SarifleAbout
Every shop uses a different rate. We are making it one shared rate.
Sarifle is an open market rate for the US dollar and the Somaliland shilling (SLSH). Built in Somaliland, for Somaliland.
The everyday problem
In Somaliland, prices are often set in US dollars, but many people pay in shillings. Shops, pharmacies, schools, landlords, restaurants and businesses all need the rate every day. Each place uses a different number.
Local software (point-of-sale, invoicing, e-commerce, school and business systems) has the same problem. Developers type the rate in by hand, or guess.
This causes small losses, arguments at the counter, and mistrust.
Why there is no open source today
Mobile-money rates stay inside their own system.
The mobile money services of telecom companies have an exchange feature, where licensed exchangers offer rates inside the phone menu. But those rates stay inside that system. They are not published as an open rate that apps, websites and other businesses can use.
Global currency sites do not have the Somaliland shilling.
Global currency websites and APIs do not include SLSH. They show SOS, the Somali shilling, which is a different currency with a completely different value. Developers who use them get wrong numbers.
The real market rate exists. But it is scattered, and it is closed.
How it works
- 1
Exchangers submit
Licensed exchangers send their buy and sell rates through the website or Telegram.
- 2
The system takes the middle
It takes the median of several exchangers. Rates far from the rest are ignored.
- 3
Everyone uses the same rate
Every shop, app and business can use the same fair number.
That is why no single person can move the rate.
Why you can trust it
Transparent
You can always see where the number came from and how fresh it is: when it was updated, and how many exchangers it comes from.
Fair
The median protects against any single wrong or dishonest rate. No one person can move it.
Local
Made in Somaliland, using the words traders use: gacanta hore (buy), gacanta danbe (sell).
Open
Free for local developers, to strengthen the local tech community.
If there are not enough recent sources, the rate is clearly marked “not updated recently”.
For exchangers
Are you a licensed exchanger? Register on the website or through Telegram. Once an admin checks your license, your rate counts, and customers see your contribution to a fair rate.
@sarifsl_bot →For developers
Use the same rate in your app. It is free.
$ curl https://sarifle.bilistek.com/v1/rates/latest?city=hargeisaContact
A question, an idea, or an API key? bilisteklabs@gmail.com
This is an indicative market rate. It is not an official rate of the Bank of Somaliland, and it is not a guarantee for any transaction. Please confirm the rate before making a financial decision.