$2 Million Fund to Invest in Up-and-Coming Creators

$2 Million Fund to Invest in Up-and-Coming Creators $2 Milli F d t I t i U d C i C t

By Jacob Kastrenakes

MRBEAST SAID LAST YEAR that he wanted a way to invest in up-and-coming creators, help them blow up, and get a cut of their business in return — and today, he’s announcing a plan to do just that.

The hit YouTuber, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, is launching a $2 million investment fund that will offer creators up to $250,000 in exchange for a stake in their channels. The fund is part of a new company called Creative Juice (https://getjuice.com), in which Donaldson is an investor, and which was announced this afternoon in The Information.

“We’re gonna make sure we find [creators] that actually need a giant cash inflow and aren’t just trying to go buy a Lamborghini,” Donaldson told The Information.

Details about the investment fund are limited right now. Creative Juice hasn’t said when it will launch or what type of creators it’s looking to invest in. Donaldson said the idea is to help YouTubers “pour gas on the fire” the way a business might by raising an influx of cash once they’re already growing quickly.

MrBeast is one of the biggest creators on YouTube. He has nearly 56 million subscribers and gets tens of millions of views per video (his most recent, posted a week ago, already has 35 million views). He’s known for pulling off goofy, supersized stunts — like making a “2,000 gallon” cereal bowl — but mainly, he’s known for giving away cars, houses, and cash as part of his videos.

The investment fund is just one part of what Creative Juice plans to offer. The company is developing tools to help creators track their performance across platforms. Investors are calling it “Square for creators” and say it plans to launch a suite of products to help creators operate more like small businesses. www.theverge.com/2021/3/24/22348926/mrbeastcreator-investment-fund-creative-juice Image credit: Juice 2020

customers in two countries, especially with one foot in the developed market and another in an emerging market, for example, gives the company an interesting window into the world of remittances.

Money transfer has been one of the very biggest, and most important financial services for African diasporas — alongside those from many other emerging markets.

Even in cases where people are “unbanked” and have no other financial footprints, they have been turning to remittance services to send money home to their families from abroad. Kuda, with its integrations into people’s salaries, could easily become an efficient, one-stop-shop conduit for that activity too. (That’s one reason, likely, that remittance startup, Remitly, has also moved into starting to offer accounts to its users in originating countries.)

All of this to say that Valar’s making a new kind of bet here, but one laden with possibilities and a differentiated approach compared to the rest of its investment activities.

“Nigeria is at a tipping point in the adoption of digital banking,” noted Andrew McCormack, a general partner and co-founder at Valar, who led its investment here. “With the rapidly growing, youthful population who are open to new financial alternatives, Kuda is well-positioned to benefit and will transform the landscape of African banking. We are excited to lead their Series A and continue on the journey alongside Kuda.” https://techcrunch.com/2021/03/18/kuda-raises25m-more-led-by-valar-to-become-the-neobankfor-every-african-on-the-planet Image credit: macjordangh.com