Next-Generation Micropayments

Solana Payment Channels

Off-chain micropayments with on-chain settlement. Reduce API payment costs by 99.8% while maintaining instant verification and automatic x402 fallback.

99.8%
Cost Reduction

10,000 requests: $0.002 vs $10

<10ms
Payment Verification

Instant off-chain validation

2
On-Chain Transactions

Only open and close (vs thousands)

How Payment Channels Work

Payment channels enable unlimited micropayments between two parties with only two on-chain transactions, dramatically reducing costs and latency.

1

Open Channel

Client deposits funds into on-chain escrow account

1 on-chain transaction (~$0.0005)

2

Sign Proofs

Client signs off-chain payment proofs for each request

Ed25519 signatures, instant

3

Verify Instantly

Server validates signatures without blockchain

< 10ms verification time

4

Claim Payments

Server claims accumulated funds when desired

Batch multiple payments

5

Close & Refund

Client closes channel and receives unused balance

1 on-chain transaction

Cost Efficiency

Comparison for 10,000 API requests over 1 hour

Standard x402
~$10
Transactions10,000
Processing Time~6.7 minutes
Latency/Request400-800ms
Cost per Request$0.001

Slow and expensive at scale

Payment Channels
~$0.002
Transactions2
Processing Time~1 second
Latency/Request<10ms
Cost per Request$0.0002

99.8% cost reduction, 400x faster

Framework Integration

Middleware examples for Express, NestJS, and Fastify

Express Middleware

import { channelAuthMiddleware } from '@solana-payment-channel/server';

// Fixed price endpoint
app.get('/api/markets',
  channelAuthMiddleware(paymentService, {
    amount: 1_000_000n  // 1 USDC
  }),
  (req, res) => res.json({ markets, payment: req.payment })
);

// Dynamic pricing
app.post('/api/process',
  channelAuthMiddleware(paymentService, {
    amount: async (req) => BigInt(req.body.items.length * 100_000)
  }),
  handler
);

NestJS Guards & Decorators

import { RequirePayment, Payment } from '@solana-payment-channel/server';

@Controller('markets')
export class MarketsController {
  @Get('stream')
  @RequirePayment(100n) // 0.0001 USDC per request
  getStream(@Payment() payment: PaymentResult) {
    return {
      markets: this.getMarkets(),
      paymentMethod: payment.method, // 'channel' or 'x402'
      remainingBalance: payment.channelBalance
    };
  }

  // Dynamic pricing
  @Post('process')
  @RequirePayment((context) => {
    const items = context.switchToHttp().getRequest().body.items;
    return BigInt(items.length * 100_000);
  })
  processData() { /* ... */ }
}

Fastify Plugin

import { channelPaymentPlugin } from '@solana-payment-channel/server';

// Register plugin
await fastify.register(channelPaymentPlugin, {
  rpcUrl: process.env.SOLANA_RPC_URL,
  network: 'devnet',
  programId: new PublicKey(PROGRAM_ID)
});

// Protected route
fastify.get('/api/premium', {
  preHandler: fastify.requirePayment({ amount: 1_000_000n })
}, async (request, reply) => {
  return { data: 'premium', payment: request.payment };
});

Key Features

Automatic x402 Fallback

Seamlessly falls back to standard x402 when channels aren't optimal

Replay Protection

Nonce-based system prevents payment replay attacks

Ed25519 Signatures

Fast cryptographic verification without blockchain calls

Dispute Resolution

On-chain dispute system protects both parties

Batch Claiming

Server can claim multiple payments in single transaction

Balance Management

Automatic balance tracking and refund handling

NPM Packages

Modular packages for client and server integration

@solana-payment-channel/server

Express, NestJS, and Fastify middleware for payment channel protection

View on NPM
@solana-payment-channel/client

Client SDK for making paid requests and managing channel lifecycle

View on NPM
@solana-payment-channel/core

Shared types, utilities, and Solana program interactions

View on NPM

Ideal Use Cases

Perfect For

  • High-frequency streaming (market data, live scores)
  • Real-time updates and interactive applications
  • Gaming and multiplayer interactions
  • AI/ML inference with per-request pricing

Less Ideal For

  • Low-frequency requests (use standard x402)
  • Expensive operations (channel setup overhead)
  • Sporadic API access (not worth opening channel)

Ready to Reduce Your API Costs by 99.8%?

Start integrating Solana payment channels into your APIs today