PayPal Bets Big on Agentic Payments: A Long-Term Growth Strategy

PayPal is investing in agentic payments, which management believes will become increasingly meaningful from 2028 onward. The technology, which involves AI-driven commerce experiences, is not expected to contribute to results in the near term. However, PayPal sees potential for long-term growth, particularly as commerce shifts towards AI-driven interactions.

The company's scale, identity, and risk infrastructure could provide a strong foundation for agentic commerce. Agentic payments are part of PayPal's longer-term strategy to diversify growth, with financial services, Venmo, Braintree, and improved checkout execution remaining more immediate priorities.

PayPal's competitors, Visa and Mastercard, are also advancing agentic commerce through their own initiatives. Visa is building Visa Intelligent Commerce, while Mastercard is expanding its Agent Pay platform. These developments highlight the growing importance of agentic payments in the industry.