CrediMax and Mastercard are exploring systems that would allow AI agents to discover products and make authorised purchases on behalf of consumers.
Thursday 05/11/2026
Mastercard representative Saud Swar during the announcement of the CrediMax–Mastercard collaboration on agentic commerce in Bahrain
MANAMA — Artificial intelligence could change more than how consumers search for products online. The next stage of digital commerce may allow AI agents to compare options, interact with merchants and complete purchases on behalf of consumers, provided they have the necessary authorisation.
The emerging model, known as agentic commerce, is attracting growing attention from payment companies and technology providers as they work to establish the infrastructure needed to support transactions initiated by AI systems.
In Bahrain, payment provider CrediMax and Mastercard have announced a collaboration to explore bringing these capabilities to merchants across the Kingdom. The initiative is intended to help businesses prepare their websites and applications for shopping experiences in which AI agents can identify products, compare choices and facilitate purchases.
The proposed cooperation will use Mastercard Merchant Cloud and includes Agent Suite for Merchants, a set of capabilities designed to help businesses make their products accessible through AI-powered shopping experiences, including those offered by external platforms.
Two other components are central to the initiative. Mastercard Agent Connect is designed to provide a single connection through which AI agents can interact with participating merchants, commerce platforms and payment providers, reducing the need for separate technical integrations. Mastercard Agent Pay supports secure payments initiated by AI agents with consumer authorisation.
The distinction between product discovery and payment execution is important. An AI assistant may recommend an item or compare prices, but completing a transaction requires mechanisms to confirm the consumer’s instructions and ensure that the payment is authorised.
Mastercard has been developing this infrastructure beyond Bahrain. In September 2026, the company introduced Agent Connect and expanded its Agent Suite for Merchants capabilities, describing them as tools to connect merchants, AI platforms and payment providers while allowing businesses to retain control over pricing, fulfilment, <a href="https://bitcomme.com/the-ai-<a href="https://bitcomme.com/the-ai-customer-service-boom-is-hiding-a-cost-crisis-2/” title=”The AI customer service boom is hiding a cost crisis”>customer-service-boom-is-hiding-a-cost-crisis-3/” title=”The AI customer service boom is hiding a cost crisis”>customer relationships and commercial rules. The company said the initial network was beginning in the United States, with further ecosystem participation expected to develop over time.
The Bahrain collaboration therefore represents an effort to explore how these capabilities could be introduced to the local merchant market through CrediMax’s existing relationships with businesses.
Andrew Hocking, chief executive of CrediMax, said the partnership combines the company’s understanding of Bahrain’s merchant community with Mastercard’s international expertise in commerce and payments. He said the aim was to make adoption more accessible while allowing merchants to preserve their service standards and customer relationships.
Saud Swar, Mastercard’s country manager for Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Jordan and the Levant, said the collaboration would focus on providing the technological and security foundations needed to support the adoption of agentic commerce.
For merchants, the model could create additional ways for consumers to discover and purchase products. However, it also raises questions about how businesses manage access to product information, maintain control over pricing and inventory, and protect customer data when transactions involve automated agents.
The companies say the solutions being explored are designed to preserve merchants’ control over pricing, inventory, order fulfilment and business policies, while maintaining their brand identity and customer experience.
Neither company has announced a commercial launch date, the number of participating merchants or a timetable for wider deployment in Bahrain. For now, the collaboration signals an effort to prepare the Kingdom’s digital commerce ecosystem for a possible shift towards AI-assisted and AI-executed shopping.
