- MrBeast buys Step to teach teens how to save, spend and invest
- Step offers Visa card and basic banking without monthly fees
- Acquisition gives Beast Industries a fintech team and seven million users
Beast Industries has confirmed the acquisition of Step, a youth-focused financial planning app, adding a regulated monetary product to its growing list of business ventures.
Beast Industries, controlled by Jimmy Donaldson, popularly known as MrBeast, the world’s largest YouTuber by number of subscribers, appears to be expanding its activities beyond entertainment and media into financial services.
The deal follows a year of fundraising by Beast Industries, including a $200 million investment from Bitmine Immersion Technologies, a company closely linked to cryptocurrency markets through its Ether holdings.
What does Step actually do?
Step was founded in 2018 by fintech veterans CJ MacDonald and Alexey Kalinichenko, with an emphasis on financial education for younger users.
The platform is not a chartered bank but relies on a partnership with Evolve Bank & Trust for regulated banking services established in 2022.
Step offers a Visa card along with tools for saving, spending, sending money, and basic investing, with no monthly fees.
Backing from Stripe and major venture capital firms gives the app credibility within fintech circles, regardless of its new owner.
Beast Industries says Step has more than seven million users and an internal fintech team that aligns with its digital reach and charitable ambitions.
The company already runs Feastables, Beast Philanthropy and Beast Games, all closely tied to Donaldson’s massive online presence, with more than 450 million subscribers and billions of monthly views by early 2026.
From a distribution point of view, exposure to a young audience is not a problem. Logic suggests that financial tools could scale quickly across that existing reach.
In a statement Monday to millions of its fans, Beast explained the reasons behind its acquisition and its goal of helping young people develop financial skills.
“No one taught me how to invest, build credit or manage money when I was growing up. That’s exactly why we’re joining forces with Step,” said MrBeast.
“I want to give millions of young people the financial foundation that I never had. Much to share soon.”
While this statement offers some explanation, it does not fully answer why a global entertainment brand should mediate the financial behavior of millions of young users.
Step is marketed as a way to develop credit and money habits early, which seems simple but carries regulatory, ethical and trust implications.
“This acquisition positions us to reach our audiences where they are, with practical, technology-driven solutions that can transform their financial future for the better,” Jeff Housenbold, CEO of Beast Industries, said in a statement.
The app will operate under Beast Industries, effectively tying personal finances to a creator-led brand.
As of this writing, there is no information on how much was paid for the app and no timeline was provided for operational changes post-acquisition.
Through CNBC
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