> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.cdp.coinbase.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Coinbase Clearing REST API Authentication

This page explains how to authenticate Coinbase Clearing REST API requests.

## Bearer token

Every request must carry a bearer token: a JWT generated from a Coinbase Developer Platform (CDP) API key. Send it in the `Authorization` header:

```
Authorization: Bearer JWT
```

See [JWT Authentication](https://docs.cdp.coinbase.com/get-started/authentication/jwt-authentication.md) to generate a JWT from your CDP API key, and [Using a JWT](https://docs.cdp.coinbase.com/get-started/authentication/jwt-authentication.md#using-a-jwt) for how to send it.

The API validates the JWT and identifies the caller from it. Generating a valid JWT is your responsibility: the API does not redirect to a login page to obtain one.

## Authorization

The caller must hold the read-only external viewer role:

> [!WARNING]
>
> * `ISV-EXTERNAL-VIEWER`