MCP server · Finance and crypto

bolthub MCP server

Let your AI find and pay for tools on the bolthub marketplace, per call, over Bitcoin Lightning.

bolthub is a marketplace where tools and services are sold per use, and payment happens over Bitcoin Lightning. This MCP server connects your AI assistant to that marketplace, so your AI can discover tools and pay for them from a budget you set. It is handy if you use an AI assistant that needs to reach paid tools or data that are not free.

What is an MCP server? The 30-second version

On its own, your AI can only chat with you. An MCP server is a small helper program that gives your AI a new skill or a connection to an outside service. This one connects your AI to bolthub, a marketplace of paid tools and APIs. When you ask for something that needs a paid tool, the helper finds it, pays for that single call over Bitcoin Lightning, and brings the result back to you.

What this MCP server does

You ask your AI for something, like a piece of data or a task that a paid tool can handle. Your AI passes the request to this helper, which looks through the bolthub marketplace for a tool that fits. The helper pays for that one call from a budget you set, using Bitcoin Lightning. The tool runs and sends its answer back through the helper to your AI. You see the result in your chat, along with a receipt you can check.

Flow diagram: you ask your AI “Find a tool to check a company's public records”, the bolthub MCP server connects it to bolthub marketplace, and you get back answer and receipt.

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What you can do with it

Search the bolthub marketplace for tools that match what you need
Pay for a single tool call from a budget you set in advance
Use several MCP servers behind one shared Lightning budget
Keep a record of what was paid and get a receipt you can verify
Limit what your AI is allowed to spend and which tools it can reach
Run the same setup from a terminal with the bolthub command line

Try asking your AI

“Find a tool on bolthub that can check a company's public records, and use it for this name”
“What tools are available on bolthub for currency conversion, and what do they cost per call”
“Use a bolthub tool to look up this wallet address and show me the result”
“Show me what I have spent on bolthub tools today”

What it gives back to you

You get the answer from the tool you paid for, shown in your chat like any other reply. Alongside it, you can see what was charged for that call and a receipt that proves the payment happened. If you ask about your spending, you get a simple summary of what was used and how much it cost.

Before you start

What you need

A bolthub account and access to the marketplace
A Bitcoin Lightning wallet that bolthub supports, such as LND, LNbits, Phoenixd, NWC, or WebLN
Node.js 18 or newer if you run the MCP server yourself
The Claude desktop app or another AI assistant that supports MCP servers

Good to know

This server can spend real money from your Lightning wallet, so set a budget and check the receipts before you let it run freely.

Install it with your AI

Add bolthub 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 bolthub 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 use an AI assistant and need it to reach paid tools or data, especially in finance and fintech work where per-call costs and receipts matter.