MCP access requires a Developer or Professional plan. Brokerage data (holdings, trades) requires Professional.
What is MCP?
Model Context Protocol is an open standard that lets AI tools read data from external services. The Redbark MCP server provides read-only access — your AI can view your data but can never modify, delete, or move anything. When connected, your AI assistant can answer questions like:- “What bank accounts do I have connected?”
- “What’s my current balance across all accounts?”
- “What did I spend on groceries this month?”
- “Show me my brokerage holdings and P&L”
How it’s different from other destinations
| Google Sheets, You Need a Budget, etc. | MCP Server | |
|---|---|---|
| When data moves | On a schedule (every few hours) | On demand, when you ask |
| What moves | Transactions are written and stored | Nothing is stored; data is fetched live |
| Set up in | Redbark dashboard | Your AI tool’s config file |
| Best for | Record-keeping, budgeting, automation | Asking questions, analysis, ad-hoc lookups |
Setup
Get your API key
Go to Settings > API Keys in the Redbark dashboard and create a new key. Copy the key immediately — it’s only shown once.
Add the server to your AI tool
Add the Redbark MCP server to your tool’s configuration. Pick your tool below for the exact config.
Configuration
- Claude Desktop
- Claude Code
- Claude Cowork
- Cursor
- ChatGPT
Edit your File location:
claude_desktop_config.json:- macOS:
~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json - Windows:
%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
What your AI can access
Once connected, these tools are available to your AI assistant:| Tool | What it does | Plan |
|---|---|---|
list_connections | Show all linked bank and brokerage connections | Developer+ |
list_accounts | List all accounts with names, types, and currencies | Developer+ |
list_balances | Fetch live balances for specific accounts | Developer+ |
list_transactions | Get transactions with date range and account filters | Developer+ |
list_holdings | Show brokerage holdings with prices and P&L | Professional |
list_trades | List brokerage trades with date filters | Professional |
Security
- Read-only access: the MCP server can only read your data. It cannot create, modify, or delete anything in your bank accounts, connections, or syncs.
- Your data stays yours: data is fetched live from your bank and returned to your AI tool. Redbark never stores transaction data.
- API key auth: your key is stored locally in your AI tool’s config file. It never leaves your machine except in the
Authorizationheader to the MCP server. - Plan-gated: only users on Developer or Professional plans can use the MCP server. Brokerage tools are restricted to Professional.
- Revocable: you can revoke your API key from the dashboard at any time. The MCP server immediately stops accepting requests with that key.
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Fix |
|---|---|
| ”Missing Authorization header” / “Unauthorized. Provide a valid API key…” | Check your config has the headers block with your API key set as "Authorization": "Bearer rbk_live_..." (a bare rbk_live_... without the Bearer prefix also works) |
| “MCP server not available” / 405 Method Not Allowed / connection fails silently | Make sure "type" is "http" (not "sse"). Our server is Streamable HTTP only and will reject SSE-style GET requests |
| ”Invalid or revoked API key” | Create a new key in Settings > API Keys |
| ”API access requires a Developer or Professional plan” | Upgrade your plan |
| ”Brokerage endpoints require a Professional plan” | Holdings and trades need a Professional plan |
| Server not responding | The server scales from zero; retry after a few seconds |
| Tools not showing up | Restart your AI tool after editing the config file |