Step

What Step does

Step is a US-based consumer fintech, founded in 2018 by CJ MacDonald and Alexey Kalinichenko and headquartered in Palo Alto, California, that operates a single mobile-banking app targeted at teens, young adults, and their families. Banking and card-issuing services are provided through Evolve Bank & Trust (FDIC-insured) on the Visa network, with the platform layered atop a partner-stack architecture: DriveWealth for stocks/ETFs, Zero Hash for crypto, Gigs Wireless for mobile plans, Bridge Money for rewards, Plaid for data aggregation, and Persona for KYC identity verification. The core product is the Step Visa Card — a secured credit card whose Smart Pay technology auto-generates a dynamic security code per transaction and automatically settles the statement balance from the user's spending account each month, enabling under-18 credit history reported to TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax without delinquency risk.

Step's product surface extends well beyond a teen checking account: it bundles Step Savings (FDIC-insured with 3.00% APY on Black), Step Direct Deposit (paychecks up to two days early), Step EarlyPay (cash advances up to $250), Step Rewards (cashback via Bridge Money), Step Investing (commission-free stocks/ETFs and crypto through custodial accounts), Step Mobile Phone Plans ($15/month via Gigs Wireless), Money 101 financial literacy content, and a Step Marketplace of 25+ brand partners (Temu, Marriott, Chegg, Paramount+, etc.) generating affiliate revenue. Pricing is freemium: the base account is free with no monthly fees, no minimums, and no overdraft fees; Step Black is a $4.99/month premium tier (waived with $500+ monthly direct deposit) that unlocks a metal card, unlimited EarlyPay, higher rewards, and higher savings APY.

The business model combines interchange revenue on every Visa transaction (primary), Step Black subscriptions, marketplace affiliate commissions, EarlyPay instant-access fees, crypto/brokerage transaction fees, and mobile-plan revenue share. Distribution is direct-to-consumer and mobile-app-first, augmented by paid social, SEO, Money 101 content marketing, and celebrity-brand amplification; the February 2026 acquisition by Beast Industries (MrBeast's parent company) materially extends top-of-funnel reach to 460M+ YouTube subscribers. Step has raised more than $500 million in cumulative equity and debt funding since 2019 from Coatue, General Catalyst, Stripe, Crosslink Capital, Collaborative Fund, Triplepoint Capital, Evolve Bank & Trust, and BitMine Immersion Technologies, alongside celebrity investors Stephen Curry, Charli D'Amelio, Justin Timberlake, Will Smith, and The Chainsmokers.

Name

Step

Legal name

Step Financial LLC

Website

https://step.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Step is a US-based mobile fintech that builds a teen- and family-oriented banking app featuring a secured Visa credit card, savings, investing, crypto, cash advances, mobile plans, and financial education. It serves over 7 million users, primarily teens and young adults, with banking issued through Evolve Bank & Trust.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Teen and Young-Adult Consumer Banking (Neobank)

NAICS

Depository Credit Intermediation (5221)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth/Student Neobanks (FSABAFAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Student & Youth Banking (FSABAAAH)

Keywords

• Teen banking app
• Secured credit card
• Mobile banking platform
• Early paycheck access
• Financial literacy education

Headquarters

HQ city

Palo Alto

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Card Interchange & Swipe Revenue: Primary revenue driver. Step earns interchange fees on every Visa debit and credit card transaction processed through Evolve Bank & Trust's banking rails. Scales directly with user engagement and card spend, with higher monetization on Step Black and credit-card spend.
2. Step Black Subscription: Recurring monthly subscription ($4.99/month) for the premium Step Black tier, which waives ATM fees, offers higher savings APY, investment boosts, and elevated rewards. Subscription is effectively free with $500+ monthly direct deposit, converting it into a hybrid subscription/interchange model.
3. Marketplace Affiliate & Referral Revenue: Step earns affiliate commissions when users purchase through the Step Marketplace from partner brands (Temu, Chegg, Marriott, Hyatt, Hilton, Paramount+, Taskrabbit, Insurify, Path, italki, Earnest, Sittercity, Career.io, JobScan, Cheapoair, IHG). Marketplace offers are surfaced in-app, blending affiliate/referral economics with interchange.
4. EarlyPay Instant Access Fees: Usage-based revenue from optional instant access to earned wages via EarlyPay, where users pay per-transaction fees for faster-than-standard payouts of their pending direct deposit funds.
5. Crypto & Investment Transaction Fees: Spread and transaction-fee revenue from in-app crypto purchases through Zero Hash and from brokerage activity through DriveWealth. Step is also a strategic investor in BitMine Immersion Technologies, creating an additional crypto/blockchain economic link.
6. Mobile Plan Revenue (via Gigs Wireless): Revenue share / referral economics from in-app mobile phone plans starting at $15/month, fulfilled by Gigs Wireless. Step monetizes by embedding telecom purchase within the banking app, capturing plan-level economics.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Step is an all-in-one mobile banking app that bundles a no-fee Step Visa secured credit card (issued by Evolve Bank & Trust) with savings, investing, crypto, early-paycheck access (EarlyPay), cashback rewards, mobile phone plans, and a Money 101 financial-literacy curriculum. The core product enables teens (with parent/sponsor) and young adults to bank, build credit history before age 18, and access investment and earned-wage products inside a single mobile app.

Product overview

Step is a single unified mobile-banking app targeted at teens, young adults, and families, sold as a platform composed of a core Step Visa Card and account plus a set of in-app modules: Step Savings, Step Direct Deposit, Step EarlyPay (cash advances), Step Rewards (cashback), Step Investing (stocks/ETFs via DriveWealth and crypto via Zero Hash), Step Mobile Phone Plans (with Gigs Wireless), Money 101 financial education, Step Family Banking for parents, and the Step Marketplace of partner offers. The premium Step Black membership bundles a metal card, a high-yield Step Black Deposit Program, and unlimited EarlyPay on top of the core platform. Banking and card-issuing services are provided by Evolve Bank & Trust (FDIC-insured, Visa-licensed); investing is provided by DriveWealth; crypto execution/custody by Zero Hash; identity verification by Persona; rewards infrastructure by Bridge Money, Inc.; and mobile-service delivery by Gigs Wireless.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Step Black: Premium rewards card and membership tier launched in 2025 offering up to 10% cashback, 3.00% on savings, EarlyPay, and other premium benefits.
• Step Mobile
• Step Investing
• Step EarlyPay

Products and services

• Step App Core mobile application that combines the Step Visa Card, savings, investing, direct deposit, EarlyPay, rewards, and Money 101 education into a single teen- and family-friendly banking experience, available on iOS and Android.
• Step Visa Card No-fee secured and unsecured Visa card issued by Evolve Bank & Trust that builds credit history with on-time payments reported to TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax, with Visa Zero Liability Protection for unauthorized transactions. Designed for teens and young adults, including users under 18 via Smart Pay auto-pay technology.
• Step Black Premium membership tier ($4.99/month or free with $500+ monthly direct deposit) that includes a metal Step Black Visa card, a high-yield Step Black Deposit Program, up to 10% unlimited cashback, premium perks, and unlimited EarlyPay.
• Step EarlyPay Cash-advance / earned-wage-access feature that delivers paychecks up to 2 days early and provides advances of up to $250 between paychecks, with unlimited advances for Step Black members.
• Step Savings FDIC-insured savings sub-account (via Evolve Bank & Trust) that pays a competitive interest rate (3.00% with Step Black), supports automated savings goals, and includes a Save When You Spend round-up feature that allocates spare change toward user-defined goals.
• Step Investing Commission-free stock and ETF investing for adults and teens, with SIPC-protected custody via DriveWealth, plus crypto trading (Bitcoin and additional tokens) executed and custodied via Zero Hash. Step Advisers LLC provides investment-advisory services.
• Step Rewards Cashback rewards program that pays users when they shop with their Step Visa Card at participating brands, offering up to 10% cashback with no cap on total rewards. Operated by partner Bridge Money, Inc.
• Step Direct Deposit Direct-deposit feature that routes paychecks into the Step account, enabling faster access to funds (up to 2 days early) and powering the EarlyPay cash-advance benefit.
• Step Mobile Phone Plans Mobile phone-plan offering delivered in partnership with Gigs Wireless (MVNO), starting at $15/month, allowing users to choose a plan, activate a SIM/eSIM, and have the monthly cost deducted from their Step account.
• Step Marketplace In-app affiliate marketplace that surfaces partner offers across shopping, travel, food delivery, streaming, education, jobs, and tutoring categories. Step earns a commission when users transact with partner brands.
• Step Family Banking Family-tier account type that includes a parent-managed joint account, a secured Step Visa Card for the teen, and parental visibility and controls over the minor's spending and savings.

Quantifiable outcome

• More than 7 million users have signed up for Step accounts
• +4 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

AI capability2 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered flagship — core banking partner, core card-network partner, core investing infrastructure partner, core crypto infrastructure partner, embedded mobile-plan partner, core rewards infrastructure partner, supporting data-aggregation partner, supporting identity-verification partner, flagship acquirer — controlling parent company, distributed marketplace of 25+ brand partners and affiliated philanthropic partner.

• Evolve Bank & Trustflagship — core banking partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerEvolve Bank & Trust is Step's FDIC-insured banking partner. All Step accounts, debit cards, and secured credit cards are issued through Evolve Bank & Trust. As of May 2026, Evolve was reportedly in talks to offload its Banking-as-a-Service business, which could affect Step and other fintech partners.
• Visacore card-network partnerTechnology or IntegrationStep debit and secured credit cards are issued on the Visa network with Visa Zero Liability protection. The Visa network underpins Step's card products, including the Smart Pay auto-pay credit card technology.
• DriveWealthcore investing infrastructure partnerTechnology or IntegrationDriveWealth provides brokerage infrastructure powering Step Invest — users can buy stocks and ETFs in-app with fractional shares. Enables custodial investing for sponsored minor accounts.
• Zero Hashcore crypto infrastructure partnerTechnology or IntegrationZero Hash powers Step's in-app cryptocurrency trading functionality, providing custody and execution rails for crypto purchases available to users within the Step app.
• Gigs Wirelessembedded mobile-plan partnerTechnology or IntegrationGigs Wireless is the mobile virtual network operator behind Step's in-app mobile phone plans (starting at $15/month), enabling users to bundle a phone plan with their Step banking experience.
• Bridge Money, Inc.core rewards infrastructure partnerTechnology or IntegrationBridge Money, Inc. powers Step Rewards, the cash-back rewards engine that issues percentage-back rewards redeemable in-app and incentivizes card spend at partner merchants.
• Plaidsupporting data-aggregation partnerTechnology or IntegrationPlaid provides financial data aggregation infrastructure used within the Step app, enabling account linking and transaction data flows across connected financial institutions.
• Personasupporting identity-verification partnerTechnology or IntegrationPersona provides identity verification (KYC) infrastructure for Step's user onboarding flows, including identity checks for both sponsored minor accounts and adult users.
• Beast Industries (MrBeast)flagship acquirer — controlling parent companyStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn February 2026, Beast Industries (MrBeast's parent company) acquired Step. The acquisition gives Step access to MrBeast's 460M+ YouTube subscriber audience as a distribution channel and aligns Step's brand with the MrBeast creator ecosystem. CJ MacDonald continues to lead Step post-acquisition.
• Step Marketplace brand partners (Temu, Marriott, Hyatt, IHG, Hilton, Cheapoair, Paramount+, Chegg, italki, Earnest, Insurify, Path, Sittercity, Career.io, JobScan, Taskrabbit)distributed marketplace of 25+ brand partnersChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorStep Marketplace partners include Temu, Marriott, Hyatt, IHG, Hilton, Cheapoair, Paramount+, Chegg, italki, Earnest, Insurify, Path, Sittercity, Career.io, JobScan, and Taskrabbit. Partners are surfaced in-app for cash-back rewards, travel booking, education, insurance, and career services — Step earns affiliate commissions on referred transactions.
• Beast Philanthropyaffiliated philanthropic partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerBeast Philanthropy — the philanthropic arm of Beast Industries — is referenced as part of the broader Step/Beast Industries post-acquisition ecosystem, supporting philanthropic initiatives.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Greenlight: Greenlight is a teen/kid-focused debit card and banking app with parent-managed controls, investing, and savings. It is Step's closest direct competitor in the under-18 banking category, offering a very similar value proposition of a no-fee, app-based card with parental oversight and financial education.
• Current: Current is a mobile-first neobank with a strong teen and young-adult focus, offering early direct deposit, savings pods, and teen banking accounts with parental visibility. It directly overlaps Step's target demographic and product surface.
• Copper Banking: Copper is a teen banking and debit card platform with parent co-account holders, financial education content, and money-management tools. It is one of the most directly comparable teen-targeted fintechs to Step.

Broad incumbents

• Cash App (Block): Cash App is Block's mobile banking and P2P app widely used by Gen Z for spending, saving, and Bitcoin purchases. It serves a substantially overlapping customer base to Step with a much broader feature set, including a Cash App Teens product for 13-17 year-olds.
• Chime: Chime is one of the largest US neobanks with early direct deposit, no monthly fees, and a credit-builder card. While not teen-only, Chime has a sizable young-adult user base that overlaps with Step's graduating 18-24 segment.
• SoFi: SoFi is a full-stack digital bank with checking, savings, credit cards, investing, and student loan refinancing — overlapping with Step's young-adult segment, especially for users transitioning out of the teen years. It is a meaningful competitive destination for graduating Step users.

Emerging players

• Acorns: Acorns is a micro-investing app with a family/legacy product (Acorns Early) that lets parents invest for kids. It competes with Step on the investing-and-savings side for parents of minors, though it lacks Step's broader banking and credit-building stack.
• Stash: Stash is a subscription-based investing and banking app targeting younger consumers with managed portfolios, banking, and education. It overlaps with Step on youth investing and financial literacy, and on the subscription model.
• Revolut < 18: Revolut has launched under-18 accounts in selected markets, offering a teen banking experience very similar to Step's, though currently with limited US availability. It is a relevant comparable for Step's product design and the broader category direction.
• Greenlight + Step alternatives (Busy Kid, FamZoo): Smaller parent-managed debit and allowance apps (Busy Kid, FamZoo) sit in the same teen banking category as Step. While less feature-rich, they compete for the same sponsor-parent user and demonstrate the breadth of entrants in the niche.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat7 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/step
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@getstep
• Facebookfacebook.com/step
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stepmobile
• Instagraminstagram.com/getstep
• TikToktiktok.com/@getstep

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds6 records

Investors18 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Step