Hedera has launched Agent Accounts, a programmable, non-custodial spending account designed to let AI agents transact autonomously within user-defined rules enforced on-chain. According to ChainCatcher, the feature allows agents to pay APIs, fetch data, settle invoices, and make purchases on behalf of users without private keys leaving the user’s wallet.

The account is funded from a user’s existing Hedera wallet and created separately for each designated agent, rather than handing over full account control. Users connect a wallet through a web app, assign an agent, and set spending limits, including total caps, daily limits, per-transaction limits, and whitelists for merchants and recipients. The rules are written into Hedera smart contracts, not stored on company servers, and cannot be changed by anyone other than the user. Funds remain in the user’s account until a purchase is made, while the agent only submits a spending request to the smart contract for validation and execution. Users can pause or revoke agent spending from the wallet with one click.

The feature is supported by Agentic Payment Services, including an MCP server, REST API, and relayer. Hedera said any agent that can use MCP or REST can connect, and payments can be made with HBAR, USDC, or other Hedera tokens, with x402 compatibility. Each policy, transaction, and agent action is recorded on the Hedera Consensus Service. The rollout plan calls for a limited-partner testnet release in the fourth quarter of 2026, a public testnet in the first quarter of 2027, and a mainnet launch targeted for the second quarter of 2027, subject to security review and legal sign-off.