Alibaba’s Tokenized Payment Set to Transform International Trade with Real-Time Settlements

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. is set to introduce a tokenized payment platform by December, aiming to transform cross-border B2B payments,

to eliminate the need for conventional banking intermediaries. This platform, which will use tokenized deposits in U.S. dollars and euros, is designed to provide almost immediate settlement for international trade, . Kuo Zhang, Alibaba's president, , describing the project as a "paradigm shift" in the e-commerce sector.

The new service, named "Agentic Pay," will incorporate AI to

, simplifying trade paperwork that has traditionally required manual effort and significant time. This blend of and tokenized payments fits with Alibaba's broader strategy to expand its AI infrastructure, including the rollout of new AI models and chips earlier this year . The company's international e-commerce division, .com, in active global suppliers, reflecting the vast reach of its overseas business.

Unlike stablecoins, which are generally supported by assets such as bonds or fiat reserves, Alibaba's tokenized payment system uses "deposit tokens" that are directly linked to actual

deposits, a method with its JPMD token. JPMorgan's deposit token, which operates on Coinbase's Base blockchain, enables institutional users to transfer funds within seconds at any time, . Alibaba's model, developed in collaboration with JPMorgan's Kinexys blockchain division, does not depend on cryptocurrency exchanges or unstable assets, an important factor for major trade networks .

This initiative comes as China increases oversight of stablecoins, which are often issued by non-bank organizations and operate in a regulatory gray area. Alibaba's deposit tokens, which are backed by fiat currency held in banks, are consistent with China's preference for centralized, bank-supported digital money