Justina Lee and Lu WangJun 22, 2026 – 9.37amIsh Lukhey was 16 years old and working a part-time job at a petrol station when he opened his first brokerage account under his mom’s name. His interest stuck, and by the time the pandemic shut down in-person classes, he was a freshman in college. Cooped up in his parents’ house in Minnesota, Lukhey continued trading, but now on his own account with Robinhood Markets Inc.At the height of the Reddit-fuelled r/wallstreetbets frenzy in early 2021, when retail traders drove a surge in meme stocks such as GameStop, the conventional wisdom was that someone like Lukhey would eventually grow bored of watching lines on a screen once classes, dates and parties resumed. But Lukhey, like many others, didn’t stop. He joined the subreddit r/TheRaceTo100K, a community for those pursuing a $US100,000 net worth, which has more popular seven- and eight-figure variants. The now 23-year-old fashion retail salesman had found a community that encouraged his ambition to trade his way toward starting his own business and buying a house.Bloomberg WealthSubscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber? Fetching latest articles