About ORCA

RESTful API

The highest level Data Description Language used is the JSON Schema: JSON Schema. Best Practices will also be taken from the Data Description Language for APIs; JSON API : JSON:API — A specification for building APIs in JSON. The Interface Description Language used is the OpenApi Specification version 3.0.

ISO 20022 Messages

ORCA will adopt existing standards and platform features where relevant/appropriate to minimize re-inventing the wheel. The APIs semantic and interaction are based on ISO 20022. The message format is not in the scope of the API, but it provide a means to produce ISO messages.

The endpoints allow ISO interactions. That is, each API endpoint could map with an ISO message, within a use case interaction.

API Resources

The API payloads are designed using the ISO 20022 message elements, components, and business semantics where available.

The resources are built with the business semantics, field names, and type values defined by the ISO message catalog and business components. If necessary, additional information not provided by ISO is also attached to the resources. As the production of ISO Messages is not in the scope of the API, and the priority is to have a developer-friendly API, the resource structure does not always follow the ISO messages structure.

The aspects of the resource information that tend to be variable for each connection, are represented as lists. For instance, the balances, the related parties, and the identifiers.

Type Values

We are avoiding the use of enums to define type values, to prevent breaking changes. To enhance the human-readable features of the API, the ISO type values are used with their PascalCase names.