💫Open your first channel

When setting up your Alby Hub for the first time, you’ll be prompted to pay an invoice (QR code) to "Buy a Channel." Let’s take a moment to discuss what this means.

After you click "Open a Channel" and "Increase Receiving Capacity," a QR code will appear on your screen. This is a lightning network QR code, which can only be paid with bitcoin "off-chain", meaning you’ll need satoshis that are already on the lightning network.

Open your first channel

While it may seem contradictory to need funds on lightning to connect to it, this approach is actually the simplest way to get started. Here are three easy methods to pay that lightning invoice:

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1. Use another lightning network wallet with enough funds to pay this invoice (around 15,923 sats, so you’ll need approximately 16,000 satoshis in that wallet).

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2. If you don’t have another lightning network wallet but do have funds on an exchange, you can withdraw bitcoin directly from the exchange using its lightning network capability. Below is a list of various exchanges by region, along with links to their own guides explaining how to withdraw bitcoin via the lightning network. This way, you’ll be able to pay for your first channel invoice.

Withdraw Bitcoin from an exchange using the lightning network⚡

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3. If you don’t have another lightning wallet or an account on an exchange, you’ll need to create your first lightning network channel using on-chain funds. In this case, you can cancel this invoice for now, as we’ll set up your channel differently, using your own liquidity through an on-chain transaction with your on-chain funds. You can find more on how to do that on this section:

📤Top up Spending Balance

After creating your channel with your own funds, we still recommend opening an additional channel to increase your receiving capacity. This invoice can be paid using the funds already available in your existing channel.

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We hope this helps clarify how to pay the invoice (QR code) when setting up your Alby Hub for the first time. 😊✨ If you're still having issues or have any other questions, feel free to reach out at getalby.com/help. 👍

Thanks so much!