Visa, BILL and Billtrust Put AI-Agent Invoice Payments Into a Live Pilot
The pilot uses Visa’s Trusted Agent Protocol and Agentic Directory to authenticate pre-authorized software agents as they pay invoices through supplier portals.
SAN FRANCISCO — Visa, BILL and Billtrust launched a live pilot on Oct. 20, 2026 that allows authorized AI agents to initiate and complete business-to-business invoice payments. The pilot uses Visa’s Trusted Agent Protocol and Agentic Directory to authenticate an agent before it acts inside a supplier’s payment portal.
The intended workflow is narrower than handing an agent unrestricted access to a bank account. A buyer sets the instructions and controls in advance; the agent then navigates the supplier portal, identifies the invoice and executes the payment without requiring a human to re-enter data or share a password with the supplier.
Billtrust brings supplier billing and accounts-receivable infrastructure, while BILL provides the buyer-side financial-operations workflow. Visa’s agent-authentication layer is meant to establish that the software is acting for an authorized buyer and within the buyer’s defined permissions.
The pilot is live for participating buyers and suppliers, but it is not a general release for every business. The important test will be exception handling: duplicate invoices, changed bank details, partial payments and disputes still require controls that an authentication protocol alone cannot provide. The companies have not published transaction volume or a broad availability timetable.