Tutorial: ECB FX Rates - Gnist Context

Finance

Data source: European Central Bank

Overview

ECB FX Rates wraps European Central Bank, handling authentication, pagination, and rate limits for you. This tutorial covers all 4 tools with working code examples you can copy and run.

Prerequisites

Sign up at https://context.gnist.ai/signup for a free API key (100 calls/day).
Choose your integration method: MCP protocol or REST API.

Connect via MCP

Add to your MCP client config (Claude Desktop, Cursor, etc.):

MCP Config

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "gnist-ecb-fx": {
      "url": "https://context.gnist.ai/mcp/ecb-fx/",
      "headers": {
        "Gnist-API-Key": "YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}

Tools (4)

`get_rate`

Get the current exchange rate between two currencies. Uses ECB daily reference rates (updated ~16:00 CET). EUR is used as pivot for cross-currency conversions. Args: base: ISO 4217 currency code for the base currency (e.g. "USD", "EUR", "NOK"). target: ISO 4217 currency code for the target currency (e.g. "GBP", "JPY"). Returns: Exchange rate: 1 unit of base = rate units of target, plus the ECB publication date.

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`base`	string	required	ISO 4217 currency code for the base currency (e.g. "USD", "EUR", "NOK").
`target`	string	required	ISO 4217 currency code for the target currency (e.g. "GBP", "JPY").

curl -X POST "https://context.gnist.ai/mcp/ecb-fx/" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Gnist-API-Key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc": "2.0", "method": "tools/call", "id": 1, "params": {"name": "get_rate", "arguments": {"base": "USD", "target": "GBP"}}}'

import httpx

resp = httpx.post(
    "https://context.gnist.ai/mcp/ecb-fx/",
    headers={"Gnist-API-Key": "YOUR_API_KEY"},
    json={'id': 1,
 'jsonrpc': '2.0',
 'method': 'tools/call',
 'params': {'arguments': {'base': 'USD', 'target': 'GBP'}, 'name': 'get_rate'}},
)
print(resp.json())

`get_rates`

Get current exchange rates for all ECB-covered currencies against a base currency. Uses ECB daily reference rates (updated ~16:00 CET). Covers ~30 major currencies. Args: base: ISO 4217 currency code (e.g. "USD", "EUR", "NOK"). Returns: Dictionary of all available currencies and their rates against the base, plus the ECB publication date.

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`base`	string	required	ISO 4217 currency code (e.g. "USD", "EUR", "NOK").

curl -X POST "https://context.gnist.ai/mcp/ecb-fx/" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Gnist-API-Key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc": "2.0", "method": "tools/call", "id": 1, "params": {"name": "get_rates", "arguments": {"base": "USD"}}}'

import httpx

resp = httpx.post(
    "https://context.gnist.ai/mcp/ecb-fx/",
    headers={"Gnist-API-Key": "YOUR_API_KEY"},
    json={'id': 1,
 'jsonrpc': '2.0',
 'method': 'tools/call',
 'params': {'arguments': {'base': 'USD'}, 'name': 'get_rates'}},
)
print(resp.json())

`get_history`

Get daily exchange rates for a currency pair over the past N days (up to 90). Uses ECB 90-day historical reference rates. Args: base: ISO 4217 currency code for the base currency (e.g. "USD", "EUR"). target: ISO 4217 currency code for the target currency (e.g. "NOK", "GBP"). days: Number of days of history to return (1–90, default 30). Returns: Time series of daily exchange rates, newest first.

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`base`	string	required	ISO 4217 currency code for the base currency (e.g. "USD", "EUR").
`target`	string	required	ISO 4217 currency code for the target currency (e.g. "NOK", "GBP").
`days`	integer	optional	Number of days of history to return (1–90, default 30). (default: `30`)

curl -X POST "https://context.gnist.ai/mcp/ecb-fx/" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Gnist-API-Key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc": "2.0", "method": "tools/call", "id": 1, "params": {"name": "get_history", "arguments": {"base": "USD", "target": "NOK"}}}'

import httpx

resp = httpx.post(
    "https://context.gnist.ai/mcp/ecb-fx/",
    headers={"Gnist-API-Key": "YOUR_API_KEY"},
    json={'id': 1,
 'jsonrpc': '2.0',
 'method': 'tools/call',
 'params': {'arguments': {'base': 'USD', 'target': 'NOK'},
            'name': 'get_history'}},
)
print(resp.json())

`report_feedback`

Report a bug, feature request, or general feedback for this data source. Use this when something doesn't work as expected, when you'd like a new feature, or when you have suggestions for improvement. Args: feedback: Describe the issue or suggestion. feedback_type: One of 'bug', 'feature_request', or 'general'.

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`feedback`	string	required
`feedback_type`	string	optional	(default: `general`)

curl -X POST "https://context.gnist.ai/mcp/ecb-fx/" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Gnist-API-Key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc": "2.0", "method": "tools/call", "id": 1, "params": {"name": "report_feedback", "arguments": {"feedback": "example"}}}'

import httpx

resp = httpx.post(
    "https://context.gnist.ai/mcp/ecb-fx/",
    headers={"Gnist-API-Key": "YOUR_API_KEY"},
    json={'id': 1,
 'jsonrpc': '2.0',
 'method': 'tools/call',
 'params': {'arguments': {'feedback': 'example'}, 'name': 'report_feedback'}},
)
print(resp.json())

FAQ

What data does ECB FX Rates provide?

Simple currency conversion — quick FX lookups with auto-detected latest ECB reference rates. It exposes 4 tools: get_rate, get_rates, get_history, report_feedback.

What do I need to get started?

A Gnist API key (free tier: 100 calls/day). Sign up at https://context.gnist.ai/signup.

What format does the ECB FX Rates API return?

JSON, via either MCP protocol (JSON-RPC 2.0) or REST API.