Will Visa's New Protocol Reinforce Confidence in Agent-Based Commerce?

Core Insights - Visa Inc. is launching the Trusted Agent Protocol to enhance security in AI-driven commerce, developed in collaboration with Cloudflare [1][8] - The protocol aims to help merchants verify the authenticity of AI agents, addressing the challenge of distinguishing between trustworthy agents and harmful bots [2][4] - Early partners like Microsoft, Shopify, Stripe, Coinbase, and Worldpay have contributed to the protocol's design, promoting an open and interoperable system [3][8] Company Positioning - Visa is positioning itself as a leader in digital payments by fostering trust in AI-driven commerce, potentially becoming a foundational element for future commerce [4] - Visa's stock has increased by 24.6% over the past year, outperforming the industry average of 1% [7] Competitor Landscape - Competitors such as Mastercard and Affirm are also advancing their AI commerce strategies, with Mastercard introducing the Agent Pay protocol and Affirm supporting Google's Agent Payments Protocol [5][6] Financial Performance - Visa trades at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 26.59, above the industry average of 21.23, and has a Value Score of D [9] - The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Visa's fiscal 2025 earnings indicates a 13.7% increase from the previous year [11]