Famous YouTuber MrBeast has made a fortune with his online presence and is known for his theatrical videos of elaborate challenges and philanthropic gestures.
His media company is estimated to be worth $2.6 billion.
But don’t ask Jimmy Donaldson, known online as MrBeast, to pick up the McDonald’s bill, because he claims he’s cash-poor.
MrBeast’s poverty claim
In January, Donaldson told The Wall Street Journal that he didn’t have much money in his bank account, despite running a $5 billion entertainment company.
“I’m borrowing money. That’s how little money I have,” the 27-year-old media personality with 468 million YouTube followers told the Manhattan-based business newspaper.
“Technically, everyone watching this video has more money than me in their bank account if you subtract the equity value of my company, which doesn’t buy me McDonald’s in the morning,” said Donaldson.
Video: MrBeast pits the world’s strongest man against a robot in a test of strength
But how can that be true?
How can someone who owns a media company worth billions not afford fast food?
Evidence of MrBeast’s wealth
MrBeast’s claims of poverty feel like a stretch.
After all, he rented out an entire Disney park for $500,000 just for a date with his fiancée.
Donaldson himself is worth around $2.6 billion, while his enterprises are worth $5 billion.
The media entrepreneur gave away prizes, including a $1.8 million private island and a $2.8 million private jet.
How can someone be cash-poor and turn any idea or challenge that comes to mind into a massively successful YouTube video?
Video: Watch 30 celebrities fight for $1 million on MrBeast’s YouTube show
It is because Donaldson or MrBeast reinvests all his earnings through his company, Beast Industries, which finances his other ideas, philanthropic endeavours, and businesses.
His mother, Susan Parisher, has been in charge of all of his banking since 2017.
She’s in charge of making sure he has what he needs to grow his fanbase.
Andrew Reil, who teaches accounting classes at Mount Royal University, is aware of some of the extravagant videos Donaldson makes and is impressed by the media entrepreneur’s persona.
“Well, he could just not pay himself very much, like if he paid himself a dollar, then sure enough, he’s got only one, not $5, so he can’t buy that. But he has control over that money, so yeah, he has control over how much he gets,” said Reil.
He added that Donaldson may also pay himself a modest salary to avoid personal taxes.
Technically, Donaldson owns a billion-dollar business, said Reil. But, “you keep that financially separate from you, and you insulate yourself so that you draw a salary from that, like maybe only $2,000 a month or something like that, and then you hardly pay any taxes,” he said.
Is MrBeast really cash poor?
There’s no doubt that Donaldson or MrBeast is worth a lot of money, with his company valued at $2.6 billion, but he is “probably living paycheque to paycheque,” as he told the Wall Street Journal.
Video: MrBeast gets “questioned by the IRS” on the TMG podcast with comedians Cody Ko and Noel Miller
He “technically” may not have enough money to buy McDonald’s in the morning, but there’s no doubting Donaldson is a wealthy entrepreneur with a billion-dollar business.
The Calgary Journal asked Donaldson’s publicist to comment on this fact-checking story, but did not hear back by our deadline.
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