Case Study - Modern fintech API and analytics dashboard

Overview

PayForward approached me with a complex technical challenge: they needed to build a modern payment processing platform that could compete with established players while offering better developer experience and more transparent pricing.

The project required building multiple interconnected systems: a high-performance API for payment processing, a comprehensive admin dashboard for transaction monitoring, fraud detection algorithms, and compliance reporting tools that meet banking regulations.

Security, scalability, and reliability were paramount - the system needed to handle millions of transactions with 99.99% uptime while maintaining PCI DSS compliance.

Technical Architecture

I designed a microservices architecture that prioritizes security and scalability:

• API Gateway: Kong for rate limiting, authentication, and request routing
• Core Services: Node.js microservices with TypeScript
• Database: PostgreSQL cluster with read replicas for high availability
• Message Queue: Redis and RabbitMQ for async processing
• Monitoring: Comprehensive logging with ELK stack and custom metrics
• Security: End-to-end encryption, JWT authentication, and PCI compliance
• Infrastructure: Kubernetes on AWS with auto-scaling and load balancing

Key Features Delivered

The platform includes enterprise-grade features:

• High-Performance API: RESTful API handling 10,000+ requests per second
• Real-time Processing: Instant payment verification and settlement
• Advanced Analytics: Custom dashboard with transaction insights and trends
• Fraud Detection: ML-powered fraud prevention with configurable rules
• Multi-tenant Architecture: Isolated environments for each client
• Comprehensive Documentation: Interactive API docs with code examples
• Webhook System: Real-time event notifications for payment status updates

What we did

Performance & Results

The platform exceeded all performance benchmarks:

The API platform has been processing over $2M in transactions daily since launch, with zero security incidents and consistently meeting all SLA requirements. The admin dashboard has reduced manual reporting work by 80%, and the developer-friendly API documentation has accelerated partner integrations by 60%.