San Francisco, March 5, 2026, 03:23 (PST)
- Affirm plans to back Stripe’s Shared Payment Tokens, letting AI shopping agents provide Affirm’s pay-over-time options right at checkout.
- Stripe says its token system allows agents to trigger payments—once shoppers give permission—while keeping sensitive credentials hidden.
- Affirm shares climbed roughly 6% ahead of the U.S. market open.
Affirm Holdings, Inc is deepening its link with Stripe, aiming to offer its buy-now, pay-later loans—including those short installment options at checkout—inside so-called “agentic commerce,” where software agents handle shopping and payments for users. “Consumers will want to see the total cost upfront,” said Vishal Kapoor, senior vice president of product at Affirm. Shares of Affirm climbed about 6% in premarket action. 1
Payment companies are scrambling to keep AI-powered shopping from funneling all purchases through a single, often preloaded card—shutting out competitors. Stripe rolled out Shared Payment Tokens last year; now it’s broadening coverage to include new “agentic” payment credentials from Visa and Mastercard, plus buy-now, pay-later players like Affirm and Klarna. 2
Shared Payment Tokens allow AI agents to initiate purchases with a customer’s selected payment method, but without exposing underlying account or card information to the agent. According to Affirm, shoppers using AI platforms equipped with these tokens can choose Affirm, go through a real-time eligibility screening, and pick a fixed repayment option directly within the AI interface.
The companies said Stripe is set to manage payment processing on the back end between merchants and Affirm, keeping sensitive credentials out of view. Initially, this will cover Stripe’s direct merchants. Affirm expects merchants not using Stripe for payments to get access later this year.
Stripe’s token move is drawing a major competitor into the mix. Klarna’s chief commercial officer, David Sykes, said in a statement that the company is focused on keeping its installment payments in front of users as AI takes over more purchasing decisions. “As AI agents begin purchasing on consumers’ behalf, it’s critical that flexible payment options remain available,” Sykes said. 3
Affirm and Klarna are battling for share in the packed buy-now, pay-later space, alongside installment plans from PayPal and Block’s Afterpay. Much of the contest centers on checkout position—whose button gets in front of shoppers at purchase. Now, with AI-driven shopping on the rise, there’s a new layer of gatekeeping in play.
Affirm underwrites every transaction on the spot instead of using a revolving balance like credit cards do. Customers get payment options with APRs that can fall anywhere from 0% up to 36%, all hinging on what they’re buying and their own profile.
Affirm said its partnership with Stripe has been in place since 2021, covering both online checkout and in-person transactions via Stripe Terminal. The company also referenced projects with additional platforms, mentioning support for Google’s Agent-to-Agent Protocol as well as the Universal Commerce Protocol for agent-driven commerce.
Risks remain clear. “Agentic commerce” is in its early innings, and it’s uncertain how fast shoppers will trust software with their orders—big-ticket ones in particular—or how sellers plan to manage fraud, disputes, and returns once agents are the ones making the purchases.
Investors are eyeing the rollout’s timeline, and they’ll be looking for signs that any bump in volume doesn’t bring a surge in credit losses—a familiar headache for installment lenders when consumers start to pull back on spending.
Affirm announced that CFO Rob O’Hare is scheduled for a shareholder “fireside chat” on March 17, where he’ll field questions gathered via the Say Technologies platform. The session will be moderated by Rothschild & Co Redburn’s Harry Bartlett. 4
