Teams that want payments without becoming a payment processor
Composing 402 payments with a facilitator
Keep your server out of the money path by delegating proof verification and settlement to a facilitator, while mcp-pay handles discovery and the 402 handshake.
The problem
Holding funds or settling payments in-process means regulatory and operational weight most tool authors do not want to carry.
How mcp-pay helps
mcp-pay verifies X-PAYMENT proofs server-to-facilitator. The facilitator does the settlement on the rail; your server just asks "is this valid?" and runs the tool on a yes.
What that looks like in practice
- ▸Your server never holds funds — it only verifies proofs with a facilitator.
- ▸Verification is out-of-band, so settlement latency does not block the request path unexpectedly.
- ▸Swap facilitators per rail without changing the manifest or the 402 flow.
- ▸Clear separation: mcp-pay = discovery + handshake, facilitator = settlement.
Build this flow
See the 402 handshake, browse more use cases, or follow a guide.