Jimmy Donaldson, more commonly known as MrBeast, is the world’s most successful YouTuber. More than 250 million people follow his channel. His videos are mostly absurd challenges involving obscene amounts of cash generated from his YouTube advertising revenue. In one video, he eats $100,000 worth of gold leaf ice cream; in another, he pays a participant $10,000 a day to see how long they’re willing to live in a supermarket. His most popular video, a remake of the Korean survival horror TV show Squid Game, has over half a billion views.
There seems almost nothing negative that can be said about Donaldson – well, almost nothing
Donaldson and his team of friends don’t just squander this money, they also run Beast Philanthropy, which, according to its website, ‘will provide life-changing grants, assistance, and both monetary and non-monetary gifts to individuals and families.’ Many of the organisation’s projects take place in Africa. Donaldson and his team build schools and wells in countries like Zambia, Cameroon, Kenya, Somalia, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.
Last year, Donaldson and his team released a video entitled ‘1,000 Blind People See For The First Time’, in which the YouTuber paid for cataract surgery for patients around the globe. The video, which was supposed to be uplifting, led some to question the ethical implications of charity as public spectacle. Donaldson, his critics argued, wasn’t really interested in helping these poor souls see again. He was more interested in being seen as a good guy, a social media Mother Teresa.
In my opinion, such criticisms were ridiculous. Donaldson appears to be a decent individual, a hardworking young man who has managed to build an empire for him and his friends. He understands the importance of maintaining a positive image. He believes in doing good while having fun. He rarely if ever uses profanity in his videos, appears to be loved by his staff, and brings joy to tens of millions of people around the world on a regular basis.
There seems almost nothing negative that can be said about Donaldson – well, almost nothing. You see, Donaldson has a sponsorship deal with Western Union, an international money transfer firm that was established way back in 1851. Today, the company operates in 200 different countries and territories across thr world.
In his most recent video, where Donaldson and his mates camp on a deserted island for seven days, he spends two of the 22 minutes waxing lyrical about Western Union. As a long-time fan, I find that a bit odd and disappointing. Let me explain why.
Over a billion people live in Africa and around a third of these people don’t have a bank account – many have Western Union accounts instead, using the company to receive money from family members abroad. Western Union is the undisputed king of the remittance market, which facilitates up to one in five dollars sent globally and controls around 40 per cent of all remittance payouts on the continent. In Algeria, nearly 80 per cent of remittances are sent via Western Union; in Namibia, half of all money coming into the country is sent through the company.
You might think this is a good thing for the continent, and in some ways it is. Western Union gives Africans access to financial services that otherwise aren’t available to them. But Western Union has also faced allegations of engaging in anti-competitive practices. A 2014 report by the Overseas Development Institute revealed that Western Union artificially increases its fees for money transfers on the continent, resulting in what is known as an ‘Africa charge’ of 8 per cent.
In certain regions, according to the report, these fees can reach as high as 10 per cent or more. Furthermore, Western Union has also faced criticism for its use of exclusivity agreements with banks in recipient countries, which restrict competition and allow the company to charge inflated fees. This benefits the American multinational, but, as the authors noted, has harmed remittance senders and recipients. In other words, Western Union hurts the very people Donaldson wants to help.
More recently, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, explored the many ways in which Western Union benefited questionable politicians in Africa. For example, there’s Jean-Pierre Bemba, the former vice president of the Congo who has been linked with war crimes. Two decades ago, Bemba and 1,500 Congolese troops took part in a conflict in the nearby Central African Republic. His soldiers were allegedly responsible for the deaths of civilians and the sexual assault of women and girls as young as ten. After being arrested, Bemba and four aides reportedly transferred over $429,000 via Western Union. Much of this money was said to have been used to bribe witnesses.
It’s possible that Donaldson knows nothing about Western Union’s shady past. After all, the Bemba incident is from many years ago, when Donaldson was just a wee lad. Moreover, he’s a ridiculously busy man. Between being buried alive and Ubering people around in decommissioned tanks, it’s unlikely that he spends his time reading about war crimes and the possible exploitation of poor people in Africa. However, in more recent times, Western Union has been found guilty of turning a blind eye to criminals using its services to launder cash and commit fraud. In February, the multinational was sued for earning interest on failed transfers. In short, Western Union has a very questionable reputation.
Considering he is worth at least $100 million, one assumes that Donaldson doesn’t need the money from his Western Union partnership. So why partner with a multinational that stains his otherwise impeccable brand image?
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