HANGZHOU, China, July 27, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Lianlian DigiTech and UnionPay International signed a strategic cooperation agreement on July 18 to develop AI-agent payment applications for cross-border commerce. Sun Dali, Co-President of Lianlian DigiTech, attended the ceremony and signed the cooperation agreement with UnionPay International on behalf of the company.
The partnership combines Lianlian DigiTech’s AI-agent platform with UnionPay International’s global payment network. Its initial focus will be on two payment scenarios—global procurement and AI Token replenishment—while enabling AI-assisted procurement workflows to connect directly with cross-border payment infrastructure. The broader collaboration will also encompass the expansion of overseas merchant acceptance and AI-agent payment scenarios, as well as joint research and development of AI technologies. Together, the companies aim to develop standardized AI-agent payment solutions for cross-border commercial payments, supporting broader adoption as AI becomes increasingly integrated into international commerce.
Initial Deployment Targets Global Procurement
Building on the existing B2B payment business cooperation between Lianlian DigiTech and Union Pay International, the partnership will be further extended into AI-Agent payment Scenarios. The inaugural application arising from the partnership will introduce a Human-in-the-Loop AI-agent payment solution for global procurement, which will effectively address enterprises’ pain points in cross-border B2B payments.
Cross-border purchasing has long been hampered by structural inefficiencies—protracted settlement cycles, exchange-rate volatility, layered compliance demands, and back-office teams bogged down in manual reconciliation. That friction has left businesses perpetually navigating a narrow passage between transaction speed and fund security.
To address those pain points, the two companies will combine Lianlian DigiTech’s AI-agent platform and global digital-service capabilities with UnionPay International’s AI-agent payment technology. Together, they will integrate AI-agent capabilities throughout the procurement workflow—from supplier matching and product selection to payment execution.
The architecture rests on a Human-in-the-Loop model. Under that framework, the AI agent executes procurement tasks autonomously—matching buyers with suppliers, refining product selections, and generating payment orders—while keeping the user firmly in control of final approval and strategic decisions. That hybrid approach marries AI-driven efficiency with human judgment, effectively connecting AI-assisted decision-making with real-world payment execution in international trade. The result is a payment model that is both agile and auditable, giving finance teams a smart but still tightly governed tool for cross-border procurement and trade settlement—and, in the process, upending the conventional procurement-payment playbook.
The partners will use global procurement as the initial deployment, refining the user experience and technical architecture based on real-world feedback. The longer-term ambition is to drive industry-wide standardization and boost adoption of AI-agent payment solutions. Looking ahead, the collaboration is expected to extend to additional business verticals and a broader set of enterprise touchpoints, building a body of real-world experience that can inform large-scale deployment across cross-border commerce.
From Initial Deployment to Long-Term Technology Collaboration
The agreement also brings together Lianlian DigiTech’s and UnionPay International’s respective strengths in cross-border payment networks, global merchant coverage and technology development. Together, the companies will explore new AI-agent payment applications in overseas markets, providing businesses and merchants with more efficient payment solutions.
Beyond expanding AI-agent payment applications internationally, the two companies also plan to collaborate more broadly on AI technologies for financial services through ongoing technical exchanges and joint development, helping advance innovation and broader industry adoption.
Lianlian DigiTech said the partnership reflects its long-term commitment to integrating artificial intelligence with cross-border payments. As an AI-native company focused on building global financial infrastructure, Lianlian DigiTech views the collaboration with UnionPay International as an important step in advancing AI-agent payments and bringing AI-agent payment technologies into commercial use. Looking ahead, the company will continue working with industry partners to improve the efficiency of cross-border payments through technological innovation, providing businesses expanding internationally with more intelligent and efficient global payment services while strengthening the infrastructure that supports global digital commerce.
UnionPay International, for its part, noted that as AI continues to reshape the financial services landscape, intelligent and digital transformation have become essential pathways to sustainable industry growth. Based on its B2B digital payment solutions, including Virtual Commercial Card Program, the company has provided enterprises with online virtual card issuance, convenient and diverse payment methods, and precise, efficient transaction control, and described the partnership with Lianlian DigiTech to launch AI-agent payment applications as a forward-looking component of its broader AI-payments strategy. Drawing on its global payment network, UnionPay International will work with Lianlian DigiTech to promote standardization and scaled adoption of AI-agent payments, ensuring that the benefits of AI-driven financial innovation flow through to support the real economy.