What is MCP?

An open standard that lets an AI assistant or agent connect to an outside system, such as a billing account, an ERP or a payables platform, to read its data and take actions in it.

MCP stands for Model Context Protocol.

How does it work?

A vendor runs an MCP server that exposes its data and actions as tools. An AI app such as Claude or ChatGPT connects to the server and calls those tools for the user. The MCP project compares it to a USB-C port: one standard plug in place of a custom integration for each pair of systems. The essay Facts Flow, Meaning Accumulates draws the line plainly. MCP answers how an agent reaches data. It does not answer what the organization knows.

Why does it matter in finance ops?

Finance systems now ship MCP servers. Stripe’s covers invoices, payment links and refunds, and through Treasury for agents, balances and payments. Tipalti opened its AP and payments data. Microsoft made its Dynamics 365 ERP MCP server generally available. NetSuite says more than 13,000 customers use AI through its connector over MCP.

An MCP connection can write, not only read. Paddle’s documentation says its server does not block destructive operations. It marks them with a warning that an agent can ignore. So the questions are the ones a controller asks about any new user. Which actions can it take?

Read only, or read and write? Which actions need a person’s approval? Where is the log? Access can also carry a price. Salesforce will meter every call a registered outside agent makes through its APIs or MCP servers.

Where has it come up?

• Anthropic’s Claude Duet can send invoices and issue refunds for small businesses
• Stripe lets AI agents pay invoices and move money from a business account
• Tipalti’s AP Agent runs the whole payables cycle on a dial you set
• Microsoft’s ERP agents reconcile in bulk and work from Excel and Outlook
• NetSuite ships industry agents and opens its skills to Claude and ChatGPT
• BILL checks invoices against vendor history before you pay them
• Salesforce will meter every call an outside AI agent makes
• OpenAI’s DevDay adds always-on agents and lets AI budgets buy other software

Which essays cover it?

• Facts Flow, Meaning Accumulates
• Billing Setup Just Moved Into the Coding Tool

Which terms are related?

• context layer
• shared brain
• stop condition

@misc{couch2026whatismcp,
  author = {Couch, Chris},
  title = {What is MCP?},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Ends at Cash},
  url = {https://chriscouch.ai/what-is/model-context-protocol/}
}