Mastercard and PrivatBank conducted the first payment in Ukraine using an AI agent.

Mastercard and “PrivatBank” carried out Ukraine’s first payment using artificial intelligence

Mastercard, in collaboration with “PrivatBank,” successfully executed the first payment transaction conducted by an artificial intelligence-based assistant instead of a human. This innovative transaction was made possible by the Mastercard Agent Pay platform, which allows AI agents to act on behalf of users.

The Mastercard Agent Pay platform is specifically designed for agent commerce, where AI digital assistants independently purchase goods, manage service subscriptions, and perform various everyday online tasks. Inga Andreieva, the CEO of Mastercard in Ukraine and Moldova, noted that the Ukrainian market is one of the most dynamic in terms of digital innovation implementation, and this event marks the beginning of a new era in commerce.

To ensure the security of such payments, “PrivatBank” developed a solution where the AI agent can withdraw funds only with the prior consent of the cardholder. The process is secured by multiple layers of security, including agent identification, payment system authentication, and the use of digital tokens to confirm limits and permissions. Hence, users remain in full control of their finances.

Meanwhile, in the public sector, the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine is also actively implementing artificial intelligence. By 2030, Ukraine aims to be among the top three global leaders in AI implementation. The national AI assistant has already been launched on the “Diia” portal, used by over 350,000 Ukrainians, and in the “Diia” mobile application, the AI agent assists in generating extracts and paying fines. Together with NVIDIA, Ukraine is working on the AI Factory project and creating the national language model “Syaivo” in collaboration with “Kyivstar.”