Luana Lopes Lara

Luana Lopes Lara, co-founder of Kalshi and now officially the world’s youngest self-made woman billionaire at just 29, overtaking Taylor Swift.

Raised in Brazil, Luana trained at the Bolshoi Ballet School before redirecting her discipline into math and computer science, inspired by her mother.

She went on to study both at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and built an impressive career in quantitative finance and research at Citadel Securities, Five Rings Capital, Bridgewater Associates, and CSAIL MIT.

In 2019, she co-founded Kalshi, a federally regulated platform where people can legally trade on real-world events like inflation, elections, sports and even Rotten Tomatoes scores for movies.

Making this possible required years of regulatory work, and Luana ultimately secured a federal license no startup had received before.

The concept is debated, with some critics comparing prediction markets to gambling, but the momentum is hard to ignore.

Kalshi recently raised a $1B round, bringing its valuation to $11B, and creating a new way for both institutions and individuals to manage uncertainty.

From ballet in Brazil to reshaping financial markets, Luana’s journey is anything but ordinary.

Last Updated: December 2025