Lightning Network Support Added to x402 Agentic Payments Protocol
Block joined the x402 Foundation and added Lightning Network support to the x402 protocol for payments initiated by AI agents.
U.S. FinTech company Block joined the x402 Foundation, which develops an open payment standard for AI agents. The company also integrated Bitcoin payments via the Lightning Network into the x402 protocol, with plans to use the network for instant, low-cost micropayments.
The x402 protocol enables payments directly over HTTP, including automated transactions initiated by AI agents. The standard is developed under the Linux Foundation’s governance and isn’t tied to a specific payment network or currency.
Block plans to contribute to the development of x402 as core payment infrastructure for agentic commerce. The company expects a unified, open protocol to enable:
- sellers to accept payments from new customers and AI agents acting on their behalf without separate integrations;
- AI agents to pay for goods and services on users’ behalf, as well as independently pay for services they need;
- BTC to be used for high-volume, everyday micropayments that could become more common as agentic commerce develops.
Block views the Lightning Network as suitable infrastructure for large volumes of small transactions because the network is designed for fast, low-cost payments. The company expects the growing use of AI agents to generate significant volumes of these transactions.
Steve Lee, head of Spiral, Block’s division focused on developing the Bitcoin ecosystem, said AI agents could potentially make billions of small payments that require instant, low-cost, and open payment infrastructure. According to Lee, integrating the Lightning Network with x402 should expand the use of BTC for everyday payments, including transactions conducted by autonomous agents on users’ behalf.
Joining the x402 Foundation continued Block’s strategy of developing Bitcoin-based payment infrastructure. The company has been expanding the use of cryptocurrency across its commercial products. Square, Block’s payment platform, integrated Bitcoin payments into its POS terminals and later expanded BTC payment acceptance through merchant terminals in the U.S.
Block is also developing infrastructure solutions for the Bitcoin ecosystem. The company previously completed development of a 3-nanometer chip for BTC mining. The Lightning Network integration with x402 extends this effort into payment infrastructure for AI agents.
In the coming months, Block plans to continue developing Lightning Network support for x402, participate in the x402 Foundation’s working groups, and build open tools for agentic commerce.
Disclaimer: The content of this article solely reflects the author's opinion and does not represent the platform in any capacity. This article is not intended to serve as a reference for making investment decisions.
You may also like
Rapid rise in real interest rates, Goldman Sachs warns that 'systematic selling pressure' in US stocks is building at quarter-end
Goldman Sachs believes that the rapid rise in real interest rates has exerted more direct pressure on the US stock market, with rate-sensitive sectors such as small-cap and financial stocks being particularly affected. On the liquidity front, Goldman Sachs estimates that pension funds may sell around $3.3 billions in equities at the end of the month and quarter, and that CTAs may sell about $530 million worth of Russell 2000 index futures in the coming week. For the market, unless the issues of oil and interest rates are resolved, the AI narrative is "almost irrelevant."
USD/JPY falls below 157! The yen becomes the strongest G-10 currency, with the market betting on another rate hike by the central bank next month.
On Wednesday, the yen strengthened against the US dollar, with the USD/JPY rate falling below the 157 mark, as repeated warnings from the Japanese government regarding exchange rates and end-of-quarter capital flows provided support for the yen.
The scale of the compute power agreement between Anthropic and SpaceX has been revealed, reaching up to $84.5 billions, double the previously disclosed amount.
According to Anthropic’s IPO prospectus, the company has signed a computing power leasing agreement with SpaceX valued at $84.5 billion, far surpassing the previously disclosed $45 billion in SpaceX’s IPO documents. The agreement runs until 2029, with most terms cancellable within 90 days. At the same time, Anthropic’s total spending on AI infrastructure over the next decade is expected to be at least $518 billion.
KOSPI Index in South Korea falls by 0.3%
Crypto prices
More
