Ethereum on Track for AI Agent Payments as Tokenization Demand Rises

Veteran investor and former hedge fund manager Jordi Visser says he recently bought Ethereum (ETH) as he expects “tokenization reality” to accelerate this year, driven by agentic AI payments. Visser argues AI agents increasingly need “food” that is not physical goods but digital assets. Since agents can’t access banking or receive human approvals, their autonomous online payments will rely on tokens—especially Ether or stablecoins—rather than traditional bank rails. He also flags a potential shortage dynamic: autonomous online payments have surged this year, topping more than $24M in transaction volume over the past month on the Coinbase x402 standard (per x402.org). Crypto infrastructure is racing to adapt, including protocol upgrades for agentic payment flows. The article cites Algorand Foundation’s support for agentic commerce via a partnership with Google on the AP2 Agentic Payments Protocol, and highlights Ethereum’s role in real-world asset tokenization. RWA.xyz is referenced, claiming Ethereum (including L2s) holds over 60% market share of tokenized assets. Visser connects tokenization to price discovery for illiquid markets, saying transparency and liquidity become “critical” as capital sits trapped in private credit, private equity, and venture capital. He also notes macro caution—expecting inflation risk—and says he holds gold/silver and has bought Bitcoin (BTC) as a hedge. For traders, the core takeaway is a narrative linkage: Ethereum tokenization could become the settlement layer for AI agent payments, potentially improving ETH’s medium-term demand outlook if agentic commerce adoption keeps rising.