AI Agents — SatsRail Developers

Why Lightning Is Perfect for AI Agents

Credit Cards

Require browser forms & 3D Secure
PCI compliance burden
Card numbers agents can't handle safely
Chargebacks and fraud checks
Banks can freeze accounts anytime

Lightning (SatsRail)

One API call → invoice string
No browser, no forms, no redirects
Instant settlement
No chargebacks — payment is final
Non-custodial — no account freezes

MCP Server

The SatsRail MCP server gives any AI agent with Model Context Protocol support the full merchant API as tools — creating orders, generating invoices, checking payment status, and more.

It is hosted, not installed. There is no npm package to run and nothing to keep in sync: the server lives inside the API at a single remote endpoint over Streamable HTTP. Connect with a URL and your API key.

Connect a client

Point any modern MCP client at the hosted endpoint (Claude Desktop shown):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "satsrail": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://satsrail.com/api/v1/mcp",
      "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer sk_test_your_key" }
    }
  }
}

Full MCP reference →

Available Tools

The MCP server exposes 45 tools spanning the full merchant surface. They group into six areas:

Area	Tools	Covers
Orders & invoices	9	Create, update, cancel orders; generate and check Lightning invoices; QR codes
Payments, checkout & payment requests	8	Confirmed payments, hosted checkout sessions, one-call payment requests
Products & catalog	15	Products, product types, catalog snapshots, and encryption-key management
Webhooks	5	Create, update, and delete webhook endpoints
Merchant & account	6	Merchant profile, wallets, documents, and API-token usage
Access & public	2	Access-token verification and public subscription plans

See the full 45-tool catalog →

Agent Payment Flow

A complete payment takes 3 steps — no browser involved at any point.

1

Create Order

Agent calls create_order with amount and description. SatsRail returns an order with a bolt11 Lightning invoice string.

2

Customer Pays

Agent presents the bolt11 string or a QR code to the customer. Customer pays with any Lightning wallet.

3

Confirm

Agent calls check_invoice_status to verify payment, or listens for a webhook. Done.

Example Conversation

User "Charge me $25 for the monthly subscription"

Agent → calls create_order(amount_cents: 2500, generate_invoice: true)

Agent "Here's your Lightning invoice. Scan this QR code or copy the payment string:"

lnbc250u1pj...kqq5yxmetu

User "Paid!"

Agent → calls check_invoice_status(invoice_id: "...")

Agent "Payment confirmed! Your subscription is active. ⚡"

Direct REST API

Don't need MCP? Any agent that can make HTTP requests can use SatsRail directly. The entire flow is JSON in, JSON out — no redirects, no HTML.

Create order + invoice in one call

curl -X POST https://satsrail.com/api/v1/m/orders \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk_test_..." \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "order": {
      "total_amount_cents": 2500,
      "currency": "usd"
    },
    "generate_invoice": true,
    "payment_method": "lightning"
  }'

Check payment status

curl https://satsrail.com/api/v1/m/invoices/{invoice_id}/status \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk_test_..."

Full API Reference →

Use Cases

SaaS & API Billing

Agents that sell access to services and collect payment in the conversation. Per-call, per-session, or per-task billing with no checkout page.

Agent-Generated Invoicing

Agents that create fresh invoices when payment is due — milestone billing, on-demand charges, or periodic collections.

Multi-Merchant Platforms

Build agent-powered marketplaces where AI handles the checkout flow across multiple merchants.

Invoicing Bots

Agents that send invoices, track payments, and follow up — from Slack, Discord, Telegram, or any chat platform.

Configuration

There is nothing to configure beyond the endpoint and a credential. The MCP client sends your API key as a bearer header:

Authorization: Bearer sk_test_your_key

Use sk_test_* keys while building and sk_live_* in production. Full authentication details, error codes, and rate limits are in the MCP reference.

Build the future of AI payments

Get your API key and let your agents start accepting Bitcoin in minutes.

Get Your API Key → MCP Reference

AI Agents NEW