Data Sources & Methodology100+ Sources
Data Sources & Methodology
Built on verified market and official data
TrueRate combines rates, prices, and market signals from verified sources so money decisions are based on clear, transparent information.
Institutional alignmentCBL & market
Official rate, market rate, and TrueRate
TrueRate is the bridge between the Central Bank of Liberia (official) and the street (market). When both are visible, the LRD is seen as a real, monitored national currency—with an official definition and a transparent market.
How TrueRate's rate relates to the Central Bank of Liberia
Institutional clarity
The Central Bank of Liberia (CBL) publishes an official USD/LRD rate—the rate at which the Bank and many formal institutions define the dollar. That rate is the LRD's official reference.
TrueRate does not replace the CBL rate. We show it next to our composite "market" rate wherever we have it. Our composite rate comes from licensed changers, international APIs, and verified community reports—so it reflects what people actually get when they exchange on the street or at bureaus.
By showing both, we position TrueRate as the bridge: you see the official definition (CBL) and the transparent market (TrueRate) in one place. The Liberian dollar is a real, monitored currency—with a clear official anchor and visible market reality.
Why market and official rates differ
No spin—just clarity
The official (CBL) rate is set by the Central Bank for policy, reserves, and formal reporting. It may be updated on a fixed schedule and can lag behind day-to-day demand and supply.
The market (street) rate is what changers and bureaus actually trade. It moves with supply and demand for USD, seasonal flows, and local conditions. So the two rates often differ—sometimes by a little, sometimes more.
We show both so you see the full picture. The "spread" between them is not hidden: it's the gap between official definition and real-world exchange. That transparency supports trust—and reinforces that the LRD is measurable, understandable, and worth taking seriously.
TrueRate = bridge between CBL (official) and street (market)
Data SourcesVerified & Trusted
Our Data Sources
Multiple layers of data collection ensure accuracy and reliability
International APIs
30+ sources
- Frankfurter API
- Exchange Rate Host
- Currency API
- Open Exchange Rates
- + 26 more APIs
Licensed Changers
60+ locations
- Monrovia (40 locations)
- Buchanan (8 locations)
- Gbarnga (6 locations)
- Harper (4 locations)
- Other cities (12 locations)
Community Reports
10,000+ verified reports
- Real-time user submissions
- Automated verification checks
- Photo verification
- Trust score validation
- Outlier detection
Financial Institutions
15+ banks & MFIs
- Commercial banks (8)
- Microfinance institutions (5)
- Credit unions (3)
- Mobile money providers
- Remittance services
Market Data Providers
20+ sources
- Bloomberg (via API)
- Reuters financial data
- XE.com rates
- OANDA rates
- + 16 more providers
Central Bank of Liberia (CBL)
Official rate
- Official USD/LRD reference rate
- Shown alongside our market rate
- TrueRate = bridge (official + market)
MethodologyTransparent process
Our Methodology
Clear validation steps and source checks keep the data reliable
Data Aggregation
We collect exchange rate data from 100+ sources every minute, including licensed money changers, international APIs, and verified community reports.
Update Frequency
- • International API rates: Every 60 seconds
- • Money changer rates: Real-time
- • Community reports: Instant (after verification)
Verification & Validation
Every data point goes through multi-layer verification to detect anomalies, fraud attempts, and ensure accuracy.
Verification Steps
- 1. Outlier detection (statistical analysis)
- 2. Source reliability scoring
- 3. Cross-reference validation
- 4. Historical pattern matching
- 5. Community trust verification
Weighted Average Calculation
We use a weighted average algorithm that prioritizes more reliable sources and recent data to calculate the final displayed rate.
Source Weights
- • International APIs: 1.5x weight
- • Licensed changers: 1.2x weight
- • Verified community: 1.0x weight
- • Recent data: Time-decay factor
Machine Learning Predictions
Our prediction engine uses ensemble machine learning with 5 different models trained on the last 90 days of rate history, seasonal patterns, and economic indicators. Forecasts become less certain further out.
ML Models Used
- • Simple Moving Average (SMA) - 15% weight
- • Exponential Moving Average (EMA) - 20% weight
- • Linear Regression - 20% weight
- • ARIMA (AutoRegressive) - 25% weight
- • Seasonal Decomposition - 20% weight
Predictions are updated hourly and include confidence intervals based on model agreement and historical accuracy.
TransparencyOpen Methodology
Our Commitment to Transparency
We believe Liberians deserve accurate, unbiased financial information—rates, prices, and tools. That's why we've made our methodology transparent and our data sources verifiable.
100+
Data Sources
Trusted & Verified
99.2%
Accuracy Rate
Industry Leading
60s
Update Interval
Real-time Updates
Embed the Rate on Your Site
Add a live USD/LRD rate widget to any website
Copy and paste this snippet into your HTML. The widget will show the current rate and a link to TrueRate Liberia.
<script src="https://truerateliberia.com/widget.js"></script> <div data-truerate-widget></div>
Options: Add data-theme="light", data-theme="dark", or data-theme="auto" for appearance. Use data-compact="true" to hide the timestamp. For local dev, add data-base="http://localhost:3000".
Business API
Get live and historical USD/LRD rates in your app. Create an API key from the Business dashboard or by calling the key endpoint.
Create key: POST /api/business/api-keys
Live rate: GET /api/v1/rate (header: Authorization: Bearer YOUR_KEY or ?api_key=YOUR_KEY)
Historical: GET /api/v1/historical?days=90 (same auth)
Responses are JSON. Rate endpoint returns rate, cblRate, sources, timestamp. Historical returns historical (array of date/rate).
No smartphone? USSD (coming soon)
We plan to offer the rate via USSD so any phone can get today's rate by dialing a short code (e.g. *XXX#). No app or internet needed. Until we launch with a mobile network partner, use SMS alerts or the web app when you have connectivity.
Technical details for integration are in docs/USSD.md in the repo.