Benzinga and Stakeholder Labs Launch Marketopolis Video Podcast Connecting CEOs with Retail Investors

Benzinga, a leading financial media and data company, and Stakeholder Labs, a startup helping public companies activate retail investors and drive market awareness, have partnered to launch Marketopolis, a new video podcast series that gives everyday investors direct access to public company executives. The series, powered by SoFi, represents a significant shift in how companies communicate with retail investors in the digital age, bridging the traditional gap between C-suite leadership and individual shareholders.

The launch reflects a growing movement toward greater transparency and direct engagement between public companies and retail investors. Jody Rones, Chief Revenue Officer of Benzinga, explained the rationale behind the partnership, stating that retail investors today are seeking unfiltered insight and are more engaged within their investment communities. By collaborating with Stakeholder Labs, the companies are creating content that allows corporate leaders to speak directly to individual investors rather than through filtered institutional channels.

Matt Joanou, CEO and Co-Founder of Stakeholder Labs who also serves as host of Marketopolis, emphasized that the series differs from traditional executive interviews. Each episode reveals how senior leadership thinks about shareholders, capital markets, and growth strategies, giving retail investors what Joanou describes as a seat at the institutional table. The conversations explore themes of transparency, long-term value creation, retail investor influence, and the role of social platforms in shaping public company narratives.

The first four episodes feature Grindr CEO George Arison, Lovesac CEO Shawn Nelson, The Arena Group CEO Paul Edmondson, and Bark CEO Matt Meeker. Episodes premiere weekly beginning Wednesday, October 8, 2025, across multiple platforms including X, YouTube, LinkedIn, Benzinga.com and major podcast platforms. This multi-platform distribution strategy ensures the content reaches investors where they already consume market information.

Marketopolis goes beyond typical quarterly earnings discussions to explore how CEOs think about their roles and approach market communication. Each conversation delves into executives' personal relationships with money and investing, including how they track their own company stock. The show also uncovers the philosophies that shape leadership and the career journeys that led executives to their current positions. This approach provides retail investors with the kind of candid insight typically reserved for Wall Street institutions, blending business strategy with personal philosophy and leadership perspectives.

The series addresses an unmet need in financial media by providing retail investors with direct, unfiltered access to decision-makers. It also serves as a resource for executives, communications professionals, and investor relations teams seeking fresh ideas about next-generation approaches to financial communications. Additionally, the interviews offer valuable insights for aspiring leaders early in their careers, providing a realistic look at what it takes to run a public company or take a business public.

Benzinga's extensive distribution network will extend the show's reach to millions of investors worldwide. As a leading source for financial news and data, Benzinga connects with both retail and institutional audiences, ensuring these executive conversations meet investors where they already consume market-moving information. The partnership combines trusted financial coverage with authentic leadership insights, creating a unique resource for investors seeking both substantive business analysis and personal executive perspectives.

Rones described the partnership as a natural extension of Benzinga's mission to make markets more accessible and engaging. He noted that today's retail investors care not just about quarterly performance but also about the story, strategy, and values behind the companies they support. Marketopolis brings that world to life by blending storytelling with substance, offering audiences a rare opportunity to hear directly from leaders about the human and strategic aspects of running public companies in today's complex market environment.