Pine Labs has introduced a payment protocol that lets AI agents complete UPI transactions when pre-set conditions are met.
The Pine Labs Payment Protocol, or P3P, is now live and is designed for agentic commerce, where AI agents can act on instructions set by users.
Current UPI payments still require users to approve transactions at checkout, which can interrupt agent-led purchases.
With P3P, a consumer approves a UPI mandate upfront. An AI agent can then complete a payment later if the transaction stays within the approved limits and conditions.
This could be used for purchases where timing matters, such as buying digital gold when prices fall or securing a product when it reaches a target price.
Pine Labs said users remain in control of the mandate and can update or revoke it at any time. The protocol also includes controls for agent identity, spending limits and audit trails.
Gullak, a digital gold savings platform in India, is live on P3P.
A Gullak user can set a rule to buy ₹500 of gold if the price falls below ₹16,000 per gram. Once the user approves the mandate, the AI agent can complete the purchase when the condition is met.
Pine Labs is also working with other companies across retail, fintech and travel.
Vijay Sales, an Indian electronics retail chain with more than 150 stores, is in an active proof of concept with P3P.
The protocol could allow customers to set price-based buying rules for items such as smartphones or home appliances.
Pine Labs CEO Amrish Rau said,
“In India, UPI’s mandate framework was already architected for agentic commerce. P3P is that layer. An agent securing a flash sale the moment it goes live. A down payment locked in before inventory disappears.
A savings trigger at the right price. These are new behaviours, native to how India transacts. Pine Labs is building the commerce infrastructure for that world.”
P3P is currently live on UPI. Pine Labs is also working with major card networks to extend the protocol to card transactions.
Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by Design-Marjolein via Magnific