> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.gobtcpay.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.gobtcpay.com/faq.md). # FAQ {% hint style="info" %} More information is available in the merchant dashboard under the **Help & support** section (left sidebar). {% endhint %} #### What is GoBTC and how does it work? GoBTC is a Bitcoin payment protocol for spending BTC at the point of sale on Bitcoin's base layer, with no fee for the customer. When a customer pays at a GoBTC merchant, the transaction goes to GoMining's dedicated mining pool, which prioritises it for the next block. There are no payment channels, no fiat conversion at checkout, and no wrapped tokens. #### Why is GoMining able to run this? GoMining mines the blocks itself, so it can prioritise GoBTC transactions for inclusion and recover the network fee through its own pool. Payment companies that rely on third-party pools have no control over confirmation times and pay full network fees on every transaction. GoMining is among the top-10 Bitcoin miners by hashrate, serves about 5 million users, and runs data centres across three continents. How is GoBTC different from the Lightning Network? Because GoMining mines the blocks, GoBTC transactions are confirmed directly on Bitcoin's base layer. There are no payment channels to open, no inbound liquidity to manage, and no off-chain state for merchants or wallets to maintain. Payments settle natively on Bitcoin. Lightning and GoBTC can coexist. #### Who controls my Bitcoin? GoBTC wallets use a 2-of-3 multisig: one key on your device's secure enclave, one held by GoMining as co-signer, and one held by an independent regulated custodian. Any two keys are required to authorise a transaction, so no single party, including GoMining, can move funds alone. If you lose your device, the regulated custodian provides a recovery path; if GoMining is unavailable, you and the custodian can still recover and move your Bitcoin. #### What does it cost? For users, GoBTC is free: no transaction fees or spreads. For merchants, the acquiring fee is 0.2%, so on a $100 sale the merchant keeps $99.80. On third-party transactions GoMining keeps none of the fee: half goes to the miners in the GoBTC pool that confirm the transaction, and half to the wallet provider that initiated the payment. #### How fast are payments, and when does the merchant receive the money? At the point of sale, GoBTC payments confirm instantly: the customer taps and the merchant sees the transaction. On-chain settlement then follows on average every 12 hours through GoMining's pool. Once settled on-chain, transactions are final and cannot be reversed, so there are no chargebacks, dispute windows, or rolling reserves. #### Can any wallet or bank connect to GoBTC? Yes. Any wallet provider, whether hardware (Ledger, Trezor), software (Trust Wallet, MetaMask), or custodial (banks, exchanges, fintech apps), can integrate the GoBTC SDK. The protocol supports both custodial integrations, where the institution holds customer BTC, and non-custodial ones, where the user holds their own keys. The connecting wallet earns 0.1% on every transaction it initiates, and GoMining runs the reference implementation and the settlement pool. --- # Agent Instructions This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com. ## Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter, and the optional `goal` query parameter: ``` GET https://docs.gobtcpay.com/faq.md?ask=&goal= ``` `ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. `goal` is optional and describes the broader end goal you are ultimately trying to accomplish on behalf of the user. GitBook uses it to tailor the answer towards what is most useful for that goal. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.