Architecture

Architecture

The PayNode Protocol is engineered for maximum reliability, privacy, and speed in the machine economy. We firmly believe in the “Don’t Trust, Verify” philosophy.

🏛️ High-Level Design

The system consists of three primary layers:

  1. Protocol Layer (Base L2): A deterministic, immutable set of smart contracts that handle atomic fund splitting.
  2. Middleware Layer (x402): Standard HTTP 402 and X-POM-V1 headers that initiate and verify the M2M financial handshake.
  3. Agent Layer (SDKs): Autonomous clients that intercept 402 challenges, sign transactions locally, and execute payments on-chain.

🔑 Core Philosophy

Stateless Verification

Unlike traditional payment gateways (Stripe, PayPal), PayNode does not store transaction states in a central database or require expensive on-chain SSTORE operations for order tracking. Verification is derived entirely from the immutable transaction history (Receipts) of the blockchain. If the blockchain says the money arrived, the server grants access.

Non-Custodial Security

PayNode never holds your funds. The Router contract acts as a transparent, programmable pipeline. The exact moment an Agent transfers USDC, the contract atomically splits it:

  • 99% is transferred directly to the Merchant’s wallet address.
  • 1% is transferred to the PayNode Protocol Treasury. There are no withdrawal delays, no central pooling, and no freeze risks.

Privacy First

The link between an Agent’s identity and its purchase is decoupled. The Agent’s IP address or local identity is never recorded on-chain. Merchants only verify the transaction hash (receipt) before granting access.

⚡ Why Base L2?

PayNode is exclusively deployed on Base (by Coinbase). We chose Base for several critical reasons:

  1. Negligible Gas Fees: Transactions typically cost a fraction of a cent, making micro-transactions (e.g., $0.05 API calls) economically viable.
  2. Speed: ~2-second block times ensure that the 402 handshake completes almost instantly, avoiding long API timeouts.
  3. Ecosystem: Native integration with Coinbase provides deep liquidity for USDC, allowing Merchants to off-ramp seamlessly.
Protocol (x402)SDK - JavaScript