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How Do You Give an AI Agent a Wallet (Without Losing Control)?

Handing a large language model a raw API key and a funded wallet is a bad idea. One confused turn, one prompt injection, and the funds are gone — with no spending ceiling, no proof the recipient is real, and no record a compliance team would accept.

The good news: you don’t have to choose between autonomy and control. The pattern that makes agentic payments safe has three parts.

1. A signed mandate, not a blank check

Before an agent can move a cent, the user signs a mandate — a cryptographic authorization that defines exactly what the agent may do: which assets, up to what amount, for what purpose, and for how long. The agent operates inside the mandate; it cannot exceed it. Because the mandate is signed, you can always prove who authorized a payment.

2. Spend tiers, enforced server-side

Limits only matter if something enforces them. Every request an agent makes is classified into a tier:

  • Autonomous below a cap you set — the agent just transacts.
  • Step-up above that cap — a human approves before funds move.
  • Blocked beyond a ceiling — the request is refused outright.

The classification happens on the server, not in the prompt, so a clever message can’t talk its way past it.

3. A verified counterparty

The other half of trust is knowing who gets paid. Each counterparty is KYC-verified and its attestation is anchored on-chain, so a merchant — or another agent — can confirm the payer and payee are legitimate before accepting funds.

Where Hamirach fits

Hamirach packages all three into one rail. The user signs a mandate, the agent calls Hamirach’s AI-agent payment tools over the Model Context Protocol, counterparties are attested on-chain via Rillis, and every action lands in an immutable audit trail. Your agent gets a wallet — and the guardrails to use it.

Want to see it on your own use case? Book a demo.