Revolut × Google AP2 Integration: AI Chatbot-Driven Payments Launch in Europe

Revolut Announces Support for Google AP2

Revolut, Google to enable shopping directly via AI chatbots in Europe

Revolut has joined Google to capitalise on agentic commerce as a growing number of consumers are expected to shop using AI chatbots.

On January 19, 2026, Revolut, one of Europe's largest fintech companies, announced support for Google's "Agent Payments Protocol (AP2)." This creates an environment where product search to payment can be seamlessly completed through AI chatbots in the UK and European Economic Area (EEA).

Background and Industry Trends

Rapid Growth of Agentic Commerce

"Agentic commerce" refers to a new form of e-commerce where AI agents autonomously search, compare, and purchase products on behalf of consumers. The discrete steps of "search → browse → compare → purchase" are being transformed into a continuous, conversation-based experience.

Market forecasts are extremely bullish. Morgan Stanley predicts the US agentic commerce market will reach $190-385 billion (10-20% of total e-commerce) by 2030. McKinsey estimates even larger figures, projecting $3-5 trillion globally.

In Europe, AI search traffic doubled from 4% in 2024 to 8% in early 2025. It's projected to reach 25% by end of 2026 and surpass organic search by 2028.

Google's Comprehensive Agentic Strategy

Google announced the "Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP)" at the January 2026 NRF (National Retail Federation) conference. This is an open standard covering the entire AI agent shopping experience. UCP was co-developed with over 20 companies including Shopify, Etsy, Wayfair, Target, and Walmart, and is compatible with Agent2Agent (A2A) protocol, AP2, and Model Context Protocol (MCP).

Deep Dive: AP2 Technical Architecture

Establishing Trust Through Mandates

At the core of AP2 are cryptographically signed digital contracts called "Mandates." These enable AI agents to securely execute transactions without the traditional "click the purchase button" action.

Records the user's initial instruction (e.g., "Find running shoes under $120") with cryptographic signatures. This serves as proof of authorization granted to the agent.

A tamper-proof purchase record generated when the agent identifies products and the user gives final approval. It guarantees "what you see is what you pay for."

Meeting Three Security Requirements

AP2 solves three fundamental challenges in autonomous commerce:

Supporting Diverse Payment Methods

AP2 is designed as a payment-agnostic framework:

• Credit/debit cards
• Real-time bank transfers
• Stablecoins and cryptocurrencies (via x402 extension)
• Local payment methods by country

Over 60 organizations participate in development, including major payment industry players like American Express, Mastercard, PayPal, Coinbase, Adyen, and Worldpay.

Impact and Applications for E-commerce Businesses

Creating New Customer Touchpoints

Revolut's Head of Acquisitions stated definitively: "The future of shopping is conversations, not websites." The shift from click-and-pay models to AI assistants streamlining checkout is beginning.

For e-commerce businesses, this means:

1. Channel diversification - AI agent-driven sales channels join existing site traffic
2. Improved conversion - Reduced friction is expected to lower abandonment rates
3. Deeper personalization - Agent-to-agent communication enables individually optimized offers

Preparing for Implementation

Actions e-commerce businesses should take now:

• Structure product data - Organize product information in formats AI agents can easily understand
• Consider API readiness - Design systems with UCP and AP2 integration in mind
• Partner with payment providers - Evaluate AP2-compatible payment services (Revolut Pay, Adyen, etc.)

Tara Brady, Google Cloud's EMEA regional head, emphasizes "trust, security, and speed are critical." Reducing friction will be the competitive advantage in the AI commerce era.

Summary

The Revolut × Google AP2 integration symbolizes the entry into the implementation phase of agentic commerce. Cryptographically signed Mandates have cleared the technical challenge of "secure transactions without purchase buttons."

For e-commerce businesses, this marks the dawn of an era where AI agents become new sales channels alongside websites and apps. This transformation, which McKinsey describes as having "impact comparable to the web and mobile revolutions," may progress faster than past transformations because it can leverage existing commerce infrastructure.

While deployment is leading in Europe and the UK, global expansion is just a matter of time. Starting now on product data structuring and API readiness will prepare you for the coming agentic payment era.