MrBeast Under Fire Over Crypto Plans For Kids Banking App

Senator Elizabeth Warren has sent a 12-page letter to Jimmy Donaldson (MrBeast) and Beast Industries CEO Jeff Housenbold, demanding answers about the company's acquisition of teen banking app Step and its history of offering crypto products to minors.

The letter, sent Monday, asks 11 specific questions covering fraud controls, cybersecurity failures, and advertising practices. Warren set a deadline of April 3 for a response.

Warren, the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee and a longtime crypto critic, questioned whether an entertainment company is equipped to run a fintech platform with roughly 7 million users, the majority of them teenagers.

What Is Step, And Why Does It Matter?

Step is a financial app for teens and young adults that lets users under 18 open a bank account with parental supervision. It is not a bank itself. Instead, it operates through a banking-as-a-service model, relying on Evolve Bank and Trust to provide regulated services like deposit accounts and credit-building cards.

Beast Industries acquired Step in February 2026. The company says its goal is to make financial literacy more accessible for younger users. Step currently offers tools to deposit money, track spending, and build credit.

Early investors in Step include NBA star Stephen Curry and influencer Charli D'Amelio, which helped grow its profile among younger audiences.

What Is The Senator's Core Concern?

Warren's letter focuses heavily on Step's earlier involvement in crypto. In 2022, Step partnered with Zero Hash to become the first US platform allowing users under 18 to buy, sell, hold, and receive cryptocurrency, including Bitcoin and NFTs. The app later expanded access to more than 50 digital assets.

Warren argued that Step promoted these investments to children through social media, and even published materials that coached kids on how to pressure their parents into letting them invest through the app, including a script posted to YouTube.

Step exited crypto in 2024, but Warren sees signs of a potential return:

• In October 2025, Beast Holdings filed trademark applications for "MrBeast Financial," covering cryptocurrency exchange, consumer lending, and decentralized finance (DeFi) services. DeFi refers to financial products that run on blockchain networks without traditional banks or intermediaries.
• In January 2026, Ethereum treasury firm BitMine invested $200 million in Beast Industries, valuing the company at $5.2 billion.
• Beast Industries CEO Jeff Housenbold told The New York Times the company was exploring how to incorporate DeFi into a future financial platform, and noted the company knows how to make products go viral with Gen Z and Gen Alpha audiences.

Warren noted that about 39% of Donaldson's audience is between 13 and 17 years old.

Is Evolve Bank And Trust A Reliable Partner?

Warren also raised concerns about Step's banking partner, Evolve Bank and Trust. Evolve is currently operating under a Federal Reserve cease-and-desist order issued in 2024. The order remains in effect.

Evolve's troubles stem largely from its connection to Synapse Financial Technologies, a middleware company that helped Evolve partner with fintech apps. When Synapse collapsed in 2024, customer funds went missing due to what Evolve describes as inaccurate ledgers maintained by Synapse.

The Synapse collapse is a real-world example of how banking-as-a-service models can put consumer funds at risk. Customers of Synapse-connected apps found themselves unable to access money that had not technically been lost but could not be properly accounted for.

Evolve has since lost clients including Stripe and Mercury, who moved to other banking partners. A person familiar with Beast Industries' plans told the Wall Street Journal that the company is now evaluating alternative banking partners for Step.

Other Red Flags Warren Raised

Beyond crypto and Step's banking partner, the letter flagged two additional concerns:

• A Beast Industries employee was fined and suspended by prediction market platform Kalshi for alleged trading based on non-public information about MrBeast's videos.
• Warren referenced the "Hawk Tuah" memecoin, which briefly reached a market value of around $500 million before losing more than 90% of its value and causing roughly $200,000 in documented losses. A memecoin is a cryptocurrency with little or no underlying utility, typically built around an internet joke or celebrity brand.

How Did Beast Industries Respond?

A spokesperson for Beast Industries said the company appreciates Warren's outreach and plans to engage with her as Step develops.

"Our primary motivation behind this deal is to improve the financial future of the next generation," the spokesperson said. "We're examining all existing offerings and marketing approaches to ensure that Step's future is developed thoughtfully and deliberately, meets our very high quality standards, and is in compliance with applicable laws and regulatory requirements."

What Happens Next?

Beast Industries has until April 3 to answer Warren's 11 questions. The company's response will likely shape how regulators and the public view its plans for Step going forward.

Beast Industries controls a fintech platform used by roughly 7 million people, most of them teenagers. It has a $200 million investment from a crypto-linked firm, a trademark filing that explicitly mentions cryptocurrency and DeFi services, and a banking partner currently operating under a federal consent order.

Warren's letter does not accuse Beast Industries of breaking any laws. What it does is put the company on notice that its next moves with Step will be watched closely, particularly any attempt to bring crypto products back to an audience that is largely under 18.

For now, Beast Industries says it is reviewing Step's products and marketing. Whether that review leads to a clean break from crypto or a carefully structured return to it will determine whether this stays a political story or becomes a regulatory one.

Resources

1. Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s 12-page letter 

2. Report by The Block: Sen. Warren requests details from MrBeast about its future plans for teens and crypto

3. Report CoinDesk: Richest YouTube Star MrBeast’s Firm Files Trademark With Crypto Ambitions

4. Report by CNBC: MrBeast platform gets $200 million investment from Tom Lee’s Bitmine

5. Report by Fortune: Mr Beast fires video editor who Kalshi said had ‘near-perfect’ trading record, citing insider trading concerns

6. Report by Crypto News Australia: Elizabeth Warren Questions MrBeast Over Potential Crypto Push to Young Users