MoonPay has officially launched the Open Wallet Standard, a groundbreaking open-source initiative designed to facilitate secure and universal interaction between AI agents and various blockchain platforms. This new standard provides a framework for AI agents to hold value, sign transactions, and process payments without exposing private keys. Developed collaboratively with contributions from a diverse array of organizations—including PayPal, OKX, Ripple, and the Ethereum Foundation—the Open Wallet Standard (available on GitHub, npm, and PyPI) addresses a critical gap in the agent economy.
Ivan Soto-Wright, CEO and co-founder of MoonPay, emphasized the significance of the initiative, stating, “The agent economy has payment rails. It didn’t have a wallet standard. We built one, open-sourced it, and now the full stack exists.”
The foundation for the Open Wallet Standard was established through MoonPay’s own transactions with MoonPay Agents, a non-custodial software layer released in February 2026. This product enabled AI agents to autonomously access wallets and conduct transactions via MoonPay CLI while offering multi-chain support. A recent integration of Ledger hardware signing has positioned it as the first wallet tailored for agents to support hardware-backed transaction approval.
As MoonPay developed its agent framework, it faced an industry-wide challenge: the absence of a standardized way for AI agents to interact with wallets. Each framework had its own key management and signing logic, resulting in an environment rife with fragmentation. Users employing multiple tools could find their funds dispersed across separate wallets, complicating payment processes.
To remedy this fragmentation, MoonPay generalized its wallet infrastructure and released it under an MIT open-source license, enabling a shared standard for how agents can access and interact with wallets across various blockchain environments. The Open Wallet Standard thus consolidates numerous existing protocols—including Coinbase’s x402 for stablecoin payments and Google’s Agent Payments Protocol—under a unified representation that enhances usability.
In practical terms, the Open Wallet Standard enables an AI agent to maintain a balance within an encrypted vault that serves as a single point of access for payments and transactions. When an agent receives a payment request, it uses policy engines to evaluate whether the transaction complies with predefined spending limits. The wallet then securely signs the transaction, ensuring that the private key remains inaccessible during the process.
Notably, the Open Wallet Standard is structured to accommodate diverse blockchain networks, viewing every chain as a “first-class citizen.” Industry experts, such as Sam Blackshear from Mysten Labs, highlight that a unified representation makes it easier for agents to manage high-level tasks without being bogged down in complex details.
The modular design of the standard allows for independent adoption of its various components, including modules for signing, storage, and agent access, among others. This flexibility ensures that developers can utilize the standard in ways that best suit their projects.
MoonPay’s latest move represents a significant shift toward AI-native infrastructure, transitioning from traditional payment APIs to a robust framework that empowers AI agents with greater programmability within the financial landscape. As the Open Wallet Standard gains traction, it promises to foster a collaborative and interoperable environment for AI-driven tools across the burgeoning agent economy.
