Artificial intelligence-powered shopping assistants, or 'agentic shoppers,' could soon account for a significant share of US ecommerce spending, with Morgan Stanley Research estimating they may represent $190 billion-$385 billion by 2030, or 10-20 percent of the market. These virtual assistants go beyond product search, scouring the web for deals and negotiating sales with minimal user input, potentially extending to areas like 401k investments. Matteo Stefanel, managing partner and co-founder at Apis Partners, said agentic commerce will be a 'complete revolution,' requiring financial institutions to participate in rapid, AI-driven interactions between agents to facilitate transactions.

Founded in 2014, Apis Partners invests in financial infrastructure from offices in London, Dubai, and Singapore. In May, it announced a $175 million investment in Paymentology, a global issuing and payments processing platform for banks and fintechs, alongside Aspirity Partners. Stefanel emphasized that Paymentology represents a durable, integrated service model difficult to replicate with AI alone, unlike simple tech apps.

Apis is currently focused on exits, with a couple planned before year-end, and closed its Fund III at $1.23 billion, above its $1 billion target.