Ant Digital and HSBC Test AI Agent Micropayments Using Tokenized Deposits

Ant Digital Technologies and HSBC have completed a technical verification test demonstrating how autonomous AI agents can discover digital services and execute automated micropayments using tokenized bank deposits ¹. The test established an end-to-end framework where artificial intelligence agents independently managed both service interactions and corresponding financial settlements ¹.

The trial integrated HSBC's Tokenised Deposit Service (TDS) with Ant Digital's Anvita Flow network and Jovay Testnet, a Layer 2 blockchain environment ¹. During the exercise, Anvita Flow provided the discovery and execution layer for AI agents to locate services and initiate micropayments—defined in the test as transactions under $2.00 ¹. Jovay Testnet handled the underlying transaction ledger, while HSBC processed settlements alongside real-time risk checks through its MCP interface ¹.

Automated Settlement and Bank Controls

The institutions stated that the verification was purely technical and does not represent an active commercial product or public customer rollout ¹. Instead, it evaluated whether regulated banking infrastructure and autonomous software could interact within a unified transaction framework ¹.

Zhuoqun Bian, president of blockchain business at Ant Digital Technologies, stated that the exercise demonstrated the viability of on-chain AI agents operating in commercial workflows ¹. Lewis Sun, global head of digital currencies at HSBC, noted that the project examined how tokenized deposit capabilities could lower interaction friction while maintaining institutional financial controls ¹. The initiative aligns with a broader industry push to link automated machine logic with regulated settlement rails, echoing concepts explored across account abstraction and smart wallets in programmable finance.