stablecoin settlements in the Canadian market, further showcasing its commitment to innovation in payment solutions.