Infrastructure for "AI agent payments," in which artificial intelligence (AI) purchases and pays for goods on behalf of consumers, is being pursued.
Chae Byung-deuk, president of the Korea Financial Telecommunications and Clearings Institute, held a press briefing on May 3 in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, where he was attending the Asian Development Bank (ADB) annual meeting, and said, "We plan to conduct a technology proof-of-concept for a payment platform dedicated to AI agents within this year."
With AI agent services that carry out user instructions spreading recently, the need is growing for infrastructure in which AI completes payments directly without user involvement, he said.
Chae said, "We will take the lead in technology verification in collaboration with Fintech and present a new financial commerce model."
On security, he said it is "a task that fundamentally must be resolved," adding, "At present, use is centered on small-amount payments."
Functions for abnormal transaction detection and anti-money laundering using AI will also be advanced. Chae added, "Money laundering often involves splitting a transaction and dispersing it across multiple financial companies. If we leverage the fact that data are concentrated at the Korea Financial Telecommunications and Clearings Institute, we can use AI to enhance detection capabilities."
Expansion of cross-border QR payment services will proceed in parallel. Chae said that in about a month since the launch last month of the QR payment service between Korea and Indonesia, about 400 to 500 payments were made in each country.
He went on to say that they are pushing to launch services within this year with India and Vietnam and have begun consultations with Uzbekistan. The plan is to expand to Asian countries such as Singapore and Thailand.
The QR payment infrastructure operates on an open structure that includes banks, card companies, and Fintech corporations. In addition to some financial companies already on board, participation by additional financial companies and big tech corporations is under discussion.