Research

API Gateway: Architecture, Patterns & Best Practices

Learn how API gateways centralize routing, security, and observability for microservices. This practical guide covers architecture, deployment trade-offs, performance tuning, and design best practices.
Token Metrics Team
5
MIN

Modern distributed systems rely on effective traffic control, security, and observability at the edge. An API gateway centralizes those responsibilities, simplifying client access to microservices and serverless functions. This guide explains what an API gateway does, common architectural patterns, deployment and performance trade-offs, and design best practices for secure, scalable APIs.

What is an API Gateway?

An API gateway is a server-side component that sits between clients and backend services. It performs request routing, protocol translation, aggregation, authentication, rate limiting, and metrics collection. Instead of exposing each service directly, teams present a single, consolidated API surface to clients through the gateway. This centralization reduces client complexity, standardizes cross-cutting concerns, and can improve operational control.

Think of an API gateway as a policy and plumbing layer: it enforces API contracts, secures endpoints, and implements traffic shaping while forwarding requests to appropriate services.

Core Features and Architectural Patterns

API gateways vary in capability but commonly include:

  • Routing and reverse proxy: Direct requests to the correct backend based on path, headers, or other criteria.
  • Authentication and authorization: Validate tokens (JWT, OAuth2), integrate with identity providers, and enforce access policies.
  • Rate limiting and quotas: Protect backend services from overload and manage multi-tenant usage.
  • Request/response transformation: Convert between protocols (HTTP/gRPC), reshape payloads, or aggregate multiple service calls.
  • Observability: Emit metrics, traces, and structured logs for monitoring and debugging.

Common patterns include:

  1. Edge gateway: A public-facing gateway handling authentication, CDN integration, and basic traffic management.
  2. Internal gateway: Placed inside the trust boundary to manage east-west traffic within a cluster or VPC.
  3. Aggregating gateway: Combines multiple backend responses into a single client payload, useful for mobile or low-latency clients.
  4. Per-tenant gateway: For multi-tenant platforms, separate gateways per customer enforce isolation and custom policies.

Deployment Models and Performance Considerations

Choosing where and how to deploy an API gateway affects performance, resilience, and operational cost. Key models include:

  • Managed cloud gateways: Providers offer scalable gateways with minimal operational overhead. They simplify TLS, identity integration, and autoscaling but can introduce vendor lock-in and per-request costs.
  • Self-managed gateways: Run on Kubernetes or VMs for full control over configuration and plugins. This model increases operational burden but enables custom routing logic and deep integration with internal systems.
  • Sidecar or service mesh complement: In service mesh architectures, a gateway can front the mesh, delegating fine-grained service-to-service policies to sidecar proxies.

Performance trade-offs to monitor:

  • Latency: Each hop through the gateway adds processing time. Use lightweight filters, compiled rules, and avoid heavy transformations on hot paths.
  • Concurrency: Ensure the gateway and backend services scale independently. Backpressure, circuit breakers, and backoff strategies help prevent cascading failures.
  • Caching: Edge caching can drastically reduce load and latency for idempotent GET requests. Consider cache invalidation and cache-control headers carefully.

Design Best Practices and Security Controls

Adopt practical rules to keep gateways maintainable and secure:

  • Limit business logic: Keep the gateway responsible for orchestration and policy enforcement, not core business rules.
  • Token-based auth and scopes: Use scoped tokens and short lifetimes for session tokens. Validate signatures and token claims at the gateway level.
  • Observability-first: Emit structured logs, metrics, and distributed traces. Correlate gateway logs with backend traces for faster root cause analysis.
  • Throttling and quotas: Set conservative defaults and make limits configurable per client or plan. Implement graceful degradation for overloaded backends.
  • Policy-driven config: Use declarative policies (e.g., YAML or CRDs) to version and review gateway rules rather than ad-hoc runtime changes.

AI and analytics tools can accelerate gateway design and operating decisions by surfacing traffic patterns, anomaly detection, and vulnerability signals. For example, products that combine real-time telemetry with model-driven insights help prioritize which endpoints need hardened policies.

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What is an API gateway vs service mesh?

These technologies complement rather than replace each other. The API gateway handles north-south traffic (client to cluster), enforcing authentication and exposing public endpoints. A service mesh focuses on east-west traffic (service-to-service), offering fine-grained routing, mTLS, and telemetry between microservices. Many architectures use a gateway at the edge and a mesh internally for granular control.

FAQ: Common Questions About API Gateways

How does an API gateway impact latency?

A gateway introduces processing overhead for each request, which can increase end-to-end latency. Mitigations include optimizing filters, enabling HTTP/2 multiplexing, using local caches, and scaling gateway instances horizontally.

Do I need an API gateway for every architecture?

Not always. Small monoliths or single-service deployments may not require a gateway. For microservices, public APIs, or multi-tenant platforms, a gateway adds value by centralizing cross-cutting concerns and simplifying client integrations.

What security measures should the gateway enforce?

At minimum, the gateway should enforce TLS, validate authentication tokens, apply rate limits, and perform input validation. Additional controls include IP allowlists, web application firewall (WAF) rules, and integration with identity providers for RBAC.

Can API gateways aggregate responses from multiple services?

Yes. Aggregation reduces client round trips by composing responses from multiple backends. Use caching and careful error handling to avoid coupling performance of one service to another.

How do I test and version gateway policies?

Use a staging environment to run synthetic loads and functional tests against gateway policies. Store configurations in version control, run CI checks for syntax and policy conflicts, and roll out changes via canary deployments.

Is it better to use a managed gateway or self-host?

Managed gateways reduce operational overhead and provide scalability out of the box, while self-hosted gateways offer deeper customization and potentially lower long-term costs. Choose based on team expertise, compliance needs, and expected traffic patterns.

Disclaimer

This article is for educational and technical information only. It does not constitute investment, legal, or professional advice. Readers should perform their own due diligence when selecting and configuring infrastructure components.

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Token Metrics Team
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Most traders chase price action; Fundamental Grade API helps you see the business behind the token—community traction, tokenomics design, exchange presence, VC signals, and DeFi health—consolidated into one score you can query in code. In a few minutes, you’ll fetch Fundamental Grade, render it in your product, and ship a due-diligence UX that drives trust. Start by grabbing your key at the Get API Key page, Run Hello-TM to verify your first call, then Clone a Template to go live fast.

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What You’ll Build in 2 Minutes

  • A minimal script to fetch Fundamental Grade from /v2/fundamental-grade for any symbol (e.g., BTC).

  • Optional curl to smoke-test your key in seconds.

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  • Endpoints to consider next: /v2/tm-grade (technical/sentiment/momentum), /v2/price-prediction (scenario planning), /v2/resistance-support (risk levels), /v2/quantmetrics (risk/return stats).

Why This Matters

Beyond price, toward quality. Markets are noisy—hype rises and fades. Fundamental Grade consolidates hard-to-track signals (community growth, token distribution, liquidity venues, investor quality, DeFi integrations) into a clear, comparable score. You get a fast “is this worth time and capital?” answer for screening, allocation, and monitoring.

Build trust into your product. Whether you run an investor terminal, exchange research tab, or a portfolio tool, Fundamental Grade lets users justify positions. Pair it with TM Grade or Quantmetrics for a balanced picture: what to buy (fundamentals) and when to act (signals/levels).

Where to Find 

The Fundamental Grade is easily accessible in the top right of the API Reference. Grab the cURL request for seamless access!

👉 Ready to build? Get API Key • Run Hello-TM • Clone a Template

Live Demo & Templates

  • Due-Diligence Token Page: Show Fundamental Grade with a component breakdown (community, tokenomics, exchange presence, VC, DeFi).

  • Screener/Ranker: Sort by Fundamental Grade, add market-cap bands, and flag “rising fundamentals” week-over-week.

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Kick off from our quickstarts—fork a dashboard or screener template, plug your key, and deploy. If you’re new here, Run Hello-TM first to confirm your environment, then scale into product features. When you outgrow the free tier, compare API plans.

How It Works (Under the Hood)

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  • DeFi Health: integrations, TVL context, composability footprint.

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Production Checklist

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  • Caching: Use memory/Redis/KV with short TTLs; pre-warm popular symbols.

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  • Error catalog: Map 4xx/5xx to user-visible fixes; log request IDs.

  • Observability: Track p95/p99 and error rate per endpoint; alert on spikes.

  • Security: Keep API keys in secrets managers; rotate regularly.

Use Cases & Patterns

  • Screener Maker: Rank tokens by Fundamental Grade, filter by market cap/sector, and add “rising fundamentals” badges for discovery.

  • Dashboard Builder: On each token page, show the headline grade with a component chart; link to methodology for transparency.

  • Research & PM Tools: Flag downgrades/upgrades to prompt re-evaluation; attach notes to component changes (e.g., DeFi health drop).

  • Allocator / Risk: Require a minimum Fundamental Grade before inclusion; rebalance only when grade crosses thresholds.

  • Community/Discord: Post weekly upgrades as digest messages with links back to your app.

Next Steps

  • Get API Key — generate a key and start free.

  • Run Hello-TM — verify your first successful call.

  • Clone a Template — deploy a screener or token page today.

  • Watch the demo: VIDEO_URL_HERE

  • Compare plans: Scale confidently with API plans.

FAQs

1) What does the Fundamental Grade API return?
A JSON payload with the overall score/grade plus component scores (e.g., community, tokenomics, exchange presence, VC backing, DeFi health) and timestamps. Use the overall grade for ranking and component scores for explanations.

2) How fast is the endpoint? Do you publish SLOs?
The API is engineered for predictable latency. For high-traffic dashboards, add short-TTL caching and batch requests; for alerts, use jobs/webhooks to minimize round-trips.

3) Can I combine Fundamental Grade with TM Grade or signals?
Yes. A common pattern is Fundamental Grade for quality filter + TM Grade for technical/sentiment context + Trading Signals for timing and Support/Resistance for risk placement.

4) How “accurate” is the grade?
It’s an opinionated synthesis of multiple inputs—not financial advice. Historical studies can inform usage, but past performance doesn’t guarantee future results. Always layer risk management and testing.

5) Do you offer SDKs and examples?
You can use REST directly (see JS/Python above). The docs include quickstarts, Postman, and ready-to-clone templates—start with Run Hello-TM.

6) Polling vs webhooks for fundamentals updates?
For UI pages, cached polling works well. For event-style notifications (upgrades/downgrades), prefer webhooks or scheduled jobs to avoid spiky traffic.

7) What about pricing, limits, and enterprise SLAs?
Begin free and scale as you grow. See API plans for allowances; enterprise SLAs and support are available—contact us.

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Cluttered charts and whipsaw price action make it hard to act with conviction. The TM Grade API turns that noise into a single, opinionated signal you can build on—ideal for trading bots, dashboards, and research tools. In this guide, you’ll pull TM Grade in code, see how it powers products, and ship something useful in minutes. Start with the Get API Key, then Run Hello-TM in the docs and Clone a Template to go live fast.

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What You’ll Build in 2 Minutes

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  • (Mentioned endpoints you can add next: /v2/trading-signals, /v2/price-prediction, /v2/resistance-support.)

Why This Matters

One score, clear decision. TM Grade distills technicals, sentiment, and momentum into a single, interpretable value from Strong Sell → Strong Buy. Instead of juggling indicators, you get an opinionated, trade-ready signal you can rank, alert on, and route into strategies.

Built for builders. Developers integrate TM Grade to filter universes, power dashboards, or trigger bots—with predictable performance and a schema designed for programmatic use. Pair it with webhooks and caching to slash latency and polling costs.

Where to Find 

In the top right of the API Reference you can find the curl request for your desired language. This is what you can use to access the TM Grade endpoint. 

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👉 Ready to go further? Get API Key • Run Hello-TM 

Live Demo & Templates

  • Trading Bot Starter: Use TM Grade to filter a trade universe and gate entries with your own risk rules.

  • Dashboard Token Page: Show TM Grade alongside price, S/R levels, and signals for instant context.

  • Screener/Leaderboard: Rank tokens by TM Grade and highlight movers.

You can start from our quickstarts in the docs—fork, plug your key, and deploy in minutes. Run Hello-TM to see the first call succeed, then scale into a bot or dashboard. When you’re ready for higher limits, compare API plans.

How It Works (Under the Hood)

TM Grade blends multiple evidence streams—technical momentum, market structure, sentiment, and other model inputs—into a single normalized score (e.g., 0–100) and a label (Strong Sell to Strong Buy). This opinionated synthesis is what separates TM Grade from raw market data: it’s designed to be actionable.

Polling vs webhooks. For screens and dashboards, lightweight polling (or cached fetches) is fine. For trading agents and alerting, use webhooks or short polling with backoff and caching to cut latency and call volume. Combine TM Grade with endpoints like /v2/trading-signals for timing or /v2/resistance-support for risk placement.

Production Checklist

  • Rate limits: Know your plan caps; add client-side throttling.

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  • Idempotency: Ensure repeated calls don’t double-execute downstream actions.

  • Caching: Short-TTL cache for reads (memory/Redis/KV); ETag if available.

  • Webhooks: Use signatures/secret validation; queue and retry on failure.

  • Pagination/Bulk: If fetching many symbols, batch requests with pagination.

  • Error catalog: Map 4xx/5xx to user-visible fixes; log status, payload, and request ID.

  • Observability: Track p95/p99 latency and error rate per endpoint; alert on spikes.

Use Cases & Patterns

  • Bot Builder (Headless): Filter tradable universes to Strong Buy/Buy, then confirm with timing from /v2/trading-signals before placing orders.

  • Dashboard Builder (Product): Show TM Grade on token pages with badges, color states, and last-updated timestamps; add S/R lines for context.

  • Screener Maker (Lightweight Tools): Build a Top-N by TM Grade list with sector filters; cache results and add one-click alerts.

  • Research/Allocation: Surface grade trends (rising/falling) to inform rebalances and risk budgets.

  • Community/Discord: Post grade changes to channels; rate-limit announcements and link to token detail views.

Next Steps

  • Get API Key — start free and generate a key in seconds.

  • Run Hello-TM — verify your first successful call.

  • Clone a Template — ship a bot, dashboard, or screener today.

  • Watch the demo: VIDEO_URL_HERE

  • Compare plans: When you’re ready to scale, review API plans.

FAQs

1) What does the TM Grade API return?
A JSON payload with fields like symbol, score (e.g., 0–100), and a categorical grade from Strong Sell to Strong Buy, designed for programmatic ranking, filtering, and display.

2) How fast is it? Do you have latency/SLOs?
TM endpoints are engineered for reliability with predictable latency. For mission-critical bots, add short-TTL caching and webhooks to minimize round-trips and jitter.

3) Can I use TM Grade in trading bots?
Yes. Many developers use TM Grade to pre-filter tokens and pair it with /v2/trading-signals for entries/exits. Always backtest and paper-trade before going live.

4) How accurate is TM Grade?
TM Grade is an opinionated model synthesizing multiple inputs. Backtests are illustrative—not guarantees. Use it as one component in a diversified strategy with risk controls.

5) Do you have SDKs and examples?
Yes—JavaScript and Python examples above, plus quickstarts and templates in the docs: Run Hello-TM.

6) Polling vs webhooks—what should I pick?
Dashboards: cache + light polling. Bots/alerts: prefer webhooks (or event-driven flows) to reduce latency and API usage.

7) Pricing, limits, and enterprise SLAs?
You can start free and scale up as you grow. See API plans for rate limits and tiers. Enterprise options and SLAs are available—contact us.

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Research

Indices Hub: Join the Waitlist for TM Global 100 (2025)

Sam Monac
7 min
MIN

If you’ve been waiting for a simple, rules-based way to own the TM Global 100—without micromanaging tokens—this hub is for you. TM Global 100 is a rules-based crypto index that holds the top 100 assets in bull markets and moves to stablecoins in bear markets, with weekly rebalancing and transparent holdings/transaction logs you can verify at any time. It’s designed for hands-off allocators who want disciplined exposure and for active traders who want a core that adapts to regimes—without guesswork or endless rebalancing. Below you’ll find how it works, who it’s for, and exactly how to join the waitlist so you’re first in line when trading opens.

→ Join the waitlist to be first to trade TM Global 100.

TL;DR (snippet)

  • What it is: A rules-based index that holds the top-100 in bull markets and exits to stablecoins in bear markets.

  • Why it matters: Weekly rebalances + transparent holdings and transaction logs.

  • Who it’s for: Hands-off allocators and active traders who want a disciplined core.

  • Next step: Join the waitlist to be first to trade TM Global 100.

Why Indices Matter in October 2025

Search intent right now: investors want credible, rules-based crypto exposure that can participate in upside while reducing drawdown pain. A crypto index is a basket of assets selected and maintained by rules—so you avoid one-off bets and constant manual rebalancing.

With liquidity rotating quickly across sectors, weekly rebalancing helps maintain alignment with current market-cap leaders, while regime switching provides a disciplined, pre-defined response to bearish conditions. The result is a clear, consistent process that removes emotional decision-making and operational drag.

Definition (snippet-friendly): A crypto index is a rules-based basket of digital assets that’s constructed, weighted, and rebalanced on a set schedule.

How the TM Global 100 Index Works (Plain English)

  • Regime switching:


    • Bullish: Hold the top-100 crypto assets by market cap.

    • Bearish: Exit all positions into stablecoins and wait for a new bullish signal.

  • Weekly rebalancing: Reflects updated rankings and weights across the market-cap universe.

  • Transparency: Strategy modal shows methodology and thresholds; Gauge → Holdings Treemap → Transactions Log make every change visible.

  • What you’ll see on launch: Price tile, gauge (“rebalances weekly”), 100 tokens, one-click Buy Index flow, and a 90-second checkout via embedded wallet.

Soft CTA: See the strategy and rules.

Benefits at a Glance (Why This Beats DIY)

  • Time saved: No more manual coin-picking, sizing, and calendar rebalances.

  • Lower execution drag: One click vs. dozens of individual orders that can add slippage.

  • Stay current: Weekly rebalances help you capture market-cap changes without constant monitoring.

  • Discipline in drawdowns: Automatic switch to stablecoins removes panic decisions.

  • Radical visibility: Holdings treemap, table, and transactions log show what you own and what changed—every week.

  • Operational simplicity: Embedded wallet and a unified dashboard; no juggling chains and exchanges.

Step-by-Step: How to Get Early Access (Waitlist)

  1. Open the Indices Hub: Head to the Token Metrics Indices hub.

  2. Choose TM Global 100: Open the index page and review the Gauge → Strategy → Holdings.

  3. Join the Waitlist: Add your email to be notified the moment trading opens.

  4. (Optional) Connect Wallet: Pre-connect your wallet for a faster launch-day checkout.

  5. Launch-Day Flow (~90 seconds): Tap Buy Index, review fees/slippage, confirm, and see your position in My Indices.

  6. Track Rebalances: After each weekly rebalance or regime change, check the Transactions Log for updates.

→ Join the waitlist to be first to trade TM Global 100.

Decision Guide: Is This Right for You?

  • Hands-Off Allocator: Want broad exposure without micromanaging? Yes—rules-based + weekly rebalances.

  • Active Trader: Need a core that sits in stables during bears while you hunt edges elsewhere? Fits.

  • TM Member/Prospect: Already trust TM research? This is the rules-based version of “own the market.”

  • Risk-Aware Newcomer: Prefer a clear framework over vibes? Methodology is visible and auditable.

  • DIY Basket Builder: Tired of missed rebalances and slippage? One click can reduce execution drag.

  • Data-First Analyst: Want to verify? See the holdings, weights, and transaction history anytime.

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FAQs

1) What is a TM Global 100 index?
It’s a rules-based crypto index that holds the top 100 assets by market cap in bullish regimes and moves to stablecoins in bearish regimes. It rebalances weekly and shows transparent holdings and transactions.

2) How often does the index rebalance?
Weekly, with additional full-portfolio switches when the market regime changes.

3) What triggers the move to stablecoins?
A proprietary market signal. When bearish, the index exits all token positions into stablecoins and waits for a bullish re-entry signal.

4) Can I fund with USDC or fiat?
At launch, funding and settlement options surface based on the embedded wallet and supported chains. USDC payouts are supported for selling; additional entry options may be introduced later.

5) Is the wallet custodial?
No. The Embedded Wallet is self-custodial—you control your funds while using a streamlined, on-chain checkout.

6) How are fees shown?
Before you confirm, the Buy flow shows estimated gas, platform fee, maximum slippage, and the minimum expected value.

7) How do I join the waitlist?
Go to the Token Metrics Indices hub or the TM Global 100 strategy page and submit your email. We’ll notify you the moment trading opens.

Security, Risk & Transparency

  • Self-custody: Embedded smart wallet; you hold the keys.

  • 2FA & session hygiene: Use strong auth practices for your TM account.

  • Fee clarity: Gas, platform fee, and slippage are displayed before you confirm.

  • Auditability: Holdings, treemap, and transactions log are always visible.

  • Model limits: Regime logic can be wrong, and markets can gap; rules reduce discretion—not risk.

  • Regional availability: Product surfaces may vary by region as we expand.

Crypto is volatile and can lose value. Past performance is not indicative of future results. This article is for research/education, not financial advice.

Conclusion + Related Reads

If you want a disciplined, rules-based core that adapts to market regimes, TM Global 100 is built for you. Weekly rebalances, transparent holdings, and one-click buy remove operational friction so you can focus on your strategy.

→ Join the waitlist to be first to trade TM Global 100.

Related Reads

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