Price Data Oracle

Define the price you need

A last trade, midpoint, aggregate reference and accounting valuation can all be described as a price, but they are different measurements. Identify the instrument, currency, methodology and timing policy required by your application before choosing a feed.

A short symbol is not a complete feed identifier. Keep the reviewed asset mapping and stable feed identity in configuration. A valid observation for a similarly named instrument should not pass as the intended input.

Preserve time and scale

Distinguish observation time from arrival time. Receiving the same report again does not make its measurement new. Define a consumer-side acceptance window that matches the purpose of the operation.

Interpret fixed-point values with their documented scale. Keep rounding rules separate from display formatting, and use simple fixtures to verify conversions. The Pyth quality note provides a concrete example of a price, exponent and confidence representation.

Treat uncertainty as information

A confidence field has a provider-specific meaning. Do not assume that it guarantees a particular execution price or shares the same interpretation across every source. Decide how the application reacts when uncertainty is wider than it accepts.

A reference price also does not guarantee liquidity for any requested transaction size. For financial operations, review data quality alongside execution capacity and exposure limits rather than assuming one number resolves both concerns.

Plan unavailable and conflicting data

Inspect the reporting schedule of the underlying source. A continuously running blockchain does not make every asset continuously observable. Show old information with its time when appropriate, but do not silently treat it as a newly accepted input.

Review fallback sources for compatible meaning. When reports disagree, first check units, asset definition and observation time. Continue to DeFi Oracles for consumer consequences or Oracle API for a context-preserving response format.