Direct Mode

In direct mode, the SDK connects directly to exchange APIs. No data passes through PAPI servers.

How It Works

Your App → PAPI SDK → Exchange (Polymarket/Kalshi)

The SDK handles exchange-specific authentication, request formatting, and response normalization locally. You provide credentials directly.

Setup

Polymarket

Polymarket uses the CLOB API with API key, secret, and passphrase:

use papi_sdk::{PapiConfig, PapiClient, Exchange};

let config = PapiConfig::direct()
    .polymarket_credentials(
        "your-clob-api-key",
        "your-clob-secret",
        "your-passphrase",
    )
    .build()?;

let client = PapiClient::new(config);

let markets = client
    .markets(Exchange::Polymarket)
    .active(true)
    .send()
    .await?;

Kalshi

Kalshi uses email/password authentication with session tokens:

let config = PapiConfig::direct()
    .kalshi_credentials(
        "your-email@example.com",
        "your-password",
    )
    .build()?;

let client = PapiClient::new(config);

let markets = client
    .markets(Exchange::Kalshi)
    .status("open")
    .send()
    .await?;

Both Exchanges

let config = PapiConfig::direct()
    .polymarket_credentials("key", "secret", "passphrase")
    .kalshi_credentials("email", "password")
    .build()?;

Environment Variables

Instead of hardcoding credentials:

export PAPI_MODE=direct
export POLYMARKET_API_KEY=your-clob-api-key
export POLYMARKET_SECRET=your-clob-secret
export POLYMARKET_PASSPHRASE=your-passphrase
export KALSHI_EMAIL=your-email@example.com
export KALSHI_PASSWORD=your-password

let config = PapiConfig::from_env()?;

When to Use Direct Mode

Direct mode is best when:

Latency matters — Eliminates the proxy hop through PAPI servers
Credential control — You want credentials to stay on your infrastructure
Offline operation — Your app should work even if PAPI servers are down
High throughput — You need more than 60 requests per minute

Trade-offs

Feature	Managed	Direct
Credential storage	Server-side (encrypted)	Client-side
Caching	Built-in (PostgreSQL)	None (bring your own)
Rate limiting	60 req/min per key	Exchange limits apply
Latency	+10-50ms (proxy hop)	Direct to exchange
Auth complexity	One API key	Per-exchange credentials
PAPI dependency	Required	Not required

Switching Modes

Since both modes use the same SDK interface, switching is a config change:

// Managed mode
let config = PapiConfig::managed()
    .api_key("papi_sk_live_...")
    .build()?;

// Direct mode — same client API
let config = PapiConfig::direct()
    .polymarket_credentials("key", "secret", "pass")
    .build()?;

// Client code stays the same
let client = PapiClient::new(config);
let markets = client.markets(Exchange::Polymarket).send().await?;

Direct Mode

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