New York Teenager Made Over $70 Million Trading Stocks During High School Lunch Breaks (Update)

A New York high schooler made over $70 million trading stocks on his lunch break.

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Complex Original

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You know how when you were in high school, you were always trying to borrow money from your parents or friends?

Mohammed Islam of Queens definitely does not have to do that.

Yesterday, New York Magazine ran a profile of Islam, who has amassed a net worth of $72 million trading stocks on his lunch break. This would be impressive no matter how old or experienced he was. Thing is…he’s 17 and goes to Stuyvesant High School in New York City.

“Mo,” as he is known to all, already rents an apartment in Manhattan and owns a BMW (neither of which his parents let him use yet) and is being offered millions of dollars to run his own hedge fund. He made his money investing in oil and gold, and although it’s unclear where he got his seed money (he may have gotten it from tutoring at age nine, somehow).

Question: why is Mo bothering to even get a job? If he’s really worth $72 million, couldn’t he just kind of cash out now, live a pretty awesome life, and never have to work another day?

UPDATE: Business Insider is now reporting that Islam's stated wealth may be a bit overblown. The Investment Club for Young Traders-of which Islam is a member-issued to following statement to BI:


"It has been brought to the attention of the Leaders Investment Club that Mohammed Islam has been rumored to have made $72,000,000 through making trades in the stock market. After performing due diligence and talking with Mohammed Islam himself, we have determined that these claims are false and simply been blown up by the media in the interests of sensationalism."

Islam has (probably purposely) remained silent, neither confirming nor denying his rumored net worth. Probably a smart move on his part.


UPDATE 2: New York Magazine just posted the following apology on their website:


In the most recent edition of New York, its annual Reasons to Love New York issue, the magazine published a story about a Stuyvesant High School senior named Mohammed Islam, who was rumored to have made $72 million trading stocks. Islam said his net worth was in the "high eight figures." As part of the research process, the magazine sent a fact-checker to Stuyvesant, where Islam produced a document that appeared to be a Chase bank statement attesting to an eight-figure bank account.


After the story's publication, people questioned the $72 million figure in the headline, which was written by editors based on the rumored figure. The headline was amended. But in an interview with the New YorkObserver last night, Islam now says his entire story was made up. A source close to the Islam family told the Washington Post that the statements were falsified. We were duped. Our fact-checking process was obviously inadequate; we take full responsibility and we should have known better. New York apologizes to our readers.

[via Gawker]

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