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

# Introduction

> What is Plexos Pay and how it works

## What is Plexos Pay?

Plexos Pay is a payment gateway built for developers who need to accept mobile money payments in **Cape Verde** and **Angola**. We provide a single, unified API to process payments across multiple mobile money operators.

### Supported Operators

| Operator          | Country         | Currency     |
| ----------------- | --------------- | ------------ |
| **CVMOVEL**       | Cape Verde (CV) | CVE (Escudo) |
| **UNITEL T+Mais** | Angola (AO)     | AOA (Kwanza) |
| **MOCK**          | Sandbox         | CVE / AOA    |

### How Payments Work

<Steps>
  <Step title="Create a Payment">
    Your server calls `POST /v1/payments` with the amount, operator, and customer's phone number.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Customer Confirms">
    The customer receives a prompt on their phone to confirm the payment via their mobile money app.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Payment Settles">
    Once confirmed, the payment moves through `DEBITED` → `SETTLED`. You receive a webhook notification at each stage.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Receive Settlement">
    Funds are settled to your account based on your settlement schedule.
  </Step>
</Steps>

### Payment Lifecycle

```
CREATED → OPERATOR_PENDING → USER_CONFIRMING → DEBITED → SETTLED
                                    ↓                        ↓
                                  FAILED                  REFUNDED
                                  EXPIRED          PARTIALLY_REFUNDED
                                CANCELLED
```

### Two Ways to Accept Payments

1. **Direct Payments** — You collect the customer's phone number and operator, then call the API directly. Best for server-to-server integrations.

2. **Checkout Sessions** — We generate a hosted payment page with a shareable URL. Best for e-commerce, invoicing, and payment links.

### API Design Principles

* **RESTful JSON** — Standard HTTP methods and status codes
* **Bearer Auth** — API keys with `sk_live_` (production) and `sk_test_` (sandbox) prefixes
* **Amounts in centavos** — `10000` = 100.00 CVE (avoids floating-point issues)
* **Cursor pagination** — Use `starting_after` for consistent pagination
* **Idempotency** — Use `Idempotency-Key` headers to safely retry payment and refund creation
* **Webhooks** — HMAC-SHA256 signed event notifications