Who Infura is
Infura is a blockchain API service from Consensys, now part of MetaMask Developer. It runs the nodes so its customers do not have to, and serves them through standard JSON-RPC endpoints over HTTPS and WebSockets.
Wallets, exchanges and other Web3 companies use it for Ethereum, its layer twos such as Arbitrum and Base, Polygon PoS, BNB Smart Chain and Solana, each with a testnet. That focus on Ethereum and the EVM is why Infura is one of the node providers our module connects to.
What it does in your platform
Custody & wallets
Gives the module its view of Ethereum and the EVM chains you support: it watches new blocks for deposits to your customers' addresses and serves the balances the module reconciles against. When the module broadcasts a withdrawal itself, Infura carries it to the network.
How the connection works
The module talks to Infura over JSON-RPC, the standard interface of Ethereum nodes, with a WebSocket connection for new blocks. The API key and its secret stay in your platform's secrets.
A new block
Infura's WebSocket endpoint tells the module about each new block on the chain.
Deposits found
The module reads the block's transactions and token transfer events, and matches them to your customers' deposit addresses.
Confirmed, then credited
When the block meets the confirmation rule you set for that chain, the deposit is screened and credited, and appears in the backoffice.
A withdrawal sent
When the module broadcasts a withdrawal itself, it sends the signed raw transaction through Infura.
Followed to the end
The module follows the transaction until it is final and reconciles the movement with the chain.
Next to other providers
Infura covers Ethereum, the EVM networks around it and Solana. Bitcoin and Tron are not on its network list, so on those chains the module reads through another node provider, such as QuickNode or Alchemy, or through your own nodes.
Each chain has its own node access, and the rest of the platform does not change either way: moving a chain from Infura to another provider or to your own nodes leaves your apps, your wallets and your custody provider as they are.
When Infura fits best
A strong fit when
- Your chains are Ethereum and the EVM networks around it, such as Arbitrum, Base and Polygon.
- You want the JSON-RPC interface your developers already know from Ethereum, on mainnet and on testnets.
- You want testnets such as Sepolia from the same account as mainnet.
Also worth a look
- A provider that also serves Bitcoin and Tron, such as QuickNode or Alchemy, for those chains.
- Your own nodes, when you want no third party between your platform and the chain.
How we get you live
The contract
We help you get your Infura account and contract in place, with the networks you plan to support.
Endpoints and rules
We enable each chain's endpoint, mainnet and testnet, and set the confirmation rule the module applies on that chain.
The keys
The API key and its secret go into your platform's secrets and nowhere else, so requests under your key can only come from your platform.
A full test run
The whole flow runs on testnets such as Sepolia first, from a deposit to a reconciled withdrawal, before real funds move.
