MCP server · Finance and crypto · official
Alby Bitcoin Payments MCP server
by getAlby · official
Let your AI send and receive small bitcoin payments through your own Lightning wallet.
This is a helper that connects your AI assistant to a bitcoin Lightning wallet. Once it is set up, you can ask your AI to send or receive small, instant bitcoin payments. It is handy if you already use a Lightning wallet and want your AI to handle simple payment tasks for you.
What is an MCP server? The 30-second version
On its own, your AI can only chat. An MCP server is a small helper program that gives your AI a new skill or a connection to an app or service. This one connects your AI to a bitcoin Lightning wallet, so the AI can look up your balance or make a payment when you ask. You stay in control because the wallet connection is yours.
What this MCP server does
You ask your AI something like send 100 sats to this address. The AI passes that request to this helper. The helper talks to your Lightning wallet using a connection secret you set up. The wallet sends the payment and reports back. You see the result in the chat, like a confirmation or a small error message.
Click to zoomWhat you can do with it
- Check your wallet balance
- Send a small bitcoin payment to a Lightning address or invoice
- Create an invoice so someone can pay you
- Look up details about a Lightning address or invoice
- Pay a web page that asks for a small bitcoin payment (L402)
- Get a summary of recent payments
Try asking your AI
- “What is my current wallet balance?”
- “Send 500 sats to alice@getalby.com”
- “Make me an invoice for 1000 sats with the note coffee”
- “Show me my last five payments”
What it gives back to you
You get short answers in the chat, like your balance in sats, a confirmation that a payment went through, or an invoice code you can copy. If something fails, the AI tells you what went wrong in plain words. It does not show you long technical logs unless you ask.
Before you start
What you need
- A bitcoin Lightning wallet that supports Nostr Wallet Connect (NWC)
- The NWC connection secret from that wallet (a long code that starts with nostr+walletconnect://)
- An AI app that supports MCP servers, like Claude Desktop or Goose
- Node.js 20 or newer if you run it on your own computer
Good to know
It can move real bitcoin from your wallet, so only connect a wallet with a small balance and check each payment before you approve it.
Install it with your AI
Add Alby Bitcoin Payments MCP server to your AI, no technical skills needed
You don't install anything by hand. You copy one prompt, paste it into an AI that can work on your computer, and it checks, installs and connects the server for you, asking you when it needs something.
Sign in to get the install prompt
Members get a ready-made prompt that lets the Claude desktop app check Alby Bitcoin Payments MCP server, install it and connect it for them, step by step. You don't need any technical skills: you copy, paste and answer a few questions. Your connected AI can also find and install any of the 4,066 MCP servers here for you.
Who it's for
People who already use a Lightning wallet and want their AI to handle simple payment tasks, like freelancers, small shop owners, or anyone curious about bitcoin payments.
