CoinMarketCap Exchange API Skill

This skill covers CoinMarketCap APIs for centralized cryptocurrency exchanges (Binance, Coinbase, Kraken, etc.). Use these endpoints to retrieve exchange metadata, trading volumes, market pairs, and asset holdings.

Authentication

All requests require an API key in the header.

1. Get your API key at https://pro.coinmarketcap.com/login
2. Include the header X-CMC_PRO_API_KEY: your-api-key in all requests

curl -X GET "https://pro-api.coinmarketcap.com/v1/exchange/map" \
  -H "X-CMC_PRO_API_KEY: your-api-key"

Base URL

https://pro-api.coinmarketcap.com

Common Use Cases

See use-cases.md for goal-based guidance on which endpoint to use:

1. Get exchange information by name
2. Find an exchange's CMC ID
3. Get top exchanges by volume
4. Get only spot exchanges (or only derivatives)
5. Get current volume for a specific exchange
6. Compare volume across multiple exchanges
7. Get historical volume for an exchange
8. Get all trading pairs on an exchange
9. Find BTC pairs on an exchange
10. Get perpetual/futures pairs on an exchange
11. Check exchange reserves (proof-of-reserves)
12. Find exchanges that list a specific coin

API Overview

| Endpoint | Description | Reference | |----------|-------------|-----------| | GET /v1/exchange/map | Map exchange names to CMC IDs | references/info.md | | GET /v1/exchange/info | Exchange metadata (logo, URLs, description) | references/info.md | | GET /v1/exchange/listings/latest | List all exchanges with market data | references/listings.md | | GET /v1/exchange/quotes/latest | Latest exchange volume and metrics | references/quotes.md | | GET /v1/exchange/quotes/historical | Historical exchange volume data | references/quotes.md | | GET /v1/exchange/market-pairs/latest | Trading pairs on an exchange | references/market-pairs.md | | GET /v1/exchange/assets | Assets held by an exchange | references/assets.md |

Common Workflows

Get Exchange Information

Why: Most endpoints require CMC exchange IDs, not names. The map endpoint translates human-readable slugs to IDs.

1. Call /v1/exchange/map with slug=binance to get the exchange ID
2. Call /v1/exchange/info with the ID to get full metadata

Compare Exchange Volumes

Why: Volume indicates liquidity and trustworthiness. Higher volume means better price execution and lower slippage.

1. Call /v1/exchange/listings/latest to get all exchanges ranked by volume
2. Use sort=volume_24h and sort_dir=desc for descending order

Analyze Trading Pairs

Why: Understanding available pairs helps users find where to trade specific assets and compare liquidity across venues.

1. Get the exchange ID from /v1/exchange/map
2. Call /v1/exchange/market-pairs/latest with that ID
3. Filter by category=spot or category=derivatives as needed

Track Volume History

Why: Historical volume reveals trends. Declining volume may signal user exodus. Spikes may indicate wash trading or news events.

1. Get the exchange ID from /v1/exchange/map
2. Call /v1/exchange/quotes/historical with date range parameters

Query Parameters

Most endpoints accept these common parameters:

| Parameter | Type | Description | |-----------|------|-------------| | id | string | CMC exchange ID (comma-separated for multiple) | | slug | string | Exchange slug (e.g., "binance") | | convert | string | Currency for price conversion (default: USD) | | aux | string | Additional fields to include in response |

Error Handling

All responses include a status object:

{
  "status": {
    "timestamp": "2024-01-15T12:00:00.000Z",
    "error_code": 0,
    "error_message": null,
    "credit_count": 1
  },
  "data": { }
}

Common Error Codes

| Code | Meaning | |------|---------| | 0 | Success | | 400 | Bad request (invalid parameters) | | 401 | Unauthorized (invalid API key) | | 403 | Forbidden (plan limit exceeded) | | 429 | Rate limit exceeded | | 500 | Internal server error |

Rate Limits

Rate limits depend on your subscription plan. Check the credit_count in responses to track API credit usage. The X-CMC_PRO_API_KEY header must be present on every request.

Response Format

All responses return JSON with this structure:

{
  "status": { },
  "data": { }
}

The data field contains either an object (single item) or array (multiple items) depending on the endpoint.