NPCI to Launch Agentic Payments on UPI

India's National Payments Corporation (NPCI) is reportedly preparing to launch a new framework, dubbed the 'Unified Agent Protocol,' which will allow AI agents to perform small digital payments without requiring explicit user authorization for every transaction. NPCI is expected to unveil the protocol next week at the Global Fintech Fest in Mumbai.

The new protocol aims to leverage existing UPI mechanisms, including UPI Circle and Reserve Pay, to enable users to delegate payment authority to AI agents within pre-set limits. The UPI Circle feature allows a primary user to authorize family members or other trusted individuals to make payments on their behalf, while Reserve Pay permits users to block funds for multiple future payments at once.

The initial rollout of the agentic AI framework will target low-value, high-frequency transactions such as grocery orders and routine digital purchases. Over time, NPCI anticipates that AI agents will be capable of handling more sophisticated use cases, like automatically placing orders based on sales or discounts.

NPCI has been piloting an agentic AI framework for UPI over the past year. The payments body has also previously collaborated with companies like Razorpay and OpenAI to explore AI-driven commerce at a national scale. Other UPI updates, including interoperability for UPI AutoPay, are also anticipated to be announced at the event. Global credit card networks such as Visa and Mastercard are also experimenting with similar frameworks.