How to integrate Paystack MCP with CrewAI

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Introduction

This guide walks you through connecting Paystack to CrewAI using the Composio tool router. By the end, you'll have a working Paystack agent that can list all successful transactions from this week, create a new customer profile in paystack, refund a recent payment from customer through natural language commands.

This guide will help you understand how to give your CrewAI agent real control over a Paystack account through Composio's Paystack MCP server.

Before we dive in, let's take a quick look at the key ideas and tools involved.

TL;DR

Here's what you'll learn:
  • Get a Composio API key and configure your Paystack connection
  • Set up CrewAI with an MCP enabled agent
  • Create a Tool Router session or standalone MCP server for Paystack
  • Build a conversational loop where your agent can execute Paystack operations

What is CrewAI?

CrewAI is a powerful framework for building multi-agent AI systems. It provides primitives for defining agents with specific roles, creating tasks, and orchestrating workflows through crews.

Key features include:

  • Agent Roles: Define specialized agents with specific goals and backstories
  • Task Management: Create tasks with clear descriptions and expected outputs
  • Crew Orchestration: Combine agents and tasks into collaborative workflows
  • MCP Integration: Connect to external tools through Model Context Protocol

What is the Paystack MCP server, and what's possible with it?

The Paystack MCP server is an implementation of the Model Context Protocol that connects your AI agent and assistants like Claude, Cursor, etc directly to your Paystack account. It provides structured and secure access so your agent can perform Paystack operations on your behalf.

Supported Tools & Triggers

Tools
Add Products to PageTool to add products to a Paystack payment page.
Add Products to StorefrontTool to add previously created products to a Storefront.
Add Split Code to Virtual TerminalTool to add a split code to a virtual terminal.
Add Subaccount to SplitTool to add a subaccount to a split configuration, or update the share of an existing subaccount.
Archive Payment RequestTool to archive a payment request to clean up records.
Assign Destination to Virtual TerminalTool to assign WhatsApp destinations to a Virtual Terminal for payment notifications.
Check Pending ChargeTool to check the status of a pending charge transaction.
Check Slug AvailabilityTool to check if a custom slug is available for use when creating a payment page.
Bulk Create Transfer RecipientsCreate multiple transfer recipients in batches.
Create ChargeTool to initiate a payment by integrating the payment channel of your choice.
Create CustomerTool to create a customer on your Paystack integration.
Create Payment PageTool to create a payment page on your Paystack integration.
Create Payment RequestCreate a new payment request by issuing an invoice to a customer.
Create PlanTool to create a plan for recurring payments on Paystack.
Create RefundTool to initiate a refund for a previously completed transaction on Paystack.
Create Split ConfigurationTool to create a split configuration for transaction revenue sharing.
Create StorefrontCreate a digital storefront on Paystack to manage and display products.
Create SubaccountTool to create a subaccount on your Paystack integration.
Create Transfer RecipientTool to create a new recipient for transfers.
Create Virtual TerminalCreate a Virtual Terminal on your Paystack integration to accept payments.
Deactivate AuthorizationTool to deactivate an authorization when a card or payment method needs to be forgotten.
Deactivate Virtual TerminalTool to deactivate a Virtual Terminal on your integration.
Delete ProductDelete a previously created product from Paystack by its ID.
Delete StorefrontDelete a previously created storefront from Paystack by its ID.
Delete Transfer RecipientTool to delete a transfer recipient by setting it to inactive status.
Disable OTP for TransfersTool to disable OTP requirement for programmatic transfers.
Disable SubscriptionTool to disable a subscription on your Paystack integration.
Duplicate StorefrontTool to duplicate a previously created Storefront.
Enable OTP for TransfersTool to enable OTP requirement for transfers.
Export TransactionsTool to export transactions from Paystack for a specific timeframe.
Fetch BalanceTool to fetch the available balance on your Paystack integration.
Fetch balance ledgerTool to fetch all pay-ins and pay-outs that went into your Paystack balance.
Fetch Bulk Charge BatchTool to retrieve a specific bulk charge batch by code.
Fetch CustomerTool to get details of a customer on your integration.
Fetch Mandate AuthorizationsTool to fetch the list of direct debit mandate authorizations associated with a customer.
Fetch Payment PageTool to fetch details of a payment page on your Paystack integration.
Fetch Payment Request DetailsTool to fetch details of a payment request from Paystack.
Fetch Payment Session TimeoutTool to fetch the payment session timeout configured on your Paystack integration.
Fetch PlanTool to get details of a plan on your integration.
Fetch ProductTool to get details of a product on your integration.
Fetch Product OrdersTool to fetch all orders for a particular product on your Paystack integration.
Fetch RefundTool to get details of a refund on your integration.
Fetch SplitTool to get details of a split configuration for a transaction.
Fetch StorefrontTool to get the details of a previously created Storefront.
Fetch Storefront OrdersTool to fetch all orders in a Paystack storefront.
Fetch SubaccountTool to get details of a subaccount on your integration.
Fetch SubscriptionTool to get details of a subscription on your integration.
Fetch TransactionTool to get details of a transaction carried out on your integration.
Fetch Transaction TimelineTool to fetch the timeline of a transaction showing the steps taken from initiation to completion.
Fetch Transfer RecipientTool to fetch details of a transfer recipient.
Fetch Virtual TerminalTool to fetch a Virtual Terminal on your Paystack integration.
Finalize Payment RequestTool to finalize the creation of a draft payment request for a customer.
Generate Update Subscription LinkTool to generate a link for updating the card on a subscription.
Get Payment Request TotalsTool to retrieve metrics for all pending and successful payment requests.
Get Transaction TotalsTool to get the total amount received on your Paystack account.
Initialize AuthorizationTool to initialize a reusable authorization for recurring transactions.
Initialize TransactionTool to initialize a transaction from your backend.
Initiate Bulk ChargeTool to initiate a bulk charge on your integration.
List BanksTool to get a list of all supported banks and their properties on Paystack.
List Bulk Charge BatchesTool to list bulk charge batches created on your integration.
List Charges in BatchTool to retrieve the charges associated with a specified bulk charge batch.
List countriesTool to retrieve a list of countries that Paystack currently supports.
List CustomersTool to list customers available on your integration.
List DisputesTool to list transaction disputes filed by customers on your Paystack integration.
List Apple Pay DomainsTool to list all registered Apple Pay domains on your integration.
List Mandate AuthorizationsTool to get a list of all direct debit mandates on your integration.
List OrdersTool to list orders available on your integration.
List Payment PagesTool to list payment pages available on your Paystack integration.
List Payment RequestsTool to list all previously created payment requests to your customers.
List PlansTool to list all subscription plans available on your integration.
List ProductsTool to list products available on your integration.
List RefundsTool to list refunds available on your integration.
List SettlementsTool to list settlements made to your settlement accounts.
List SplitsTool to list the transaction splits available on your integration.
List states for address verificationTool to retrieve a list of states for a country for address verification.
List Storefront ProductsTool to list all products in a Paystack storefront.
List StorefrontsTool to list storefronts available on your integration.
List SubaccountsTool to list subaccounts available on your integration.
List SubscriptionsTool to list all subscriptions available on your integration.
List TransactionsTool to list transactions that have occurred on your integration.
List Transfer RecipientsTool to list transfer recipients available on your integration.
List TransfersTool to list all transfers carried out on your integration.
List Virtual TerminalsTool to list virtual terminals available on your integration.
Pause Bulk ChargeTool to pause processing of a bulk charge batch.
Publish StorefrontTool to make a Storefront publicly available on Paystack.
Remove Subaccount from SplitTool to remove a subaccount from a split configuration.
Resend OTP for TransferTool to resend OTP for a transfer.
Resolve Card BINTool to get basic information about a card BIN (Bank Identification Number).
Resume Bulk Charge BatchTool to resume processing of a previously paused bulk charge batch.
Send Payment Request NotificationTool to send an email notification to a customer for a previously created payment request.
Send Subscription Update LinkTool to send an email to the customer with a link to update the card on their subscription.
Set Risk ActionTool to set a customer's risk action by whitelisting or blacklisting them.
Submit PhoneTool to submit phone number when requested during a charge transaction.
Trigger direct debit activation chargeTool to trigger an activation charge on an inactive direct debit mandate for a customer.
Unassign Destination from Virtual TerminalTool to unassign WhatsApp destinations from a Virtual Terminal.
Unregister Apple Pay DomainTool to unregister a top-level domain or subdomain previously used for Apple Pay integration.
Update CustomerTool to update a customer's details on your Paystack integration.
Update Payment PageTool to update a payment page on your Paystack integration.
Update Payment RequestTool to update a payment request on your Paystack integration.
Update Payment Session TimeoutTool to update the payment session timeout on your Paystack integration.
Update PlanTool to update a plan's details on your Paystack integration.
Update ProductTool to update a product on your integration.
Update Split ConfigurationTool to update a split configuration for transactions.
Update StorefrontTool to update the details of a previously created Storefront.
Update SubaccountTool to update a subaccount's details on your Paystack integration.
Update Transfer RecipientTool to update the details of a transfer recipient.
Validate Bank AccountTool to validate the authenticity of a customer's bank account before sending money.
Validate CustomerTool to validate a customer's identity on your Paystack integration.
Validate OrderTool to validate a pay for me order on Paystack.
Verify Payment RequestTool to verify the status of a previously created payment request on Paystack.
Verify Storefront SlugTool to verify the availability of a slug before using it for a Storefront.
Verify TransactionTool to confirm the status of a transaction using its reference.

What is the Composio tool router, and how does it fit here?

What is Tool Router?

Composio's Tool Router helps agents find the right tools for a task at runtime. You can plug in multiple toolkits (like Gmail, HubSpot, and GitHub), and the agent will identify the relevant app and action to complete multi-step workflows. This can reduce token usage and improve the reliability of tool calls. Read more here: Getting started with Tool Router

The tool router generates a secure MCP URL that your agents can access to perform actions.

How the Tool Router works

The Tool Router follows a three-phase workflow:

  1. Discovery: Searches for tools matching your task and returns relevant toolkits with their details.
  2. Authentication: Checks for active connections. If missing, creates an auth config and returns a connection URL via Auth Link.
  3. Execution: Executes the action using the authenticated connection.

Step-by-step Guide

Prerequisites

Before starting, make sure you have:
  • Python 3.9 or higher
  • A Composio account and API key
  • A Paystack connection authorized in Composio
  • An OpenAI API key for the CrewAI LLM
  • Basic familiarity with Python

Getting API Keys for OpenAI and Composio

OpenAI API Key
  • Go to the OpenAI dashboard and create an API key. You'll need credits to use the models, or you can connect to another model provider.
  • Keep the API key safe.
Composio API Key
  • Log in to the Composio dashboard.
  • Navigate to your API settings and generate a new API key.
  • Store this key securely as you'll need it for authentication.

Install dependencies

bash
pip install composio crewai crewai-tools[mcp] python-dotenv
What's happening:
  • composio connects your agent to Paystack via MCP
  • crewai provides Agent, Task, Crew, and LLM primitives
  • crewai-tools[mcp] includes MCP helpers
  • python-dotenv loads environment variables from .env

Set up environment variables

bash
COMPOSIO_API_KEY=your_composio_api_key_here
USER_ID=your_user_id_here
OPENAI_API_KEY=your_openai_api_key_here

Create a .env file in your project root.

What's happening:

  • COMPOSIO_API_KEY authenticates with Composio
  • USER_ID scopes the session to your account
  • OPENAI_API_KEY lets CrewAI use your chosen OpenAI model

Import dependencies

python
import os
from composio import Composio
from crewai import Agent, Task, Crew
from crewai_tools import MCPServerAdapter
import dotenv

dotenv.load_dotenv()

COMPOSIO_API_KEY = os.getenv("COMPOSIO_API_KEY")
COMPOSIO_USER_ID = os.getenv("COMPOSIO_USER_ID")

if not COMPOSIO_API_KEY:
    raise ValueError("COMPOSIO_API_KEY is not set")
if not COMPOSIO_USER_ID:
    raise ValueError("COMPOSIO_USER_ID is not set")
What's happening:
  • CrewAI classes define agents and tasks, and run the workflow
  • MCPServerHTTP connects the agent to an MCP endpoint
  • Composio will give you a short lived Paystack MCP URL

Create a Composio Tool Router session for Paystack

python
composio_client = Composio(api_key=COMPOSIO_API_KEY)
session = composio_client.create(user_id=COMPOSIO_USER_ID, toolkits=["paystack"])

url = session.mcp.url
What's happening:
  • You create a Paystack only session through Composio
  • Composio returns an MCP HTTP URL that exposes Paystack tools

Initialize the MCP Server

python
server_params = {
    "url": url,
    "transport": "streamable-http",
    "headers": {"x-api-key": COMPOSIO_API_KEY},
}

with MCPServerAdapter(server_params) as tools:
    agent = Agent(
        role="Search Assistant",
        goal="Help users search the internet effectively",
        backstory="You are a helpful assistant with access to search tools.",
        tools=tools,
        verbose=False,
        max_iter=10,
    )
What's Happening:
  • Server Configuration: The code sets up connection parameters including the MCP server URL, streamable HTTP transport, and Composio API key authentication.
  • MCP Adapter Bridge: MCPServerAdapter acts as a context manager that converts Composio MCP tools into a CrewAI-compatible format.
  • Agent Setup: Creates a CrewAI Agent with a defined role (Search Assistant), goal (help with internet searches), and access to the MCP tools.
  • Configuration Options: The agent includes settings like verbose=False for clean output and max_iter=10 to prevent infinite loops.
  • Dynamic Tool Usage: Once created, the agent automatically accesses all Composio Search tools and decides when to use them based on user queries.

Create a CLI Chatloop and define the Crew

python
print("Chat started! Type 'exit' or 'quit' to end.\n")

conversation_context = ""

while True:
    user_input = input("You: ").strip()

    if user_input.lower() in ["exit", "quit", "bye"]:
        print("\nGoodbye!")
        break

    if not user_input:
        continue

    conversation_context += f"\nUser: {user_input}\n"
    print("\nAgent is thinking...\n")

    task = Task(
        description=(
            f"Conversation history:\n{conversation_context}\n\n"
            f"Current request: {user_input}"
        ),
        expected_output="A helpful response addressing the user's request",
        agent=agent,
    )

    crew = Crew(agents=[agent], tasks=[task], verbose=False)
    result = crew.kickoff()
    response = str(result)

    conversation_context += f"Agent: {response}\n"
    print(f"Agent: {response}\n")
What's Happening:
  • Interactive CLI Setup: The code creates an infinite loop that continuously prompts for user input and maintains the entire conversation history in a string variable.
  • Input Validation: Empty inputs are ignored to prevent processing blank messages and keep the conversation clean.
  • Context Building: Each user message is appended to the conversation context, which preserves the full dialogue history for better agent responses.
  • Dynamic Task Creation: For every user input, a new Task is created that includes both the full conversation history and the current request as context.
  • Crew Execution: A Crew is instantiated with the agent and task, then kicked off to process the request and generate a response.
  • Response Management: The agent's response is converted to a string, added to the conversation context, and displayed to the user, maintaining conversational continuity.

Complete Code

Here's the complete code to get you started with Paystack and CrewAI:

python
from crewai import Agent, Task, Crew, LLM
from crewai_tools import MCPServerAdapter
from composio import Composio
from dotenv import load_dotenv
import os

load_dotenv()

GOOGLE_API_KEY = os.getenv("GOOGLE_API_KEY")
COMPOSIO_API_KEY = os.getenv("COMPOSIO_API_KEY")
COMPOSIO_USER_ID = os.getenv("COMPOSIO_USER_ID")

if not GOOGLE_API_KEY:
    raise ValueError("GOOGLE_API_KEY is not set in the environment.")
if not COMPOSIO_API_KEY:
    raise ValueError("COMPOSIO_API_KEY is not set in the environment.")
if not COMPOSIO_USER_ID:
    raise ValueError("COMPOSIO_USER_ID is not set in the environment.")

# Initialize Composio and create a session
composio = Composio(api_key=COMPOSIO_API_KEY)
session = composio.create(
    user_id=COMPOSIO_USER_ID,
    toolkits=["paystack"],
)
url = session.mcp.url

# Configure LLM
llm = LLM(
    model="gpt-5",
    api_key=os.getenv("OPENAI_API_KEY"),
)

server_params = {
    "url": url,
    "transport": "streamable-http",
    "headers": {"x-api-key": COMPOSIO_API_KEY},
}

with MCPServerAdapter(server_params) as tools:
    agent = Agent(
        role="Search Assistant",
        goal="Help users with internet searches",
        backstory="You are an expert assistant with access to Composio Search tools.",
        tools=tools,
        llm=llm,
        verbose=False,
        max_iter=10,
    )

    print("Chat started! Type 'exit' or 'quit' to end.\n")

    conversation_context = ""

    while True:
        user_input = input("You: ").strip()

        if user_input.lower() in ["exit", "quit", "bye"]:
            print("\nGoodbye!")
            break

        if not user_input:
            continue

        conversation_context += f"\nUser: {user_input}\n"
        print("\nAgent is thinking...\n")

        task = Task(
            description=(
                f"Conversation history:\n{conversation_context}\n\n"
                f"Current request: {user_input}"
            ),
            expected_output="A helpful response addressing the user's request",
            agent=agent,
        )

        crew = Crew(agents=[agent], tasks=[task], verbose=False)
        result = crew.kickoff()
        response = str(result)

        conversation_context += f"Agent: {response}\n"
        print(f"Agent: {response}\n")

Conclusion

You now have a CrewAI agent connected to Paystack through Composio's Tool Router. The agent can perform Paystack operations through natural language commands.

Next steps:

  • Add role-specific instructions to customize agent behavior
  • Plug in more toolkits for multi-app workflows
  • Chain tasks for complex multi-step operations

How to build Paystack MCP Agent with another framework

OpenAI Agents SDK

OpenAI Agents SDK

Use Paystack MCP with OpenAI Agents SDK

Claude Agent SDK

Claude Agent SDK

Use Paystack MCP with Claude Agent SDK

Google ADK

Google ADK

Use Paystack MCP with Google ADK

LangChain

LangChain

Use Paystack MCP with LangChain

Vercel AI SDK

Vercel AI SDK

Use Paystack MCP with Vercel AI SDK

Mastra AI

Mastra AI

Use Paystack MCP with Mastra AI

LlamaIndex

LlamaIndex

Use Paystack MCP with LlamaIndex

Claude Code

Claude Code

Use Paystack MCP with Claude Code

Codex

Codex

Use Paystack MCP with Codex

FAQ

What are the differences in Tool Router MCP and Paystack MCP?

With a standalone Paystack MCP server, the agents and LLMs can only access a fixed set of Paystack tools tied to that server. However, with the Composio Tool Router, agents can dynamically load tools from Paystack and many other apps based on the task at hand, all through a single MCP endpoint.

Can I use Tool Router MCP with CrewAI?

Yes, you can. CrewAI fully supports MCP integration. You get structured tool calling, message history handling, and model orchestration while Tool Router takes care of discovering and serving the right Paystack tools.

Can I manage the permissions and scopes for Paystack while using Tool Router?

Yes, absolutely. You can configure which Paystack scopes and actions are allowed when connecting your account to Composio. You can also bring your own OAuth credentials or API configuration so you keep full control over what the agent can do.

How safe is my data with Composio Tool Router?

All sensitive data such as tokens, keys, and configuration is fully encrypted at rest and in transit. Composio is SOC 2 Type 2 compliant and follows strict security practices so your Paystack data and credentials are handled as safely as possible.

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