MrBeast, one of the most popular YouTubers and philanthropists, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, is known for his extravagant and charitable actions that have captured the attention of more than 300 million viewers around the world, to the point of being considered one of the most famous influencers in the world. 

In addition to his philanthropic efforts, he is also an avid investor in the cryptocurrency market, which is one of the topics he has integrated into his content.  

A few days ago he made the news when he was accused of earning USD 23 million through insider trading, a term used to describe a criminal act in which a person uses privileged information to obtain unusual profits through investments in financial markets.  

These accusations came to light in an investigation published by Lookonchain. It details that MrBeast would have generated profits through his participation  in more than five emerging cryptocurrency projects listed on the market. 

The YouTuber's foray into the world of cryptocurrencies has been known since 2021, when he captured the community's attention by accidentally revealing his wallet, amid his enthusiasm for CryptoPunks. The YouTuber proudly showed off his acquisition without realizing that, in doing so, he was revealing sensitive information about his wallet. 

This event was recently cited by SomaXBT, who calls himself on his profile as a “scam survivor turned crypto threat researcher.” In a thread on X, he recalled the incident, generating a wave of discussions about privacy, security, and exposure in the ecosystem. 

According to his public statements, MrBeast's cryptocurrency portfolio appears to include at least $2 million worth of bitcoin (BTC), which he nearly lost two years ago when his home was burglarized. The thief, apparently unaware of the private key written next to the laptop, missed the chance to get his hands on the fortune. 

In addition to his BTC holdings, he has also invested in NFTs, including 8 CryptoPunks. He did so at the time when collectibles were booming, later selling them for a 20-30x return on investment. He then reinvested the proceeds into Gary Vaynerchuk’s VeeFriends.  

It has also backed Xcademy’s XCAD Network (XCAD), a decentralized finance (DeFi) marketplace and YouTube plugin that offers influencers the creation and monetization of NFTs, and has even collaborated with Coinbase on several promotions that included entrants in a series of contests broadcast on its networks. 

Multiple independent researchers accuse MrBeast of using his platform to personally profit from the cryptocurrency market. Source: YouTube/MrBeast.

This shows the YouTuber's extensive participation in the ecosystem, a process that has been full of controversy due to the fingers pointing at him, including SomaXBT, who claims that Donaldson "allegedly earned more than $10 million by backing low-cap crypto tokens to the detriment of his followers who have suffered from the losses."

Added to this are accusations of labor abuse and sexual harassment by some people who have worked on the production of its content.  

MrBeast does not respond to the accusations and his followers defend him

So far, the 26-year-old Kansas-born YouTuber has not responded to the allegations , so it is difficult to say how much truth there is behind the accusations. A large majority of his huge audience remains supportive and clings to the belief that the young man, known for his immense generosity , would never intentionally harm his followers.

Some even speculate that it is all a conspiracy to bring down the empire he has built since 2012, when he burst onto the Internet. In that time, he has donated millions of dollars in cash, cars and even entire houses to the needy.

He has set up food banks, paid hospital bills and donated huge amounts to charities through his Beast Philanthropy channel. His reputation as someone who genuinely wants to make a positive impact on the world has endeared him to millions of followers.

The outcome of all these accusations remains to be seen if they are brought to court. For now, it remains to be seen what happens next in this cryptocurrency controversy surrounding one of YouTube's biggest stars.