Beast Industries, owned by YouTuber Jimmy “MrBeast” Donaldson, announced on Monday that it has acquired Step, a banking app designed for teens and young adults. The move comes a couple of months after Donaldson announced plans to start a new YouTube channel centered on personal finance and investing. His main channel has 466 million subscribers and has long been one of the most popular on YouTube, frequently featuring videos where Donaldson gives away huge sums of money.
MrBeast’s other business ventures also include a chain of ghost restaurants, the Feastables snack brand, and an upcoming phone service company called Beast Mobile. This is his company’s first dip into financial services.
Step is one of many mobile-only banking services, similar to Monzo or Revolut, but specifically aimed at teens, which may explain why Donaldson chose it over its rivals — his audience is mainly Gen-Z and Gen Alpha. Step’s investors also include Gen-Z influencers Josh Richards and Charli D’Amelio, the latter of whom has appeared on MrBeast’s YouTube channel.