Overview
This international commodity trading platform facilitates B2B2C transactions for a regulated resource across multiple jurisdictions. I led the complete rebuild of the platform, redesigning the database architecture, API layer, and React frontend to support complex multi-currency operations while maintaining regulatory compliance.
The Challenge
The existing platform had accumulated significant technical debt:
- Monolithic codebase with tightly coupled components
- Database design that couldn't scale with transaction volume
- No clear separation between B2B and B2C workflows
- Compliance tracking scattered across multiple systems
Database Architecture
The rebuild centered on a properly normalized relational schema:
Scale
- 52 tables covering entities, transactions, inventory, and compliance
- 77 foreign key relationships ensuring referential integrity
- 3.7M+ rows in production with optimized query patterns
Core Entities
Key Design Decisions
Multi-Currency Support
- Separate currency and exchange rate tables
- Transaction amounts stored in both local and base currency
- Audit trail for all currency conversions
Regulatory Compliance
- Every transaction linked to compliance checkpoint records
- Document storage with version history
- Automated reporting exports per jurisdiction
API Architecture
Node.js/TypeScript backend with RESTful design:
Authentication & Authorization
- JWT-based authentication
- Role-based access control (RBAC)
- Organization-level data isolation
Transaction Processing
- Atomic operations for multi-step transactions
- Optimistic locking for inventory management
- Event sourcing for audit trail
Frontend Architecture
React frontend with complex state management:
Multi-View Filtering
- Saved filter presets per user
- Real-time inventory availability
- Bulk operations support
Responsive Dashboard
- Key metrics visualization
- Transaction timeline
- Compliance status indicators
Technical Highlights
Performance Optimization
- Query optimization reducing average response time by 60%
- Pagination and lazy loading for large datasets
- Connection pooling for database efficiency
Developer Experience
- TypeScript throughout the stack
- Generated API documentation
- Comprehensive integration test suite
Results
The rebuilt platform successfully supports:
- Active trading operations across multiple countries
- Thousands of transactions processed monthly
- Full regulatory audit capabilities
- Sub-second response times for complex queries
This project demonstrates full-stack architectural thinking, complex relational database design, and building systems that operate in heavily regulated industries.