Hong Kong – Ant Digital Technologies and HSBC have completed a technical verification test in which an AI agent discovered a digital service, paid for it with a micropayment and settled the transaction in real time, the companies said.
The test combined HSBC’s Tokenised Deposit Service (TDS), Ant Digital Technologies’ Anvita Flow network and its Jovay Testnet blockchain environment. The companies described the setup as an end-to-end process in which an AI agent acts on behalf of a user.
HSBC supplied its TDS and related settlement capabilities, including real-time risk checks through its MCP interface. Jovay Testnet, meanwhile, served as the Layer 2 test environment for the blockchain transactions.
Anvita Flow provided the infrastructure that allowed the AI agent to discover and invoke services and manage micropayment settlement. Together, the companies said, the technologies demonstrated a potential end-to-end model for AI agent transactions using tokenised deposits.
However, both firms stressed that the test was carried out solely as an exploration of the technology. It does not represent a commercial launch or live customer proposition.
According to the companies, the test’s significance lies in showing how autonomous AI systems could potentially use tokenised deposits to enhance the use of micropayments.
Zhuoqun Bian, President of Blockchain Business, Ant Digital Technologies, said, “This technical verification with HSBC demonstrates the potential use of on-chain AI agents. Ant Digital Technologies will continue to drive the application of AI technologies in real-world business scenarios, exploring how autonomous agents can create tangible value in practical commercial environments.”
Lewis Sun, Global Head of Digital Currencies, HSBC, said, “Through our Tokenised Deposit Service, we’re exploring how continued innovation, new use cases and collaboration could help enhance the customer experience and reduce friction for our clients while remaining focused on client needs, appropriate controls and responsible development.”
By combining AI, blockchain and regulated banking infrastructure, the companies said, the test showed how the speed of software and the controls required by financial institutions could operate within a single transaction flow.
They added that the test validated the infrastructure needed to connect AI-driven decision-making, service access, payments and financial controls within one automated process.
