OpenBB Platform

A comprehensive Python financial data platform that provides investment research capabilities for everyone, anywhere. OpenBB offers unified access to multiple financial data types including equities, options, cryptocurrency, forex, macroeconomics, and fixed income through both Python and CLI interfaces. The platform integrates with numerous financial data vendors, supports AI agent integration, and features a modular architecture with extensible providers.

Package Information

• Package Name: openbb
• Language: Python
• Installation: pip install openbb
• Extended Installation: pip install openbb[all]
• CLI Installation: pip install openbb-cli
• Python Compatibility: 3.9-3.12
• License: AGPL-3.0-only

Core Imports

from openbb import obb

All OpenBB functionality is accessed through the obb object, which provides the unified interface to all financial data capabilities.

Basic Usage

from openbb import obb

# Get historical stock data
stock_data = obb.equity.price.historical("AAPL")
df = stock_data.to_dataframe()

# Search for stocks
search_results = obb.equity.search("Apple")

# Get cryptocurrency data
crypto_data = obb.crypto.price.historical("BTC-USD")
crypto_df = crypto_data.to_dataframe()

# Get economic indicators
unemployment_data = obb.economy.unemployment()
economic_df = unemployment_data.to_dataframe()

Architecture

OpenBB Platform uses a modular, provider-agnostic architecture:

• Unified Interface: Single obb entry point for all financial data
• Response Objects: Structured data objects with conversion methods (.to_dataframe(), etc.)
• Provider System: Seamless switching between data providers (free and paid)
• Extension Architecture: Plugin system for custom data sources and functionality
• Configuration Management: Centralized credential and provider management
• Multi-Format Access: Python API, REST API, and CLI interfaces

The platform abstracts data source complexity while maintaining full access to provider-specific features and ensuring consistent data formats across all financial domains.

Capabilities

Equity Market Data

Comprehensive equity market data including historical prices, fundamental analysis, earnings data, institutional ownership, dark pool activity, and company discovery tools.

# Price data
def obb.equity.price.historical(symbol: str, **kwargs) -> ResponseObject: ...
def obb.equity.price.quote(symbol: str, **kwargs) -> ResponseObject: ...

# Company search and screening
def obb.equity.search(query: str, **kwargs) -> ResponseObject: ...
def obb.equity.screener(**kwargs) -> ResponseObject: ...

# Fundamental data access points
obb.equity.fundamental  # Financial metrics and company data
obb.equity.calendar     # Earnings, dividends, IPOs, events
obb.equity.estimates    # Analyst estimates and consensus
obb.equity.ownership    # Institutional and insider data

Equity Market Data

Cryptocurrency Data

Cryptocurrency market data including historical prices, market information, and trading pair discovery across major exchanges.

# Crypto price data
def obb.crypto.price.historical(symbol: str, **kwargs) -> ResponseObject: ...

# Crypto search and discovery
def obb.crypto.search(query: str, **kwargs) -> ResponseObject: ...

Cryptocurrency Data

Economic Indicators

Macroeconomic data and indicators including GDP, inflation, employment statistics, central bank data, and global economic metrics.

# Economic data access
obb.economy  # Macroeconomic indicators and data

Economic Indicators

Fixed Income Securities

Bond and fixed income data including government bonds, corporate bonds, yield curves, and fixed income analytics.

# Fixed income data
obb.fixedincome  # Bond data and fixed income analytics

Fixed Income Securities

Commodity Markets

Commodity market data including energy, metals, agricultural products, and specialized commodity reports.

# Commodity data and reports
def obb.commodity.short_term_energy_outlook(**kwargs) -> ResponseObject: ...
def obb.commodity.petroleum_status_report(**kwargs) -> ResponseObject: ...

Commodity Markets

Currency and Forex

Foreign exchange data including currency pairs, exchange rates, and forex market information.

# Currency and forex data
obb.currency  # Foreign exchange data

Currency and Forex

ETF and Index Data

Exchange-traded fund and market index data including ETF analytics, index composition, and performance metrics.

# ETF data
obb.etf  # Exchange-traded fund data and analytics

# Index data
obb.index  # Market indices data

ETF and Index Data

Derivatives and Options

Options and derivatives data including options pricing, Greeks, volatility analysis, and derivatives market information.

# Derivatives data
obb.derivatives  # Options and derivatives analytics

Derivatives and Options

Financial News and Sentiment

Financial news aggregation and market sentiment analysis from multiple sources.

# News and sentiment data
obb.news  # Financial news and sentiment analysis

Financial News and Sentiment

Technical Analysis

Technical analysis indicators, charting capabilities, and quantitative analysis tools.

# Technical analysis tools
obb.technical      # Technical indicators and analysis
obb.quantitative   # Quantitative analysis and metrics

Technical Analysis

Regulatory and Research Data

Regulatory filings, academic research factors, and econometric analysis tools.

# Regulatory data
obb.regulators     # SEC filings and regulatory data

# Academic research factors
obb.famafrench     # Fama-French research factors

# Econometric analysis
obb.econometrics   # Econometric modeling tools

Regulatory and Research Data

Configuration and Providers

Provider Management

OpenBB supports multiple data providers that can be configured and switched dynamically:

# Provider configuration (examples of typical usage patterns)
# Configuration is handled through OpenBB Hub or local configuration

Free Providers:

• FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data)
• Polygon
• Yahoo Finance

Paid Providers:

• Benzinga
• Intrinio
• Trading Economics

Authentication and Configuration

# Configuration is managed through:
# - OpenBB Hub (my.openbb.co) for centralized credential management
# - Local configuration files
# - Environment variables
# - Runtime configuration

Response Objects and Data Handling

All OpenBB API calls return structured response objects with built-in conversion methods:

import pandas

class ResponseObject:
    """
    Response object returned by all OpenBB API calls.
    
    Provides methods to convert financial data into various formats
    for analysis and integration with other tools.
    """
    
    def to_dataframe(self) -> pandas.DataFrame:
        """
        Convert response data to pandas DataFrame.
        
        Returns:
        pandas.DataFrame: Structured data ready for analysis
        """
        ...
    
    def to_dict(self) -> dict:
        """Convert response data to dictionary format."""
        ...
        
    def to_json(self) -> str:
        """Convert response data to JSON string."""
        ...

Platform Integration

REST API Access

# OpenBB Platform includes a built-in REST API server
# Default endpoint: http://localhost:6900
# Provides HTTP access to all platform functionality

CLI Interface

# Separate CLI package provides command-line access
pip install openbb-cli

# CLI mirrors Python API structure
# Supports automation via OpenBB Routine Scripts

Enterprise Integration

• OpenBB Workspace: Enterprise UI at pro.openbb.co
• OpenBB Hub: Credential management at my.openbb.co
• AI Integration: Built-in support for AI agents and custom models