AI adoption in payments hits near-universal levels by 2026

AI adoption among payments firms has surged in the past year. By 2026, nearly every company in the sector uses the technology in some form. The shift from prediction to widespread reality has been rapid and decisive. In 2025, 89% of payments firms had adopted AI. That figure climbed to 96% in 2026, showing near-universal uptake. Meanwhile, the share of firms deploying AI across most financial operations grew from 22% to 30% in the same period.

Despite this progress, major hurdles remain. Half of the firms highlight high implementation costs as a key obstacle. Legacy system integration affects 46%, while 61% rank data security and regulatory risks as their primary concern.

Fragmented financial infrastructure still plagues the industry. Disconnected data systems, outdated technology, and compliance issues continue to restrict the scaling of AI. Internal legacy systems are the biggest source of data fragmentation in payments operations. The data shows AI is now a standard tool in payments. Yet, cost, outdated infrastructure, and regulatory worries still slow its full potential. Firms must address these barriers to move beyond partial adoption.