Singapore consumers wary of AI agents making purchases

Global Payments has published research showing that most consumers in Singapore would not let an AI agent complete a purchase without their approval. Only 15% said they would allow a fully autonomous purchase.

The findings highlight a gap between interest in agentic commerce and willingness to hand over payment decisions. Fifty-nine per cent of respondents in Singapore said they were open to an AI agent taking part in their shopping, while 23% said they had already used one.

Singapore ranked ahead of the US and UK on openness to AI shopping agents in the survey, trailing only China and Brazil among the seven markets covered. But that openness dropped sharply when respondents were asked whether an agent could complete a transaction on its own. Sixty-five per cent said they wanted to approve every purchase individually, while 20% said they would not allow autonomous purchasing at all.

The findings come as Asia Pacific accounts for more than 60% of global online retail sales, making consumer confidence in AI-led transactions a key issue for merchants and payment groups in the region.

Control points

The research suggests consumers in Singapore want oversight built into AI shopping tools rather than a hands-off model. The strongest demand was for visible checks before money is spent.

Singapore recorded the highest demand in the survey for government-backed AI safety certification, at 34%. It also showed one of the strongest expectations for a confirmation step before each purchase, at 39%.

Respondents in Singapore were also more likely than the global average to want a phone push notification before an AI-driven purchase and biometric sign-off to confirm it. Forty-five per cent wanted a push notification, compared with 37% globally, while 41% wanted biometric approval, against a global average of 36%.

Concerns over payment data were also pronounced. Fifty-seven per cent ranked protection of payment details as their top concern, putting Singapore level with Australia as the highest among the markets surveyed. Eighty-two per cent said it mattered that no one, including AI agents, could see their card or bank account details.

Transparency also shaped how consumers viewed AI recommendations. More than half, or 55%, said they expected oversight of how an agent arrived at a recommendation, including markers such as a sponsored label on AI-generated suggestions.

Spending limits

The survey found that trust depended heavily on the type of purchase and the amount involved. Consumers were more willing to let an AI agent handle routine, predictable transactions than subjective or discretionary ones.

Among Singapore consumers willing to let an agent manage digital content purchases, the highest average sum they would allow without prior approval was S$52.51 for a subscription renewal. That fell to S$23.14 for a creator or community support purchase.

These figures suggest familiar recurring payments are seen as lower risk than one-off purchases that rely more on personal judgement. They also indicate that consumers draw a distinction between using AI to search and compare and allowing it to make the final decision.

Financial caution

Financial services showed the sharpest divide between passive monitoring and active execution. Consumers were more comfortable with an AI agent tracking accounts or flagging opportunities than carrying out transactions on their behalf.

In Singapore, 54% said they would allow an agent to handle only up to S$100 for a money transfer. Comfort fell further when the task shifted to wealth or asset management, where only 35% said they were comfortable with agent involvement.

The pattern reflects broader caution around higher-value or more consequential decisions. Autonomy appears to rise only when the purchase is limited in value and predictable in nature.

Phil Pomford, Executive Lead, Enterprise APAC, Global Payments, said: “Singapore has always been an innovator in new ways to pay, with PayNow, QR, real-time transfers, so it's no surprise consumers here are as quick to embrace AI agents for the browsing and comparison work. But the same instinct that made Singapore an early adopter of fast, verified payments is exactly what's holding the wallet back from agents. Consumers want the confirmation step, the certification, the proof it's secure, before they'll delegate that final purchase click. This discipline is why Singapore's payment infrastructure is considered one of the most trusted in the region, so merchants must now design agentic pathways that align to that framework.”