Franklin Templeton's Sandy Kaul suggests AI agents could transform blockchain payments, predicting significant growth in e-commerce by 2030.
Franklin Templeton's head of digital assets and innovation, Sandy Kaul, posits that AI agents could significantly enhance blockchain applications in consumer payments. She argues that conventional payment systems are often hindered by high fees, delays in settlement, and reliance on human intervention.
“Blockchain will play a crucial role in realizing the potential of agentic AI for consumer transactions,” Kaul stated.
Significance of Blockchain for Payment Infrastructure
In her analysis, Kaul distinguishes agentic AI from traditional chatbots, noting that it can autonomously carry out tasks such as purchasing data access or processing payments. Franklin Templeton cites a Bain & Company report forecasting that by 2030, AI agents could represent 15-25% of U.S. e-commerce sales, while McKinsey & Company estimates that agentic commerce could facilitate $3-5 trillion in consumer transactions globally.
Kaul emphasizes the necessity for a payment infrastructure characterized by low costs, high capacity, and quick settlements, pointing out that blockchains can execute transactions without the need for banks.
Transaction Throughput Analysis
Franklin Templeton analyzed various blockchain networks based on their transactions per second (TPS) capabilities. Bitcoin processes approximately 7 TPS, Ethereum around 75 TPS, while Aptos can handle up to 12,933 TPS, Solana up to 6,284 TPS, and BNB Chain up to 3,252 TPS. In contrast, Visa's network can manage between 1,700 to 10,000 TPS, but final settlements can take 1-3 business days.
Kaul believes that the rise of agentic payments will drive demand for the native cryptocurrencies of these networks, mentioning SOL and ETH as potential beneficiaries.
Emergence of New Payment Protocols
Recent developments have seen the creation of new payment protocols aimed at facilitating automated transactions. For instance, Coinbase has introduced a payment protocol called x402, enabling programmable payments from both individuals and AI agents without the need for accounts or manual intervention. The x402 Foundation, launched by the Linux Foundation on July 14, includes major players like AWS, Google, and Mastercard among its 40 participants.
Additionally, in September 2025, Google unveiled the Agent Payments Protocol (AP2), developed in collaboration with various stakeholders for Web3 applications, which integrates an A2A x402 extension involving Coinbase and the Ethereum Foundation. Earlier in April, developers of the x402 standard launched a marketplace dedicated to applications enhancing AI agent capabilities.
