REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Nov. 04, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Following the launch of its Agentic Trust and Commerce Forum, the Secure Technology Alliance has entered a strategic partnership with the Merchant Advisory Group (MAG). Through this collaboration, the organizations aim to guide the payments industry toward adopting secure-by-design and interoperable agentic commerce experiences.
The Alliance and its associated Forums will work with the MAG and their merchant members to align payments and identity stakeholders around how AI agents initiate, authenticate and complete transactions on behalf of consumers and businesses. Areas of focus include reducing false declines, identifying the data merchants must share to enable AI-driven purchases and determining how payment cards are selected during agentic transactions. The partnership is intended to support secure-by-design, interoperable agentic commerce experiences before emerging protocols and marketplace practices become fragmented.
“The Agentic Trust & Commerce Forum was created because AI-initiated transactions won’t succeed in a vacuum,” said Itai Sela, Chair of the Alliance Board. “We need a comprehensive view of how this will impact the industry, and we must address potential challenges in collaboration with industry stakeholders. The MAG brings an essential perspective to that work. Merchants are closest to the customer experience, and they will be on the front lines when issues arise related to customer intent, fraud and disputes. This partnership helps ensure that agentic commerce implementation, which is already taking shape, supports the operational realities of day-to-day transactions.”
Agentic commerce introduces new complexity across checkout, authorization and post-transaction processes. An AI agent may be acting on a consumer’s prior instruction or interpreting intent on the fly. They are completing a purchase through systems that were designed for human-initiated transactions. That raises practical questions about how identity and authentication signals should be shared and where liability sits when something goes wrong.
By combining insights, the Alliance and the MAG aim to influence how agentic commerce evolves while it is still in its infancy. The MAG contributes deep merchant perspectives. The Alliance’s U.S. Payments Forum, Agentic Trust & Commerce Forum, and Identity & Access Forum span the full spectrum of the payments and trust value chain. A full list of members is available here.
“AI-enabled buying could completely transform the commerce landscape. Our collaboration with the Alliance is an opportunity to help build frameworks that protect consumers, support merchants and give the broader ecosystem a stronger foundation,” said John Drechny, CEO of the MAG.
The partnership underpins the Alliance’s efforts to deepen its focus on agentic commerce and artificial intelligence. Beyond the payments ecosystem, the Alliance welcomes participation from LLM developers, fraud prevention organizations, AI innovators and other ecosystem stakeholders interested in helping shape this next phase of commerce. To encourage additional merchant participation, the Alliance has introduced a special, limited-time $4,000 General Member rate for merchants available through December 31, 2026. Interested parties may visit the Secure Technology Alliance’s website to learn how to become a member. By joining the Alliance, organizations will gain access to activities within its associated Forums and additional Alliance-affiliated organizations.
About the Secure Technology Alliance
The Secure Technology Alliance is the digital security industry’s premier association. Through its U.S. Payments Forum, Agentic Trust and Commerce Forum, Identity and Access Forum and its collaborative working groups, the STA fosters open dialogue among industry stakeholders to explore and develop secure technology innovations in the payments, identity and access markets. By collaborating on education and guidance, the Alliance helps enable efficient, timely and effective implementation of large-scale, disruptive technologies.
About the Merchant Advisory Group
The MAG is a global organization dedicated to driving positive change and innovation in the payments industry through merchant collaboration, education, and advocacy. Representing over 200 of the world’s leading merchants across many industries, including airlines, retail, restaurants, insurance, amusement parks, grocery, and software, the MAG facilitates strategic engagement across North America, Europe, and Asia.
Secure Technology Alliance Contact:
Sherlyn Rijos-Altman
Montner Tech PR
Merchant Advisory Group Contact:
Erica Forman
Erica.forman@merchantadvisorygroup.org
