[Money20/20 – Cross River interview] Agentic payments and stablecoins reshaping the payments industry

At Money20/20 USA, we spoke with Andrew Lambert, Senior Vice President, Head of Product at Cross River, about stablecoin integration, payment infrastructure, and the challenges of enabling AI agents to transact on behalf of end users.

Integrating stablecoins into existing infrastructure

Interoperability remains a key consideration for banks introducing stablecoin services. According to Lambert, these offerings must work alongside existing payment rails, fiat products, and banking systems.

Cross River built its core banking technology from the ground up, enabling it to integrate stablecoins with its fiat offering and make the underlying ledgers interoperable. This approach largely abstracts the differences between fiat and stablecoins for its partners.

Banks using existing core systems face a different challenge. They may need to build a new offering or deploy a side core to support stablecoins alongside existing fiat services. Lambert noted that the latter approach can complicate the end-user experience.

For merchants and PSPs, this highlights the importance of assessing how new payment capabilities integrate with existing systems. Lambert added that Cross River takes a two-to-five-year view when making technology investments, with stablecoins representing one example of its long-term approach.

Who is accountable when an AI agent pays?

As AI agents begin initiating transactions, questions around authorisation, liability, and human oversight are becoming more important. What happens when an agent makes a payment the customer did not intend?

Lambert explained that regulators continue to look to banks to hold liability, regardless of whether a transaction is initiated directly by the end user or by an agent acting on their behalf.

For merchants, banks, and PSPs, this raises questions about payment controls, transaction validation, and dispute handling as automated activity becomes more common.

Stablecoins and the future of payments

Lambert identified three infrastructure priorities when it comes to scaling cross-border stablecoin payments: continuous availability, scalability, and the ability to grow with market demand. He also emphasised banks' responsibility for maintaining a trusted environment for ecosystem participants.

Looking 12 to 24 months ahead, Lambert identified AI agents as the development most likely to influence payments, spanning consumer purchases and B2B applications such as automated accounts receivable and accounts payable.

For merchants and PSPs, preparing for this shift means evaluating how agent-initiated transactions fit existing workflows, how customer intent is verified, and whether current systems can support greater automation.

Ultimately, both stablecoins and agentic payments depend on infrastructure that connects new capabilities with existing systems. Interoperability, scalability, and trust will be central to adoption, while banks' regulatory responsibilities make verifying an agent's intent a critical priority for the wider payments ecosystem.

About Cross River

Cross River builds technology that powers the future of financial services. Leveraging its proprietary real-time digital banking core, Cross River delivers innovative and scalable embedded payments, cards, lending, digital asset and agentic solutions to millions of consumers and businesses. Cross River is backed by leading investors and serves the world’s most essential technology and fintech companies at the forefront of innovation. As a leader in the industry, Cross River is reshaping global finance and financial inclusion. Member FDIC. Find out more at www.crossriver.com