Episodes / #77

The Real Reason Financial APIs Are Losing Their Moat

April 20, 2026 ยท 54:00
Guests: Tommy Cotter

Armando J. Perez-Carreno talks with Tommy Cotter from Benzinga about how financial media and market-data APIs actually work, why prediction markets are changing trading behavior, and how large historical news datasets become an edge for model builders.

Topics Covered

Financial APIsMarket DataPrediction MarketsTrading ModelsFintech

Show Notes

Armando J. Perez-Carreno talks with Tommy Cotter from Benzinga about what is really happening behind the scenes in financial media, market-data products, and API businesses that serve everyone from hobbyist builders to large institutions. Using Benzinga as a lens, they unpack how news distribution works, what customers actually pay for, and why access alone is no longer enough to protect a moat.

They also get into prediction markets, arbitrage behavior, and the value of massive historical news archives for teams training trading models. If you have ever wondered how financial-data businesses stay relevant while AI makes integration easier and faster, this episode gives a sharp look at the pressure points.

Topics Covered

  • How financial media companies turn data and news into API products
  • Why prediction markets are creating new opportunities for builders and traders
  • What makes historical market-news data valuable for model training
  • Why easy integrations can weaken traditional API moats
  • How fintech teams should think about distribution and defensibility