Stripe's 300M-user Link wallet gives AI agents a payment path while JPMorgan blocks logins
JPMorgan bars outside AI agents from customer accounts, while Stripe's Link wallet, which a16z puts at 300M users, offers agents a stored-credential route. The figure is a user count; a16z did not publish payment volume, active users or overlap between the three wallets.
Context for builders, not their beat.
Key figures from the a16z essay 'Wallet Wars': PayPal at over 400 million users, Stripe's Link at 300 million users and Shopify's Shop Pay at 250 million users.
| Figure | Value | Note | Claim |
|---|---|---|---|
| PayPal wallet users, over, per a16z | 400 million users | 3 | |
| Stripe's Link users, a16z | 300 million users | 1 | |
| Shop Pay users, per a16z | 250 million users | 2 |
What happened
- A JPMorgan spokesperson said the bank does not allow a third-party agent that tries to reach accounts by obtaining customers' banking credentials.
- Agents can still read some data, such as balances, when Plaid or another connector holds the user's credentials, but they cannot send money or pay bills.
- According to a16z, Stripe and Shopify have moved quickly, powering payments for Meta's Muse and for Instinct.
- Meta declined to say whether Muse could keep offering financial help if more banks block agents from consumer accounts.
Why it matters
- What it limits constraint Until JPMorgan puts a date on safeguards that would let agents act inside accounts, an agent's role at the bank is limited to reading data.
- Who has to decide decision Agent developers choosing a wallet ask how many of their users already store a payment method there and how many merchants accept it, so the user count is only the first thing they check.
- Who's exposed exposure Customers who authorise an outside agent at JPMorgan are told to expect a possible transfer of liability. That puts the dispute risk on the user.
The 300M is a user count from one essay. Terry Angelos, chief strategy officer at VGS, wrote it for a16z, putting Stripe's Link at 300M users beside Shop Pay at 250M and PayPal at 400M+ [1][2][3][6]. On those figures Link is 50M users ahead of Shop Pay and more than 100M behind PayPal [17][18]. A person with accounts at two wallets would sit in both counts, so the three figures cannot be added together.
The count measures credentials already on file. Angelos wrote that "The fastest way to give an agent spending power is to connect a wallet that already holds the consumer's credentials." [4] Dimon's block is about account access. The bank is stopping outside agents from logging in to or acting on customer accounts [8], and "We're not going to allow just any outside agent to come in inside the company because that's just too risky for clients and for JPMorgan," he said [9].
We think the wallets gain from that position, because an agent kept out of the account needs a payment method from somewhere else, and Link, Shop Pay and PayPal already hold one for hundreds of millions of people.
JPMorgan's block may yet reach a bank-issued card stored in a wallet. If issuers extend it there, 300M becomes a count of users an agent cannot spend for. A user count is also not payment volume, so Link could be large and idle. And JPMorgan said it supports customer-authorised data sharing through open banking providers and is committed to enabling secure agentic connections [16]; if that grows into payment initiation, the bank route reopens.
What to watch
- Whether JPMorgan or another card issuer says if its block covers cards stored in wallets such as Link; a yes would cut what 300M users can fund through an agent.
- Whether JPMorgan sets a timeline for safeguards that allow direct account interaction.
- Whether banks adopt Meta and Sierra's Poppy protocol, which is meant to show companies when an agent is acting for a customer.
Information, not investment advice. This story is general information about companies and markets, drawn from cited reporting. It is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any security; check the cited sources before acting.
Claim ledger
Ranked by verification strength, evidence, and original report placement.
- [1]
An a16z essay by Terry Angelos lists Stripe's Link at 300M users as a wallet that brings existing payment relationships to the contest to let agents pay.
- [2]
The same essay lists Shopify's Shop Pay at 250M users.
- [3]
The same essay lists PayPal at 400M+ users.
- [4]
Angelos wrote: "The fastest way to give an agent spending power is to connect a wallet that already holds the consumer's credentials."
- [5]
According to the a16z essay, Stripe and Shopify have moved quickly, powering payments for Meta's Muse and Instinct.
- [6]
Terry Angelos is Chief Strategy Officer at VGS.
- [7]
For agent developers, the a16z essay says the questions are how many of their users already have a payment method stored with a wallet and how many merchants support that wallet.
- [8]
JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said on the bank's third-quarter earnings call that the bank is blocking outside AI agents from logging in to or acting on customer accounts, citing security risks from rogue agents.
- [9]
Dimon said: "We're not going to allow just any outside agent to come in inside the company because that's just too risky for clients and for JPMorgan."
- [10]
A JPMorgan spokesperson told Fortune that when the bank detects a third-party agent attempting to access accounts by obtaining customers' banking credentials, it does not allow it.
- [11]
AI agents can still read some customer data, such as account balances, when Plaid or another connector holds the user's credentials, but they cannot send money or pay bills.
- [12]
JPMorgan has not set a timeline for safeguards that would allow AI agents to interact directly with accounts.
- [13]
Meta declined to comment on whether Muse could still offer financial assistance if more banks move to prevent AI agents from accessing consumer accounts.
- [14]
JPMorgan also said customers who authorise outside agents should understand the risks, including a potential transfer of liability.
- [15]
Meta told Fortune it is developing 'Poppy', a personal agent protocol standard meant to make clear to companies when a personal AI agent is acting for a customer, with Sierra.
- [16]
JPMorgan said it supports customer-authorised data sharing through open banking providers and is committed to enabling secure agentic connections.
- [17]
Link's 300M users are 50M more than Shop Pay's 250M.
- [18]
PayPal's 400M+ users exceed Link's 300M by more than 100M.
Sources & coverage · 3 publishers
The reporting this story was synthesized from, earliest first. Every link goes to the original.
- thepaypers.comClaudia PincovskiyesterdayJPMorgan Chase blocks external AI agents from customer accounts
- open.substack.comyesterdayWallet Wars - by Terry Angelos - a16z
- fortune.comJoshua Hongyesterday‘You don’t want rogue agents’: Jamie Dimon bars outside AI agents like Meta’s Muse from JPMorgan accounts