Understand Circle programmable wallets and how they enable secure, on-chain payments for your AI agent.
What is an x402 Wallet
An x402 wallet is a Circle programmable wallet that holds USDC stablecoin on the Base blockchain. It's your on-chain wallet for funding agent payments, holding balances, and making direct blockchain transactions.
How It Works
Your x402 wallet is a user-controlled wallet powered by Circle's programmable wallet infrastructure. This means:
- You own it -- Secured with your email and a PIN you set during creation
- It holds USDC -- A stablecoin pegged 1:1 to the US dollar
- It lives on Base -- A fast, low-cost Ethereum L2 blockchain
- Your agent can pay from it -- Through smart contract escrow with guardrails you control
Info
You don't need a wallet to use AgentPMT with credits. Wallets are for users who want to use on-chain USDC payments via the x402 protocol.
Creating Your Wallet
Go to Account Details
In your dashboard, open the Account Details tab.
Create your wallet
Click Create Wallet. You'll set a PIN that secures your wallet. This PIN is required for transactions.
Initialize on-chain
The wallet is deployed to the Base blockchain. Once initialized, you'll see your wallet address and can start adding funds.
Wallet Guardrails
You can set guardrails on your wallet to control how it's used:
| Guardrail | What It Does |
|---|---|
| Per-transaction cap | Maximum USDC amount per single transaction |
| Allowed recipients | Restrict which addresses can receive funds |
| Pause/unpause | Temporarily freeze all transactions from the wallet |
These guardrails are enforced by a smart contract on-chain, so they can't be bypassed.
Wallet vs. Credits
Credits -- Purchased with a credit card. Managed entirely on AgentPMT's platform. Simpler setup, no blockchain knowledge needed. Good for most users.
x402 Wallet -- Funded with USDC stablecoin. On-chain payments via smart contracts. Required for autonomous agents (no human in the loop). Full blockchain transparency.