Citi is cranking up AI deployment in its payments business as it looks to capitalize on agentic abilities.  

The $2.8 trillion bank is “preparing for a world of agentic commerce and AI-powered personal shoppers,” Chief Executive Jane Fraser said May 7 during Citi’s Investor Day.  

“It’s early, but we’re developing new solutions at a speed we haven’t seen before,” she said.  

Citi envisions a future where AI assistants advise and execute transactions on behalf of customers, Head of U.S. Consumer Cards Pam Habner said.  

“Just think about it — an AI agent could automatically rebook a canceled flight and arrange transportation, paying with the card that offers the best travel benefits and protections,” she said. 

As agentic commerce evolves, the bank plans to work with key players in the payments industry to ensure that AI agents “keep Citi cards top of wallet to transact safely and securely on behalf of our customers,” Habner said.  

Citi’s primary card network, Mastercard, launched a suite of agentic AI tools this year, including solutions for small businesses. That followed its 2025 launch of AgentPay, which enables AI agents to complete purchases and manage subscriptions on behalf of users. 

Visa and American Express are also expanding agentic commerce efforts, the card giants reported in the first quarter. 

Mastercard anticipates an “explosion” of agentic payment transactions and stresses the importance of “verifying what a consumer has authorized or delegated an agent to do on their behalf,” Kaushik Gopal, executive vice president of business and market insights at Mastercard, told FinAi News. 

While Citi expands into agentic commerce, bank leaders did not address agent-to-agent interactions at Investor Day. 

Apart from agentic payments, Habner said that AI has driven these gains within Citi’s card business:

• 95% faster resolutions by using AI to build a better “smoke detector,” identifying issues before reaching customer service;
• 25% increase in digital sales by using AI to personalize product recommendations and improve search engine optimization; and
• 100-basis point increase in the bank’s approval rating. 

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