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Following the MCP and A2A protocols, the AI Agent market has seen another blockbuster arrival: the Agent Payments Protocol (AP2), developed by Google. This will clearly further enhance AI Agents' autonomous multi-tasking capabilities, but the unfortunate reality is that it has little to do with web3AI. Let's take a closer look: What problem does AP2 solve? Simply put, the MCP protocol is like a universal hook, enabling AI agents to connect to various external tools and data sources; A2A is a team collaboration communication protocol that allows multiple AI agents to cooperate with each other to complete complex tasks; AP2 completes the last piece of the puzzle - payment capability. In other words, MCP opens up connectivity, A2A promotes collaboration efficiency, and AP2 achieves value exchange. The arrival of AP2 truly injects "soul" into the autonomous collaboration and task execution of Multi-Agents. Imagine AI Agents connecting Qunar, Meituan, and Didi to complete the booking of flights, hotels, and car rentals, but then getting stuck at the point of "self-payment." What's the point of all that multitasking? So, remember this: AP2 is an extension of MCP+A2A, solving the last mile problem of AI Agent automated execution. What are the technical highlights of AP2? The core innovation of AP2 is the Mandates mechanism, which is divided into real-time authorization mode and delegated authorization mode. Real-time authorization is easy to understand. The AI Agent finds the product and shows it to you. The operation can only be performed after the user signs. Delegated authorization requires the user to set rules in advance, such as only buying the iPhone 17 when the price drops to 5,000. The AI Agent monitors the trigger conditions and executes automatically. The implementation logic is cryptographically signed using Verifiable Credentials (VCs). Users can set complex commission conditions, including price ranges, time limits, and payment method priorities, forming a tamper-proof digital contract. Once signed, the AI Agent executes according to the conditions, with VCs ensuring auditability and security at every step. Of particular note is the "A2A x402" extension, a technical component developed by Google specifically for crypto payments, developed in collaboration with Coinbase and the Ethereum Foundation. This extension enables AI Agents to seamlessly process stablecoins, ETH, and other blockchain assets, supporting native payment scenarios within the Web3 ecosystem. What kind of imagination space can AP2 bring? After analyzing the technical principles, do you think that's it? Yes, in fact, the AP2 is boring when it is disassembled alone. Its real charm lies in connecting and opening up the "MCP+A2A+AP2" technology stack, completely opening up the complete link of AI Agent's autonomous analysis+execution+payment. From now on, AI Agents can open up many application scenarios. For example, AI Agents for stock investment and financial management can help us monitor the market 24/7 and conduct independent transactions. Enterprise procurement AI Agents can automatically replenish and renew without human intervention. AP2's complementary payment capabilities will further expand the penetration of the Agent-to-Agent economy into more scenarios. Google obviously understands that after the technical framework is established, the ecological implementation must be relied upon, so it has brought in more than 60 partners to develop it, almost covering the entire payment and business ecosystem. Interestingly, it also involves major Crypto players such as Ethereum, Coinbase, MetaMask, and Sui. Combined with the current trend of currency and stock integration, the imagination space has been doubled. Is web3 AI really dead? Not entirely. Google's AP2 looks complete, but it only achieves technical compatibility with Crypto payments. It can only be regarded as an extension of the traditional authorization framework and belongs to the category of automated execution. There is a "paradigm" difference between it and the autonomous asset management pursued by pure Crypto native solutions. The Crypto-native solutions under exploration are taking the "decentralized custody + on-chain verification" route, including AI Agent autonomous asset management, AI Agent autonomous transactions (DeFAI), AI Agent digital identity and on-chain reputation system (ERC-8004...), AI Agent on-chain governance DAO framework, AI Agent NPC and digital avatars, and many other interesting and fun directions. Ultimately, once users get used to AI Agent payments in traditional fields, their acceptance of AI Agents autonomously owning digital assets will also increase. And for those scenarios that AP2 cannot reach, such as anonymous transactions, censorship-resistant payments, and decentralized asset management, there will always be a time for crypto-native solutions to show their strength? The two are more likely to be complementary rather than competitive, but to be honest, the key technological advancements behind AI Agents currently all come from web2AI, and web3AI still needs to keep up the good work!

PANews reported on November 20th that, according to CoinDesk, India plans to launch ARC, a stable digital asset pegged 1:1 to the rupee, in the first quarter of 2026. Developed jointly by Polygon and local fintech company Anq, ARC will operate on the basis of a central bank digital currency (CBDC), employing a two-tier structure and limited to corporate accounts. Its aim is to curb capital flows to dollar-denominated stablecoins and support domestic debt needs. This mechanism, combined with Uniswap v4 whitelist controls, strengthens compliance and monetary sovereignty protection.

The post Pound Sterling gains traction above 1.3050 ahead of delayed US NFP release appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. The GBP/USD pair trades with mild gains near 1.3060, snapping the four-day losing streak, during the early European session on Thursday. Markets might turn cautious later in the day ahead of the release of the delayed US September Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) report.   The UK Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation fell to 3.6% YoY in October from 3.8% in September, the National Statistics showed on Wednesday. This figure came in line with the market consensus. The inflation data cemented expectations that the Bank of England (BoE) could cut interest rates in December, which could undermine the Cable in the near term. The upcoming government budget on November 26 is also expected to influence the BoE’s next move. The attention will shift to the US labor market data, which is due later on Thursday. The data release was delayed by a 43-day government shutdown that ended last week. The shutdown has complicated the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) assessment of the labor market.  Economists expect the report to show that the US added about 50,000 new jobs in September. The Average Hourly Earnings is projected to increase by 0.3% MoM in September, while the Unemployment Rate is estimated to stay at 4.3%. If the report shows a weaker-than-expected outcome, this could drag the USD lower and create a tailwind for the major pair.  The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) released its minutes from the October meeting on Wednesday, indicating “strongly differing views” about the appropriate policy decision for the December meeting. The majority of officials supported further rate cuts in general, many participants indicated it might be appropriate to keep interest rates steady for the remainder of the year. Pound Sterling FAQs The Pound Sterling (GBP) is the oldest currency in the world (886 AD) and the official currency of the United Kingdom. It…