AI Agents Are Bypassing Visa — Markets React

Why It Matters

If AI-driven stablecoin payments scale, card networks could face meaningful revenue and network-risk headwinds, forcing strategic and regulatory responses and prompting investors to reprice legacy payments stocks.

Summary

A niche newsletter, Centrini Research, published a note claiming AI agents are increasingly using stablecoin payment rails to transact, effectively bypassing traditional card networks. The report argues this trend could accelerate rapidly and outpace incumbents’ ability to adapt. Markets reacted sharply: Visa slid about 4.5%, Mastercard 6.3%, American Express 7.9% and Capital One 8% on the report. The piece underscores how narrative-driven research can swiftly move equities in the payments sector.