OAKLAND, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr 24, 2025--
e.l.f. Beauty (NYSE: ELF) is making history as the first-ever beauty brand to launch a financial literacy game on Roblox. This experience is specifically designed to empower the Roblox community through engaging financial literacy education while fostering self-confidence among players. Developed by Karta, “Fortune Island: Earn Learn Flex,” in partnership with Chime, a leading financial technology company and the No. 1 most loved banking app 1, was created by e.l.f. to unite the community in a fun, engaging way while teaching essential financial decision-making skills.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250424888255/en/
With over 50% of Gen Z expressing their desire to become entrepreneurs*, it's clear that this generation has ambitious goals. e.l.f.‘s existing Roblox experience e.l.f.UP! invites the community of young entrepreneurs to build their dream business. e.l.f. UP! boasts impressive statistics, including 22.1 million total lifetime visits (as of April 11, 2025), 1.29 million average monthly visits and a 96% approval rating.
“Gen Z would rather talk about literally anything than money or debt — so we flipped the script,” said Patrick O’Keefe, Chief Integrated Marketing Officer, e.l.f. Beauty. “We created ‘Fortune Island: Earn. Learn. Flex.’ to equip our community with the skills and swagger to be their best e.l.f. selves. By building real connections and fueling personal growth, we’re not just creating a safe space — we’re creating a launchpad for Gen Z to flex their power, own their future and thrive on their terms.”
However, social media and other factors have contributed to feelings of financial insecurity, causing Gen Z to struggle with managing money and planning their financial future*. Also, 1 in 3 Gen Z's lack confidence in managing finances, and 3 in 4 feel they only have enough money to survive, not thrive*. To provide our community with the tools they need, e.l.f. partnered with Chime to bridge the financial literacy gap and empower our community by providing an engaging platform to learn about personal finance.
In its commitment to emphasize for the Every in every eye, lip and face, e.l.f. developed this original social story game based on educational milestones for each financial life stage, from early education for teens to investment strategies for those closer to retirement. Gamers progress through four unique stages, facing ‘real-world’ scenarios that help them learn how to save money, budget wisely, protect investments and invest with purpose.
“The most successful brands on Roblox are on the pulse of Gen Z culture, are authentic to what they stand for, and meet their audiences where they are spending time,” said Justine Higueras, Head of Beauty Partnerships at Roblox. “This includes e.l.f., a fan favorite already with proven success on the platform, and now Chime coming together to engage and empower our community of millions of Gen Z users, and look for creative, new ways to enhance their experience on and off the platform.”
e.l.f. and Chime are changing the game for our community and how they engage with financial education. By combining the power of storytelling, gaming and social connection, e.l.f. is leading the charge in empowering the next generation to make informed financial decisions to achieve their dreams.
Dive into the world of financial literacy and play today on e.l.f. UP!: https://www.roblox.com/communities/16231884/e-l-f-UP#!/about
*Source: Intuit Prosperity Index Study – January 2023
About e.l.f. Beauty
e.l.f. Beauty (NYSE: ELF) is fueled by a belief that anything is e.l.f.ing possible. We are a different kind of company that disrupts norms, shapes culture and connects communities, committed to positivity, inclusivity and accessibility. Our mission is clear: to make the best of beauty accessible to every eye, lip and face. Our brands, e.l.f. Cosmetics, e.l.f. SKIN, Keys Soulcare, Well People and NATURIUM are led by purpose, driven by results and elevated by our superpowers. e.l.f. Beauty offers e.l.f. clean and vegan products, all double-certified by Leaping Bunny and PETA as cruelty free and we proudly stand as the first beauty company with Fair Trade Certified™ facilities. A kind heart is at the center of our ethos: We donate 2% of net profits to organizations that make positive impacts. Learn more at www.elfbeauty.com
e.l.f. is the first beauty brand to launch a financial literacy game on Roblox. In partnership with Chime, the experience is designed to empower youth through engaging financial literacy education.
NEW YORK (AP) — Reviving a campaign pledge, President Donald Trump wants a one-year, 10% cap on credit card interest rates, a move that could save Americans tens of billions of dollars but drew immediate opposition from an industry that has been in his corner.
Trump was not clear in his social media post Friday night whether a cap might take effect through executive action or legislation, though one Republican senator said he had spoken with the president and would work on a bill with his “full support.” Trump said he hoped it would be in place Jan. 20, one year after he took office.
Strong opposition is certain from Wall Street in addition to the credit card companies, which donated heavily to his 2024 campaign and have supported Trump's second-term agenda. Banks are making the argument that such a plan would most hurt poor people, at a time of economic concern, by curtailing or eliminating credit lines, driving them to high-cost alternatives like payday loans or pawnshops.
“We will no longer let the American Public be ripped off by Credit Card Companies that are charging Interest Rates of 20 to 30%,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
Researchers who studied Trump’s campaign pledge after it was first announced found that Americans would save roughly $100 billion in interest a year if credit card rates were capped at 10%. The same researchers found that while the credit card industry would take a major hit, it would still be profitable, although credit card rewards and other perks might be scaled back.
About 195 million people in the United States had credit cards in 2024 and were assessed $160 billion in interest charges, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says. Americans are now carrying more credit card debt than ever, to the tune of about $1.23 trillion, according to figures from the New York Federal Reserve for the third quarter last year.
Further, Americans are paying, on average, between 19.65% and 21.5% in interest on credit cards according to the Federal Reserve and other industry tracking sources. That has come down in the past year as the central bank lowered benchmark rates, but is near the highs since federal regulators started tracking credit card rates in the mid-1990s. That’s significantly higher than a decade ago, when the average credit card interest rate was roughly 12%.
The Republican administration has proved particularly friendly until now to the credit card industry.
Capital One got little resistance from the White House when it finalized its purchase and merger with Discover Financial in early 2025, a deal that created the nation’s largest credit card company. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which is largely tasked with going after credit card companies for alleged wrongdoing, has been largely nonfunctional since Trump took office.
In a joint statement, the banking industry was opposed to Trump's proposal.
“If enacted, this cap would only drive consumers toward less regulated, more costly alternatives," the American Bankers Association and allied groups said.
Bank lobbyists have long argued that lowering interest rates on their credit card products would require the banks to lend less to high-risk borrowers. When Congress enacted a cap on the fee that stores pay large banks when customers use a debit card, banks responded by removing all rewards and perks from those cards. Debit card rewards only recently have trickled back into consumers' hands. For example, United Airlines now has a debit card that gives miles with purchases.
The U.S. already places interest rate caps on some financial products and for some demographics. The Military Lending Act makes it illegal to charge active-duty service members more than 36% for any financial product. The national regulator for credit unions has capped interest rates on credit union credit cards at 18%.
Credit card companies earn three streams of revenue from their products: fees charged to merchants, fees charged to customers and the interest charged on balances. The argument from some researchers and left-leaning policymakers is that the banks earn enough revenue from merchants to keep them profitable if interest rates were capped.
"A 10% credit card interest cap would save Americans $100 billion a year without causing massive account closures, as banks claim. That’s because the few large banks that dominate the credit card market are making absolutely massive profits on customers at all income levels," said Brian Shearer, director of competition and regulatory policy at the Vanderbilt Policy Accelerator, who wrote the research on the industry's impact of Trump's proposal last year.
There are some historic examples that interest rate caps do cut off the less creditworthy to financial products because banks are not able to price risk correctly. Arkansas has a strictly enforced interest rate cap of 17% and evidence points to the poor and less creditworthy being cut out of consumer credit markets in the state. Shearer's research showed that an interest rate cap of 10% would likely result in banks lending less to those with credit scores below 600.
The White House did not respond to questions about how the president seeks to cap the rate or whether he has spoken with credit card companies about the idea.
Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., who said he talked with Trump on Friday night, said the effort is meant to “lower costs for American families and to reign in greedy credit card companies who have been ripping off hardworking Americans for too long."
Legislation in both the House and the Senate would do what Trump is seeking.
Sens. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Josh Hawley, R-Mo., released a plan in February that would immediately cap interest rates at 10% for five years, hoping to use Trump’s campaign promise to build momentum for their measure.
Hours before Trump's post, Sanders said that the president, rather than working to cap interest rates, had taken steps to deregulate big banks that allowed them to charge much higher credit card fees.
Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., have proposed similar legislation. Ocasio-Cortez is a frequent political target of Trump, while Luna is a close ally of the president.
Seung Min Kim reported from West Palm Beach, Fla.
President Donald Trump arrives on Air Force One at Palm Beach International Airport, Friday, Jan. 9, 2025, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
FILE - Visa and Mastercard credit cards are shown in Buffalo Grove, Ill., Feb. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)
