Visa highlighted the need for integrating AI into cybersecurity operations during the Global Fintech Fest 2026, emphasizing that attackers now exploit payment system weaknesses in under an hour compared to a year and a half in 2016. Subra Kumaraswamy of Visa said security systems relying solely on human approval cannot keep pace with evolving threats. Meanwhile, India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) proposed mandatory human-in-the-loop interventions for agentic AI payments, creating a complex dynamic between AI automation and human oversight, according to medianama.com.
Kumaraswamy explained that cyber security and payment security are converging into a single control layer, which Visa terms an agentic control plane. This unified layer governs applications, code, and interfaces behind transactions, streamlining defence mechanisms. He also noted a shift in fraud tactics from human-led schemes to agentic impersonation, where synthetic identities conduct transactions autonomously. Kumaraswamy suggested companies track a new metric, the mean time to exploit, to better understand and respond to threats in this evolving landscape, as reported by medianama.com.
The convergence of cybersecurity and payment security reflects broader industry trends where AI-driven attacks and defences are becoming intertwined. Visa’s call for AI in the loop contrasts with India’s regulatory approach mandating human checks in AI payment processes, illustrating differing strategies to balance innovation and risk. This debate is critical as synthetic identity fraud and rapid exploitation of vulnerabilities pose increasing risks to digital payments worldwide, highlighting the need for adaptive security frameworks.
Visa’s remarks at the Global Fintech Fest 2026 underscore the urgency for financial institutions to adopt AI-enabled security measures. The event also brought attention to MeitY’s proposal for human-in-the-loop controls in agentic AI payments, signaling ongoing regulatory developments in India’s fintech sector. The next key milestone will be the finalization of these regulatory guidelines by MeitY, expected to shape AI payment security protocols nationally.