Armstrong and others say autonomous software agents will eventually perform far more daily transactions than humans. Because digital programs cannot open bank accounts or wait days for bank transfers, real-time crypto and blockchain are the only alternative.
In his post, Armstrong said Coinbase plans to anchor this ecosystem, which he dubbed Agentic Finance (AiFi). The crypto trading platform uses the x402 protocol, which it developed and is now managed by the x402 Foundation, along with its Base blockchain and Circle Internet’s USDC stablecoin to power these automated payments. Coinbase implemented AI agent accounts that can be traded and spent in June. Last week, it said Coinbase Business users would be able to accept AI agent payments via x402.
However, industry builders note that moving money at machine speed requires addressing structural bottlenecks across the entire technology stack.
“Agents don’t just need money, but they need money that moves at machine speed,” Tory Green, CEO of decentralized network io.net, said Monday in a comment on Armstrong’s post. “Our whole economic stack has evolved into the human interface. Money is just the first clue to catch up. The same story is coming for computers, data, everything.”
Other developers warn that giving uncontrolled code direct access to financial assets exposes it to massive counterparty risk.
