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Chris Ling
Verified Expert in Engineering
Front-end and Full-stack Developer
Petaling Jaya Selangor, Malaysia
Toptal member since October 18, 2021
Bio
Chris is a full-stack developer with over five years of experience in shipping software. He is passionate about blockchain technology and has built applications ranging from Web 3.0 dApps to MEV bots. Before delving into the Web 3.0 rabbit hole, Chris used to work as a full-stack software engineer at companies of various sizes, including the SEA-based unicorn startup Grab.
Portfolio
Ethereum
TypeScript, Ethers.js, Ethereum, Geth (go-ethereum), Foundry, Solidity, Go, Bots
prePO
React, TypeScript, Next.js, MobX, Web3.js, Ethers.js, Tailwind CSS...
GrabTaxi
React, Go, JavaScript, Jira, OAuth 2, Microservices, Lerna, Antd, Less, MySQL...
Experience
- HTML - 6 years
- React - 5 years
- JavaScript - 5 years
- Firebase - 5 years
- GraphQL - 4 years
- Git - 4 years
- PostgreSQL - 3 years
- React Native - 2 years
Preferred Environment
JavaScript, React, Visual Studio Code (VS Code), TypeScript, Ethers.js, Next.js, Tailwind CSS, Ethereum
The most amazing...
...Web 3.0 project I've designed and built sold over $300,000 of its token in less than one minute and served thousands of users with 70+ ETH in trading volume.
Work Experience
MEV Searcher
2023 - PRESENT
Ethereum
- Hosted a Geth (go-ethereum) node at home, which I modified for extra functionalities.
- Built bots in TypeScript to monitor transactions from the mempool.
- Created bots in TypeScript to crawl blockchain data and perform off-chain calculations and analytics efficiently.
- Performed advanced techniques to interact with the blockchain using unpopular APIs exposed by the Geth node.
- Reverse-engineered unverified smart contracts from raw bytecode.
- Studied the EVM extensively, including reading the yellow paper and codebase of go-ethereum.
- Built a contracts factory with Solidity to strategically deploy contracts to (and reuse) pre-determined addresses.
- Worked independently as a solo MEV searcher and demonstrated strong problem-solving skills without help from others.
- Landed many successful transactions on Ethereum using Flashbots.
- Only limited information can be shared to maintain the confidentiality of the alpha stage.
Technologies: TypeScript, Ethers.js, Ethereum, Geth (go-ethereum), Foundry, Solidity, Go, Bots
Lead Front-end Developer | UI Designer
2021 - 2023
prePO
- Integrated Solidity-based smart contracts with front-end dApps by gaining an in-depth understanding of smart contracts and breaking features down into trackable and manageable tickets for the team and myself to implement.
- Built reusable MobX classes with Ethers.js and multicall functionalities to efficiently synchronize front-end dApps and blockchain states, which enabled a buttery-smooth web3 user experience across dApps without compromising developer experience.
- Built and maintained various GraphQL subgraphs from scratch on The Graph protocol to allow front-end dApps to query historical smart contracts data, along with proper documentation for any devs to write their own subgraphs.
- Set up Foundry and wrote tests in Solidity that laid the foundation of smart contract testings with Foundry in the company, along with proper documentation to onboard new smart contract engineers.
- Built, maintained, and improved the CI/CD pipeline of a large turbo repo that contained multiple front-end dApps, smart contracts, and reusable packages.
- Studied maths of various AMM protocols (e.g., Uniswap v2/v3, Balancer) and built functions to compute the output of swaps off-chain, significantly improving user experience as it eliminates the waiting time to get an output on-chain.
- Built meaningful Dune queries and dashboards to help the business development team analyze useful on-chain insights.
- Led the UI/UX design of multiple products using Figma and took responsibility for translating a complex DeFi concept into easily understandable UI while maintaining a great Web 3 user experience.
- Created a powerful design system on Figma by building shared components with variables and using Auto Layout, allowing developers to easily build a consistent UI component library on the front end.
- Designed and built a capped token sale dApp that made over $300,000 in sales within 16 seconds and a DEX that gained over 70 ETH trading volume within a week from the guarded launch.
Technologies: React, TypeScript, Next.js, MobX, Web3.js, Ethers.js, Tailwind CSS, Styled-components, Front-end, Figma, NestJS, Blocknative, Subgraph, GraphQL, Mst-gql, Open Source, HTML, CSS, Antd, Ethereum, Web App Development, Blockchain, Web3, Front-end Development, Solidity, Foundry
Full-stack Software Engineer
2021 - 2021
GrabTaxi
- Refactored the legacy code and introduced modern best practices of React development to one of the highest priority applications in the organization.
- Fixed bugs from the legacy code and optimized the priority-zero React app to work on every device, which resulted in at least a 5-8% improvement in the transaction completion rate, which is more than 100,000 transactions daily.
- Implemented a full-stack feature from a Go-based microservices back-end to a React-based front-end.
- Increased test coverage for the React app by at least 20% and consistently wrote more tests as I worked on new features, making future development easier.
- Implemented tree shaking on React applications, reducing the JavaScript bundle size by at least 300kb, from 650kb+ to 300kb, which increased traffic and decreased the drop-off rate, specifically in regions with a poorer network infrastructure.
- Used browser-based technologies for fixing bugs related to browser network requests, OTP Autofill, and cookies and storage in IFrame, WebKit, and others.
Technologies: React, Go, JavaScript, Jira, OAuth 2, Microservices, Lerna, Antd, Less, MySQL, Kibana, REST, Jenkins, GitLab, Front-end, Front-end Development
Full-stack Software Engineer
2021 - 2021
Orgtomic
- Optimized raw SQL queries and applied techniques to prevent cross-site scripting.
- Wrote reusable hooks that helped the team save time on other development work.
- Built reusable and responsive components like Color Picker.
- Implemented full-stack features and used ClickUp to manage tasks and track progress and technical debts. Used Git to track code changes and review code.
Technologies: JavaScript, React, HTML, Objection.js, Node.js, PostgreSQL, CSS, Relational Databases, TypeScript, Git, ClickUp, Express.js, Front-end Development
Tech Lead
2020 - 2021
Tianz Global Group
- Designed and implemented a multitenant system that serves 12+ multilevel marketing (MLM) businesses. Each business uses a different set of complex algorithms to calculate incentives for its agents.
- Built an automation tool that allowed the client to duplicate and deploy a website with just two clicks, significantly reducing the time to duplicate, customize, and deploy sites.
- Tracked and fixed bugs using Jira and documented feature implementation on Confluence.
- Integrated a payment gateway API from a local company and executed a Netlify deployment.
- Built an admin panel with a UI that enabled nontechnical individuals to configure and customize incentive schemes for different MLM clients.
- Performed daily code reviews for the team and ensured code consistency and readability across the projects I was involved in.
- Managed a team consisting of a full-time software engineer and two interns, whom I also mentored.
- Conducted daily Scrum meetings to discuss progress and blockers for each team member.
Technologies: JavaScript, React, PostgreSQL, GraphQL, REST, NestJS, Node.js, Firebase, Jira, Confluence, Algorithms, APIs, API Integration, Payment APIs, Payment Gateways, UI Development, Website Builders, HTML, Git, CSS, Functional Programming, Relational Databases, TypeScript, Tailwind CSS, Express.js, Front-end Development
Founder
2020 - 2020
Sasiad Supplies
- Built a site for locals to submit lists of items they needed to survive through COVID-19. The lists were emailed to nearby volunteers who shopped and delivered the items to those in need for free.
- Developed a mobile app using React Native with features to search nearby users using Google Maps and Places APIs.
- Managed a team of two engineers and several nontechnical volunteers. Used ClickUp for task allocation and Git for code collaboration.
Technologies: Webflow, React Native, PostgreSQL, Hasura, Firebase, Git, ClickUp, Front-end Development
Freelance Web Developer
2020 - 2020
YW Soo & Co.
- Developed a company website to enable the client to increase its online presence.
- Built an admin dashboard for the client to manage the job applications and inquiries they received.
- Made the website responsive and more interactive with animation using CSS and some JavaScript.
Technologies: React, Firebase, HTML, CSS, Styled-components, JavaScript, Front-end Development
Freelance Software Engineer
2019 - 2020
Cuprate.co
- Developed a loan calculator for customers to calculate their debt service ratios (DSR) without consulting a bank and get pre-approval for loan applications.
- Integrated a Stripe Payments gateway to collect consultation fees and charges for purchasing credit reports.
- Created an admin panel that allows business owners to export business-related data into CSV files.
- Implemented an amortization calculator using functional programming to allow customers to check whether they are eligible for a mortgage loan.
Technologies: React, Firebase, WordPress, HTML, CSS, Functional Programming, Front-end Development
Web Developer
2017 - 2019
EduLink Klang (Freelance)
- Designed and built the company's first-ever website using WordPress and later changed it to WiX. The current website is not my work.
- Developed a React app to automate internal work, including tools for agents to follow up on their leads.
- Built a React app with a simple personality test to collect leads during education tours. It was much more effective than walking around in schools and asking students to fill out paper forms.
Technologies: WordPress, Wix, React, Firebase, CSS, HTML, Front-end Development
Founder
2015 - 2016
The Twins Official
- Designed, built, and modified a Shopify template using HTML and CSS to make the site stand out.
- Managed a team of four nontechnical customer service staff and used Trello for team collaboration and task communication.
- Added custom theme configuration and settings by modifying the Shopify template code so that nontechnical staff could make changes while I was away.
Technologies: Shopify, HTML, CSS, JavaScript
Experience
MLM System Generator
A React app for MLM businesses to manage and recruit agents, monitor their inventories, and manage incentives. I built the back end and front end of the system, which serves multiple MLM brands, each with a different set of incentive schemes for agents.
SOLUTION
• Built a template site with all the required features.
• Used React with a private route for admin users to perform higher-privilege operations, such as customizing the site's design and managing users and sales.
• Used Victory to make charts that helped users with data visualization.
I developed another admin app with React, allowing my client to duplicate the template site and deploy the new sites to Netlify by providing only a name. This admin app lets my client configure some prebuilt incentive schemes for each MLM business by inputting key parameters.
Finally, I built a Shopify-like site builder for MLM businesses.
SOLUTION
• Built a template site with all the required features.
• Used React with a private route for admin users to perform higher-privilege operations, such as customizing the site's design and managing users and sales.
• Used Victory to make charts that helped users with data visualization.
I developed another admin app with React, allowing my client to duplicate the template site and deploy the new sites to Netlify by providing only a name. This admin app lets my client configure some prebuilt incentive schemes for each MLM business by inputting key parameters.
Finally, I built a Shopify-like site builder for MLM businesses.
React Tailwind Scaffolding
A React scaffolding template to skip the process of setting up Tailwind CSS. This scaffolding template has multiple scripts to satisfy different use cases. I find setting up Tailwind CSS annoying because of the installation, configuration initialization, setting up scripts, and other steps. I created this template to skip the repetitive process.
Cryptocurrency Triangular Arbitrage Demo
A React app to showcase how triangular arbitrage works in cryptocurrency. I am obsessed with financial knowledge and built a demo to explain how triangular arbitrage works to my friends.
In the demo, if you enter ETHUSDT for pair one and XRPETH for pair two, pair three will be auto-selected. Then you will see how much profit you can make by doing triangular arbitrage. You can play around with the parameters to adjust how much cheaper you want to buy or how much more expensive you want to sell.
The data is from the Binance API.
In the demo, if you enter ETHUSDT for pair one and XRPETH for pair two, pair three will be auto-selected. Then you will see how much profit you can make by doing triangular arbitrage. You can play around with the parameters to adjust how much cheaper you want to buy or how much more expensive you want to sell.
The data is from the Binance API.
Accounting Firm Website
A React website to increase the online presence of a local accounting firm. Working solo on this freelance project, I designed the UI/UX with image resources provided by the client and used JavaScript and CSS to make the site feel more interactive. The goal of the project was to receive and manage inquiries and job applications, so I also built an admin panel to help them do this. The data are stored in Firebase.
Triangular Arbitrage Monitor
A simple React app styled with TailwindCSS to show real-time triangular arbitrage opportunities on Binance.
The states were managed by React Context and React hooks. I made a use order book hook which will get real-time data from Binance's WebSocket API and is called three times inside the Arbitrage Context to subscribe to three selected pairs. The context then computes arbitrage opportunity and is exposed via another hook called use Arbitrage which will give the profit rates and some methods to change the parameters.
Try pair 1 with ETHUSDT.
The states were managed by React Context and React hooks. I made a use order book hook which will get real-time data from Binance's WebSocket API and is called three times inside the Arbitrage Context to subscribe to three selected pairs. The context then computes arbitrage opportunity and is exposed via another hook called use Arbitrage which will give the profit rates and some methods to change the parameters.
Try pair 1 with ETHUSDT.
Course Discovery Platform
A Next.js-based app for higher education courses discovery. I built this website for fun to showcase my Next.JS and UI/UX skills. The goal was to create a site that is so fast and SEO friendly that it ranks higher than any other course listing site in my country and maintains a really high lighthouse score.
I utilized Next.JS's pre-rendering and incremental static generation method to create static pages for each category, course, and school page, leading to remarkably fast loading and response times. My attention to detail regarding HTML tags has also helped improve the site's SEO ranking and preview. For instance, by using table tags instead of div tags to list courses, Google can display a preview of the courses in the search results. As the sole creator of this website, I designed the UI/UX and built the front end and back end from scratch.
The site is currently WIP.
I utilized Next.JS's pre-rendering and incremental static generation method to create static pages for each category, course, and school page, leading to remarkably fast loading and response times. My attention to detail regarding HTML tags has also helped improve the site's SEO ranking and preview. For instance, by using table tags instead of div tags to list courses, Google can display a preview of the courses in the search results. As the sole creator of this website, I designed the UI/UX and built the front end and back end from scratch.
The site is currently WIP.
Education
2018 - 2021
Bachelor's Degree (Hons) in Computer Science (Cybersecurity Major)
Taylor's College Lakeside Campus - Petaling Jaya, Malaysia
2019 - 2020
Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science
Free University of Bozen-Bolzano - Bolzano, Italy
Skills
Libraries/APIs
React, Node.js, Objection.js, Binance API, Antd, MobX, Web3.js
Tools
Git, Slack, Jira, Confluence, Wix, Lerna, Kibana, Jenkins, GitLab, Figma, Geth (go-ethereum)
Languages
JavaScript, GraphQL, HTML, TypeScript, Solidity, Go, Java, CSS, Less
Platforms
Firebase, Heroku, Visual Studio Code (VS Code), Netlify, WordPress, Shopify, Webflow, Ethereum, Blockchain
Frameworks
React Native, NestJS, Tailwind CSS, Express.js, OAuth 2, Next.js
Paradigms
Functional Programming, Agile Software Development, Penetration Testing, REST, Microservices, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), UI Design
Storage
PostgreSQL, Relational Databases, Hasura, MySQL
Industry Expertise
Cybersecurity
Other
Web3, Front-end Development, Concurrent Computing, Data Structures, Algorithms, Computer Networking, APIs, API Integration, Payment APIs, Payment Gateways, UI Development, Back-end, Front-end, Full-stack, Website Builders, Styled-components, ClickUp, Crypto, Cryptocurrency, Ethers.js, Blocknative, Subgraph, Mst-gql, Open Source, Cryptocurrency Exchanges, Web App Development, React Hooks, Foundry, Bots
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