# Step

Step is an Asset Manager based in United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** Asset Manager
- **Headquarters:** United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Founded:** 2022
- **Assets under management:** Undisclosed
- **Website:** step.com
- **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/step_2

## About

STEP is a career exploration program for Boston Public High School students. Students have a chance to tour and explore some of Boston’s most exciting companies and work environments. STEP offers the chance for students to see how your interests and skills could fit into many different types of businesses.

## Sectors

- FinTech

## People

- CJ MacDonald — Co-Founder
- Alexey Kalinichenko — Co-Founder

## Questions

### Who runs Step's product and strategy?

Co-founders CJ MacDonald and Alexey Kalinichenko lead the company, drawing on senior roles held at Affirm, Google, Square, and Stripe. No separate CEO or CIO has been named publicly, and the firm has not disclosed a management change following its acquisition by Beast Industries.

### What does Step actually do with the capital it has raised?

Step is a consumer fintech company, not an investment fund. The over $500 million it raised has gone into building its mobile app, issuing Step Visa Cards, funding its credit-building program, and supporting its savings and cashback rewards. It does not manage an investment portfolio for external LPs or deploy capital into third-party funds.

### How does Step generate revenue if it charges no fees?

Step discloses no fee revenue, no interest income, and no interchange economics. Its marketing emphasizes no hidden fees, no minimums, and free access, but the company has not publicly explained its unit economics or path to profitability.

### Is Step a bank?

Step is not a chartered bank. It provides banking-like services — a Visa card, deposit accounts with FDIC pass-through insurance, and a credit-building feature — through partnerships with regulated institutions. The firm has not disclosed whether it intends to seek a banking charter under Beast Industries' ownership.

### What is Beast Industries, and how does the acquisition change Step?

Beast Industries is a holding company that acquired Step in an undated transaction. No financial terms, governance structure, or strategic changes have been made public. Step continues to operate under its own brand with its original founders still in place.

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Last updated: 2026-06-03T20:00:00.000Z

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