Why are Wall Street firms paying up to $100k a month for faster access to Trump’s Truth Social posts? Any specific goal?

Wall Street trading firms and financial data providers are paying as much as $100,000 a month for faster access to US President Donald Trump’s posts on Truth Social. The move is reportedly aimed at seeking an edge in financial markets where Trump’s statements can trigger movements.

Truth Social, the social media platform founded by Trump, has signed up Bloomberg, Susquehanna International Group and Jump Trading for its Truth API service, Reuters reported, citing sources.

What is Truth Social’s API service

The API enables subscribers to receive Trump’s posts faster than any human could by manually checking the platform.

The service is said to give subscribers a timing advantage. It is reported to be ahead around 50 milliseconds, according to Trump Media officials. That difference might seem insignificant but can matter to high-frequency trading firms, especially those who rely on algorithmic and automated strategies to respond to market movement.

Why trading firms are ready to pay for it

These firms use software that ingests news headlines, company announcements and government statements, analyses the information and can execute trades, all within thousandths of a second, as per the news agency. Faster access to Trump’s posts can potentially help them react before others in the market, including investors.

Trump’s social media statements have moved markets from time to time. Oil futures sank after he announced a ceasefire in the Iran war via Truth Social in April.

Trump Media and Technology Group announced the fastest-access product in July. In August, the company told investors it had “signed more than 10 customer agreements”, which neither Reuters nor Live Mint could confirm.

Trump Media said the customers were primarily trade firms from Wall Street who reportedly paid between $60,000 and $100,000 every month.

Why service is controversial for Trump

What makes this deal even more significant is that it marks the first time a business tied to a sitting president has sold access to his statements. It also prompted ethical and legal concerns among a section of people on the internet.

Democratic Senators Elizabeth Warren and Adam Schiff asked the US Securities and Exchange Commission in July to investigate whether the service violated securities laws and called it a “shocking abuse” of office by a president for personal gain.

Trump Media said, as per Reuters, “Truth Social offers an industry-standard API product for which there is significant demand across industries. We take customer confidentiality seriously. This reporting is based on misleading information being peddled by anonymous sources aimed at harming our company, customers and shareholders.”

The company is also facing a lawsuit by Intercept Media and the Freedom of the Press Foundation. It alleges that charging for faster access to government information would violate the First Amendment and Fifth Amendment rights of the public.