> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://apidocs.bridge.xyz/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Link a bank account with plaid link

Integrating with [Plaid Link ](https://plaid.com/docs/link/)allows your users to connect their financial accounts via Bridge. This flow enables ACH and wire money movement through linked bank accounts.

<Warning>
  Please note **we ONLY support Plaid for linking bank accounts**. We do not integrate with Plaid to initiate money movement, including pulling or debiting from bank accounts.
</Warning>

## Overview of the Flow

1. **Request a Plaid Link Token** from Bridge
2. **Initialize the Plaid Link SDK** in your frontend using the `link_token`
3. **Exchange the Plaid Public Token** back to Bridge
4. Bridge **fetches and creates External Accounts** for linked bank accounts
5. **Retrieve External Accounts** to initiate Transfers, Liquidation Addresses, etc.

## Step-by-Step Integration

<Steps>
  <Step title="First request a link_token">
    ```bash Request theme={null}
    curl --location --request POST 'https://api.bridge.xyz/v0/customers/{customer_id}/plaid_link_requests' \
    --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
    --header 'Api-Key: <API Key>' \
    --header 'Idempotency-Key: <generate a uuid>' \
    ```

    ```json Response theme={null}
    {
      "link_token": "plaid_link_token_123",
      "link_token_expires_at": "2023-03-23T03:22:34.086Z",
      "callback_url": "https://api.bridge.xyz/v0/plaid_exchange_public_token/{uuid}"
    }
    ```

    Check out the API reference [here](/api-reference/plaid/generate-a-plaid-link-token-for-a-customer).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Initialize the Plaid SDK">
    Start the Plaid Link SDK using the `link_token` obtained from the initial request. Include an `onSuccess` callback to the endpoint provided in the `callback_url` field. To enhance security, we strongly advise initiating the Bridge endpoint call from the server side to prevent exposure of your API key.

    Once the `public_token` has been successfully exchanged, the external accounts are created and stored **asynchronously**. It may take a few minutes for those external accounts to be reflected for the customer.

    ```bash Request theme={null}
    curl --location --request POST 'https://api.bridge.xyz/v0/plaid_exchange_public_token/plaid_link_token_123' \
    --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
    --header 'Api-Key: <API Key>' \
    --data-raw '{
          public_token: "plaid_public_token_456",
        }
    }
    ```

    ```json Response theme={null}
    {
      "message": "Successfully Exchanged the Public Token."
    }
    ```
  </Step>

  <Step title="Fetch Plaid linked bank accounts ">
    After successfully exchanging the public token, Bridge will fetch all of the linked bank accounts from Plaid. This process normally takes a few seconds. Afterwards you can read from Bridge's [external accounts endpoint](/api-reference/external-accounts/get-all-external-accounts) to fetch the customer's newly linked external accounts using.

    ```bash Request theme={null}
    curl --request GET \
      --url https://api.bridge.xyz/v0/customers/{customerID}/external_accounts \
      --header 'Api-Key: <api-key>'
    ```
  </Step>
</Steps>

## WebView & Bank Limitations

* **WebView support is deprecated** for certain banks. See [Plaid's WebView recommendations](https://plaid.docsend.com/view/h3qdupjusiwyjvv5?utm_source=product\&utm_medium=p2\&utm_campaign=2023_04_product_all_p2_chase_inprocess_deprecation_1\&utm_term=us_can_eu_uk\&utm_content=api_docs\&mkt_tok=NDk1LVdSRS01NjEAAAGLLs_Qn6Y7E3wrrQO1CqOlBpruQWox_UmouirHPa3MltCum43qNbR9nS7gWSa6kM63HnuhssBFTYHJhzRP2pFl6G979XUn33pK_QGfgGxNKcoieg).
* **Wire support is limited**:
  * **Chase**: ACH only (wire support in progress)
  * **Bank of America**: ACH only

If you need wire capabilities for these institutions, use the **Bridge API directly** to create external accounts instead of relying solely on Plaid.