Step surpasses one million users in less than four months
Closes new venture debt facility; welcomes Alex Rodriguez and Josh Richards to the #StepFam
SAN FRANCISCO –– February 25, 2021 –– Step, the new modern-day financial services company built for teens and families, today announced it has crossed one million users. A first of its kind, Step offers users the ability to build credit before they turn 18 through a free, FDIC insured bank account, secured spending card and P2P payments platform. The company also recently closed a new venture debt facility and added major star power with baseball legend Alex Rodriguez and digital megastar Josh Richards joining Step as investors.
“We’ve seen explosive growth since Step’s launch a few short months ago and we’re thrilled to be helping so many teens and families tackle money management,” said CJ MacDonald, Founder and CEO at Step. “The rapid adoption of Step reflects the evolving needs of today’s teens and we’re really excited to be working with partners like Alex and Josh to help push our financial literacy movement even further.”
Year after year, harrowing statistics have been reported about the state of financial literacy in the U.S. with 34% of teens unbanked, only 21 states teaching personal finance content in school and college students graduating with an average of $5,000 in credit card debt. Consumers have had enough and they’re looking for not just a better product, but a better partner. It takes less than two minutes to sign up for Step. There are no gimmicks or fees, and teens can start managing their money immediately, all from the palm of their hands.
“As someone who grew up with limited resources, financial literacy has always been a mission that resonates with me,” said Alex Rodriguez, Chairman and CEO at A-Rod Corp. “I tell my kids all the time that knowledge is power. Step is the type of tool that can empower young people by helping them understand personal finance and money management.”
According to Common Sense Media, teens spend an average of nine hours online every day catching up on news, following the latest trends and teaching themselves new skills. Learning is at the core of teen engagement on social media, making it the perfect place to start talking to them about the importance of financial literacy and how to avoid the common money pitfalls of past generations.
“Step has done an incredible job of tapping into the teen market by creating authentic and engaging conversations across popular social media platforms like Instagram, Snap, TikTok, Triller and YouTube,” said Josh Richards, digital megastar and Step investor. “I truly never thought I would see a day where teens were actively talking about their banks on social media. Learning how to manage your money is such a critical life skill so when I saw a company making these conversations cool - I just had to get involved!”
As Step continues to grow at an exponential rate, the company recently closed a venture debt facility with Bridge Bank to prepare for future capital growth needs and focus on becoming the number one banking platform for the next generation.
About Step
Step was founded by financial industry veterans CJ MacDonald and Alexey Kalinichenko to provide teens and their families with financial tools for today’s modern-day banking needs and to promote financial literacy for the future. The founding team has 50+ years in combined financial technology experience from companies like Gyft, First Data, Square and Google. Step is backed by Coatue, Stripe, Crosslink Capital and Collaborative Fund. Step’s financial products are powered by its bank partner Evolve Bank & Trust, Member FDIC and insured up to $250,000. To learn more, please visit www.step.com.
