> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.lyseis-pay.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Paylink: Payment Gateway API for Merchants

> Paylink is a JSON HTTP API for collecting payments, managing virtual accounts, running direct debits, issuing refunds, and sending bank transfers.

Paylink gives your business a single API to collect payments from customers, reserve virtual bank accounts, automate recurring charges via direct debit, process refunds, and send disbursements — all over a simple JSON HTTP interface. Start in the sandbox environment and switch to live when you're ready.

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Quick Start" icon="rocket" href="/quickstart">
    Make your first API call and accept a test payment in minutes.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Authentication" icon="key" href="/authentication">
    Learn how to sign requests with HMAC-SHA256 and manage your API keys.
  </Card>

  <Card title="API Reference" icon="code" href="/api-reference/payments/initialize">
    Full endpoint reference with request and response schemas.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Webhooks" icon="webhook" href="/concepts/webhooks">
    Receive real-time event notifications for payments, transfers, and more.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## What You Can Build

<CardGroup cols={3}>
  <Card title="Accept Payments" icon="credit-card" href="/guides/accept-payments">
    Collect card, bank transfer, and USSD payments via a hosted checkout page.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Virtual Accounts" icon="building-columns" href="/guides/virtual-accounts">
    Reserve dedicated bank account numbers tied to individual customers.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Direct Debits" icon="rotate" href="/guides/direct-debits">
    Automate recurring charges with customer-authorized debit mandates.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Refunds" icon="arrow-rotate-left" href="/guides/refunds">
    Issue full or partial refunds to customers programmatically.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Transfers" icon="paper-plane" href="/guides/transfers">
    Send money from your merchant balance to any bank account.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Bank Utilities" icon="landmark" href="/resources/banks">
    Look up supported banks and resolve account names before transacting.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Get Started in Four Steps

<Steps>
  <Step title="Get Your API Credentials">
    Log in to the [Paylink Dashboard](https://dashboard.lyseis-pay.com) and copy your API Key ID and Secret from the settings page.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Point to the Sandbox">
    Use `https://sandbox.lyseis-pay.com` as your base URL while testing. No real money moves in the sandbox.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Sign Your First Request">
    Attach `X-Key-Id`, `X-Timestamp`, and an HMAC-SHA256 `X-Signature` to every request. See the [Authentication guide](/authentication) for working code.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Initialize a Payment">
    Call `POST /payments/initialize` with a customer email, amount, and currency to get a hosted checkout URL. Redirect your customer to complete payment.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Note>
  All request and response bodies use `application/json`. Treat all reference strings as opaque — store them as-is and use them for lookups.
</Note>