diff --git a/apps/api/scripts/load-test-pools.js b/apps/api/scripts/load-test-pools.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7a7ba8a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/api/scripts/load-test-pools.js
@@ -0,0 +1,100 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env node
+/**
+ * #424 — Load test: GET /v1/pools at scale
+ *
+ * Fires N concurrent requests against GET /v1/pools (default: 100) and
+ * reports p50 / p95 / p99 latencies, throughput (req/s), and error rate.
+ *
+ * Usage:
+ *   node scripts/load-test-pools.js [concurrency] [total_requests] [base_url]
+ *
+ * Examples:
+ *   node scripts/load-test-pools.js                        # defaults
+ *   node scripts/load-test-pools.js 50 500
+ *   node scripts/load-test-pools.js 20 200 http://localhost:3001
+ *
+ * No external dependencies — uses Node's built-in `fetch` (Node 18+).
+ */
+
+const CONCURRENCY   = parseInt(process.argv[2] ?? '10',  10);
+const TOTAL         = parseInt(process.argv[3] ?? '100', 10);
+const BASE_URL      = process.argv[4] ?? 'http://localhost:3001';
+const ENDPOINT      = `${BASE_URL}/v1/pools`;
+
+/** Fire a single GET request and return { ok, statusCode, durationMs }. */
+async function singleRequest() {
+  const start = performance.now();
+  try {
+    const res = await fetch(ENDPOINT);
+    return { ok: res.ok, statusCode: res.status, durationMs: performance.now() - start };
+  } catch {
+    return { ok: false, statusCode: 0, durationMs: performance.now() - start };
+  }
+}
+
+/** Run `count` requests with up to `concurrency` in-flight at once. */
+async function runBatch(total, concurrency) {
+  const results = [];
+  let dispatched = 0;
+  const inFlight = new Set();
+
+  return new Promise((resolve) => {
+    function dispatch() {
+      while (inFlight.size < concurrency && dispatched < total) {
+        dispatched++;
+        const p = singleRequest().then((r) => {
+          inFlight.delete(p);
+          results.push(r);
+          if (results.length === total) resolve(results);
+          else dispatch();
+        });
+        inFlight.add(p);
+      }
+    }
+    dispatch();
+  });
+}
+
+function percentile(sorted, p) {
+  const idx = Math.ceil((p / 100) * sorted.length) - 1;
+  return sorted[Math.max(0, idx)];
+}
+
+async function main() {
+  console.log(`\nLoad testing GET ${ENDPOINT}`);
+  console.log(`Concurrency: ${CONCURRENCY}  |  Total requests: ${TOTAL}\n`);
+
+  const wallStart = performance.now();
+  const results   = await runBatch(TOTAL, CONCURRENCY);
+  const wallMs    = performance.now() - wallStart;
+
+  const durations = results.map((r) => r.durationMs).sort((a, b) => a - b);
+  const errors    = results.filter((r) => !r.ok);
+  const throughput = (TOTAL / (wallMs / 1000)).toFixed(2);
+
+  console.log('── Results ─────────────────────────────');
+  console.log(`  Total requests : ${TOTAL}`);
+  console.log(`  Elapsed        : ${wallMs.toFixed(0)} ms`);
+  console.log(`  Throughput     : ${throughput} req/s`);
+  console.log(`  Errors         : ${errors.length} (${((errors.length / TOTAL) * 100).toFixed(1)}%)`);
+  console.log(`  p50 latency    : ${percentile(durations, 50).toFixed(1)} ms`);
+  console.log(`  p95 latency    : ${percentile(durations, 95).toFixed(1)} ms`);
+  console.log(`  p99 latency    : ${percentile(durations, 99).toFixed(1)} ms`);
+  console.log(`  Min latency    : ${durations[0].toFixed(1)} ms`);
+  console.log(`  Max latency    : ${durations[durations.length - 1].toFixed(1)} ms`);
+  console.log('────────────────────────────────────────\n');
+
+  if (errors.length > 0) {
+    const codes = errors.reduce((acc, r) => {
+      acc[r.statusCode] = (acc[r.statusCode] ?? 0) + 1;
+      return acc;
+    }, {});
+    console.warn('Error breakdown:', codes);
+    process.exitCode = 1;
+  }
+}
+
+main().catch((err) => {
+  console.error(err);
+  process.exitCode = 1;
+});
diff --git a/apps/api/src/app.smoke.spec.ts b/apps/api/src/app.smoke.spec.ts
index 76c9ebf..e387b13 100644
--- a/apps/api/src/app.smoke.spec.ts
+++ b/apps/api/src/app.smoke.spec.ts
@@ -104,6 +104,7 @@ describe('AppModule — public routes smoke test', () => {
 
     app = module.createNestApplication();
     app.useGlobalPipes(new ValidationPipe({ transform: true }));
+    app.setGlobalPrefix('v1', { exclude: ['health', 'docs', 'docs-json', '/'] });
     await app.init();
   });
 
@@ -117,21 +118,21 @@ describe('AppModule — public routes smoke test', () => {
   it('GET /health returns 200', () =>
     request(app.getHttpServer()).get('/health').expect(200));
 
-  it('GET /pools returns 200', () =>
-    request(app.getHttpServer()).get('/pools').expect(200));
+  it('GET /v1/pools returns 200', () =>
+    request(app.getHttpServer()).get('/v1/pools').expect(200));
 
-  it('GET /swaps returns 200', () =>
-    request(app.getHttpServer()).get('/swaps').expect(200));
+  it('GET /v1/swaps returns 200', () =>
+    request(app.getHttpServer()).get('/v1/swaps').expect(200));
 
-  it('GET /tokens returns 200', () =>
-    request(app.getHttpServer()).get('/tokens').expect(200));
+  it('GET /v1/tokens returns 200', () =>
+    request(app.getHttpServer()).get('/v1/tokens').expect(200));
 
-  it('GET /search returns 200', () =>
-    request(app.getHttpServer()).get('/search').expect(200));
+  it('GET /v1/search returns 200', () =>
+    request(app.getHttpServer()).get('/v1/search').expect(200));
 
-  it('GET /indexer/status returns 200', () =>
-    request(app.getHttpServer()).get('/indexer/status').expect(200));
+  it('GET /v1/indexer/status returns 200', () =>
+    request(app.getHttpServer()).get('/v1/indexer/status').expect(200));
 
-  it('POST /auth/nonce returns 200 (no body)', () =>
-    request(app.getHttpServer()).post('/auth/nonce').expect(200));
+  it('POST /v1/auth/nonce returns 200 (no body)', () =>
+    request(app.getHttpServer()).post('/v1/auth/nonce').expect(200));
 });
diff --git a/apps/api/src/main.ts b/apps/api/src/main.ts
index 03f6af0..ed679d7 100644
--- a/apps/api/src/main.ts
+++ b/apps/api/src/main.ts
@@ -28,6 +28,14 @@ async function bootstrap() {
   app.useWebSocketAdapter(new WsAdapter(app));
   app.enableShutdownHooks();
 
+  // Version all public REST routes under /v1 (e.g. GET /v1/pools).
+  // WebSocket, /health, and /docs remain at root — they are not affected
+  // because they are registered before the prefix takes effect or are
+  // excluded via NestJS route exclusion patterns.
+  app.setGlobalPrefix('v1', {
+    exclude: ['health', 'docs', 'docs-json', '/'],
+  });
+
   // Compression — applied globally, skips WebSocket and /health
   app.use(new CompressionMiddleware().use.bind(new CompressionMiddleware()));
 
diff --git a/apps/api/src/pools/pools.contract.spec.ts b/apps/api/src/pools/pools.contract.spec.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1351e4a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/api/src/pools/pools.contract.spec.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,199 @@
+/**
+ * #423 — Contract test: GET /v1/pools list schema
+ *
+ * Boots the full NestJS application with all external dependencies stubbed
+ * (Prisma, Redis, BullMQ) and asserts that GET /v1/pools returns a response
+ * whose JSON shape exactly matches the documented contract:
+ *
+ *   {
+ *     items:      Array<PoolListItem>
+ *     page:       number
+ *     limit:      number
+ *     total:      number
+ *     totalPages: number
+ *     orderBy:    string
+ *   }
+ *
+ * Each PoolListItem must contain: id, token0, token1, feeTier, tvl,
+ * volume24h, feeApr, currentPrice.
+ */
+
+import { INestApplication, ValidationPipe } from '@nestjs/common';
+import { Test } from '@nestjs/testing';
+import request from 'supertest';
+
+// ── Stubs ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+const noop = jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined);
+const emptyList = jest.fn().mockResolvedValue([]);
+
+const poolRow = {
+  id: 'pool-contract-1',
+  token0Address: 'GUSDC000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000',
+  token1Address: 'GXLM0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000',
+  feeTier: 30,
+  currentSqrtPrice: '1.118',
+  currentTick: 100,
+  liquidity: '500000',
+  tvl: '100000',
+  volume24h: '5000',
+  feeApr: '0.12',
+  currentPrice: '1.25',
+  createdAt: new Date('2026-01-01T00:00:00.000Z'),
+  updatedAt: new Date('2026-01-02T00:00:00.000Z'),
+  swaps: [],
+};
+
+const prismaMock = {
+  $connect: noop,
+  $disconnect: noop,
+  pool: {
+    findMany: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue([poolRow]),
+    findUnique: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(null),
+    count: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(1),
+    update: noop,
+  },
+  token: { findMany: emptyList, findUnique: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(null) },
+  swap: { findMany: emptyList, count: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(0) },
+  position: { findMany: emptyList, count: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(0) },
+  tick: { findMany: emptyList },
+  webhook: { findMany: emptyList, create: noop, deleteMany: noop },
+  apiKey: { findUnique: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(null) },
+  priceCandle: { findMany: emptyList },
+  indexerCursor: { findUnique: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(null) },
+  poolCreated: { findMany: emptyList },
+  swapProcessed: { findMany: emptyList },
+};
+
+const redisMock = {
+  get: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(null),
+  set: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue('OK'),
+  setex: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue('OK'),
+  del: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(1),
+  publish: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(1),
+  subscribe: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined),
+  on: jest.fn(),
+  quit: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined),
+  duplicate: jest.fn(),
+};
+redisMock.duplicate.mockReturnValue(redisMock);
+
+jest.mock('bullmq', () => ({
+  Worker: jest.fn().mockImplementation(() => ({
+    on: jest.fn(),
+    close: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined),
+    client: Promise.resolve({ llen: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(0) }),
+  })),
+  Queue: jest.fn().mockImplementation(() => ({
+    add: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue({ id: '1' }),
+    close: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined),
+  })),
+  QueueEvents: jest.fn().mockImplementation(() => ({
+    on: jest.fn(),
+    close: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined),
+  })),
+  Job: jest.fn(),
+}));
+
+jest.mock('@prisma/client', () => ({
+  PrismaClient: jest.fn().mockImplementation(() => prismaMock),
+}));
+
+jest.mock('ioredis', () => jest.fn().mockImplementation(() => redisMock));
+
+// ── Imports (after mocks) ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+import { AppModule } from '../app.module';
+import { PrismaService } from '../prisma/prisma.service';
+import { CacheService } from '../cache/cache.service';
+import { REDIS_CLIENT } from '../redis/redis.constants';
+
+// ── Suite ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+describe('GET /v1/pools — contract schema', () => {
+  let app: INestApplication;
+
+  beforeAll(async () => {
+    const module = await Test.createTestingModule({
+      imports: [AppModule],
+    })
+      .overrideProvider(PrismaService)
+      .useValue(prismaMock)
+      .overrideProvider(CacheService)
+      .useValue({
+        get: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(null),
+        set: noop,
+        del: noop,
+        publish: noop,
+        setMaxNumber: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(true),
+        invalidate: noop,
+        invalidatePattern: noop,
+        subscribe: jest.fn(),
+      })
+      .overrideProvider(REDIS_CLIENT)
+      .useValue(redisMock)
+      .compile();
+
+    app = module.createNestApplication();
+    app.useGlobalPipes(new ValidationPipe({ transform: true }));
+    app.setGlobalPrefix('v1', { exclude: ['health', 'docs', 'docs-json', '/'] });
+    await app.init();
+  });
+
+  afterAll(() => app.close());
+
+  it('returns 200 with the documented envelope shape', async () => {
+    const res = await request(app.getHttpServer())
+      .get('/v1/pools')
+      .expect(200);
+
+    // Top-level envelope
+    expect(res.body).toMatchObject({
+      items: expect.any(Array),
+      page: expect.any(Number),
+      limit: expect.any(Number),
+      total: expect.any(Number),
+      totalPages: expect.any(Number),
+      orderBy: expect.any(String),
+    });
+  });
+
+  it('each item in items has the required PoolListItem fields', async () => {
+    const res = await request(app.getHttpServer())
+      .get('/v1/pools')
+      .expect(200);
+
+    for (const item of res.body.items as unknown[]) {
+      expect(item).toMatchObject({
+        id: expect.any(String),
+        token0: expect.any(String),
+        token1: expect.any(String),
+        feeTier: expect.any(String),
+        tvl: expect.any(Number),
+        volume24h: expect.any(Number),
+        feeApr: expect.any(Number),
+        currentPrice: expect.any(Number),
+      });
+    }
+  });
+
+  it('respects the ?search query param without breaking the schema', async () => {
+    const res = await request(app.getHttpServer())
+      .get('/v1/pools?search=USDC')
+      .expect(200);
+
+    expect(res.body).toHaveProperty('items');
+    expect(Array.isArray(res.body.items)).toBe(true);
+  });
+
+  it('returns an empty items array (not null) when no pools match', async () => {
+    prismaMock.pool.findMany.mockResolvedValueOnce([]);
+
+    const res = await request(app.getHttpServer())
+      .get('/v1/pools?search=NOMATCH')
+      .expect(200);
+
+    expect(res.body.items).toEqual([]);
+    expect(res.body.total).toBe(0);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/apps/web/app/pools/page.tsx b/apps/web/app/pools/page.tsx
index eecc442..bc4cde0 100644
--- a/apps/web/app/pools/page.tsx
+++ b/apps/web/app/pools/page.tsx
@@ -1,9 +1,10 @@
 'use client';
 
-import { useState, useCallback, useRef } from 'react';
+import { useState, useCallback } from 'react';
 import { useRouter } from 'next/navigation';
 import { TokenLogo } from '@swyft/ui';
 import { usePools, PoolOrderBy, PoolListItem } from '@/hooks/usePools';
+import { useSearchDebounce } from '@/hooks/useSearchDebounce';
 import type { Token } from '@swyft/ui';
 
 // ─── Formatters ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
@@ -167,17 +168,13 @@ function PoolRow({ pool, onNavigate }: { pool: PoolListItem; onNavigate: (path:
 export default function PoolsPage() {
   const router = useRouter();
   const [search, setSearch] = useState('');
-  const [debouncedSearch, setDebouncedSearch] = useState('');
+  const debouncedSearch = useSearchDebounce(search);
   const [sortKey, setSortKey] = useState<SortKey>('tvl');
   const [page, setPage] = useState(1);
 
-  const debounceRef = useRef<ReturnType<typeof setTimeout> | null>(null);
-
   const handleSearch = useCallback((value: string) => {
     setSearch(value);
     setPage(1);
-    if (debounceRef.current) clearTimeout(debounceRef.current);
-    debounceRef.current = setTimeout(() => setDebouncedSearch(value), 300);
   }, []);
 
   const { data, isLoading, isError } = usePools({
diff --git a/apps/web/hooks/useSearchDebounce.ts b/apps/web/hooks/useSearchDebounce.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..66ac831
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/web/hooks/useSearchDebounce.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,23 @@
+'use client';
+
+import { useState, useEffect } from 'react';
+
+/**
+ * Debounces a search string so that rapid keystrokes do not trigger an API
+ * call on every character.  The returned `debouncedValue` only updates after
+ * the caller has stopped typing for `delay` milliseconds (default 300 ms).
+ *
+ * Usage:
+ *   const debouncedSearch = useSearchDebounce(rawInput);
+ *   // pass debouncedSearch to usePools / useTokens instead of rawInput
+ */
+export function useSearchDebounce(value: string, delay = 300): string {
+  const [debouncedValue, setDebouncedValue] = useState(value);
+
+  useEffect(() => {
+    const timer = setTimeout(() => setDebouncedValue(value), delay);
+    return () => clearTimeout(timer);
+  }, [value, delay]);
+
+  return debouncedValue;
+}
diff --git a/apps/web/lib/constants.ts b/apps/web/lib/constants.ts
index f958ebf..4d24f7b 100644
--- a/apps/web/lib/constants.ts
+++ b/apps/web/lib/constants.ts
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ export const SWYFT_NETWORK_PASSPHRASE =
     ? 'Public Global Stellar Network ; September 2015'
     : 'Test SDF Network ; September 2015';
 export const WALLET_STORAGE_KEY = 'swyft_wallet_address';
-export const API_BASE = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_API_URL ?? 'http://localhost:3001';
+export const API_BASE = `${process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_API_URL ?? 'http://localhost:3001'}/v1`;
 
 export function explorerTxUrl(hash: string): string {
   return SWYFT_NETWORK === 'PUBLIC'