Executives at Beast Industries, the company behind YouTube creator MrBeast, said they are considering a future public listing as a way to give viewers a chance to become shareholders, following the company’s $5 billion valuation last year.
IPO question raised at DealBook Summit
The possibility of an initial public offering was discussed during the DealBook Summit when journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin asked MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, and Beast Industries chief executive Jeff Housenbold about taking the company public.
Housenbold said the company wants to eventually give the more than 1.4 billion unique people who watched MrBeast’s content in the past 90 days “a chance to be owners of the company.” He did not provide a timeline or specific plan for a public listing.
Scale of MrBeast’s audience and valuation history
Donaldson, who is based in North Carolina, runs the most-subscribed YouTube channel in the world with more than 450 million subscribers. Three years ago, Beast Industries was valued at about $1.5 billion. Last year, the company raised funds at a valuation of $5 billion, according to prior reporting.
Revenue sources beyond YouTube
Beast Industries operates beyond YouTube advertising revenue. According to leaked documents reported by Bloomberg, its largest source of profit is Feastables, the company’s chocolate brand. Feastables generates more profit than both the MrBeast YouTube channel and the Prime Video series “Beast Games,” the documents said.
Housenbold also said Beast Industries plans to develop a two-sided marketplace connecting creators and marketers. He added that the company is planning additional ventures, including a phone company, a financial services platform, and a theme park in Saudi Arabia.
Ongoing legal disputes and production issues
Beast Industries is currently involved in litigation with ghost kitchen operator Virtual Dining Concepts. The company has accused the operator of damaging the MrBeast Burger brand by selling what it described as poor-quality food. Virtual Dining Concepts has countersued Donaldson, claiming breach of contract.
Separately, after filming the first season of “Beast Games,” five contestants sued Donaldson and Amazon. The lawsuit alleges mistreatment and sexual harassment on set and claims the production environment fostered misogyny and sexism. The filing is heavily redacted.
At the DealBook event, Donaldson said large-scale competitions create unavoidable dissatisfaction among participants. He said that when thousands compete and only one wins, the majority are unhappy. He added that lawsuits can result from such situations.
Housenbold responded that the company continues to learn from experience and said that the second season of the show has improved. His remarks drew laughter from the audience during the session.
Creator IPO context and past examples
Creator-led companies have had mixed results in public markets. The esports company FaZe Clan went public through a $725 million special purpose acquisition company transaction but was acquired a year later in 2023 for $17 million. In November, Pinkfong, the South Korean company behind the “Baby Shark” video, completed a public listing in Korea.
Housenbold said Beast Industries has operated as a global media company from its early days and is now focused on turning its large audience and brand recognition into long-term revenue streams.
Featured image credits: Wikimedia Commons
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