‘Let’s Go!:’ Announcing the Top 10 Teams Advancing to the Wharton Investment Competition’s 2025 Global Finale
In the inimitable words of Ladi Ayoola, this year’s Wharton Global High School Investment Competition client: “Let’s go!”
It was a fitting call to action from Ladi, who sent an encouraging video to this year’s top 50 teams as they headed into the competition semifinals the week of March 17, 2025.
During five virtual events (beginning on March 18), hosted in the Wharton Academic Virtual Environment (WAVE) room by Wharton Global Youth Program senior executive director Eli Lesser (pictured above), student competitors beamed in from the U.S., Canada, India, China, Singapore, Germany, Israel, Mauritius and beyond to introduce their teammates and learn which two teams from each event would advance to the finals.
The competition began in September 2024 with 5,000 registered teams, progressed to 1,800 submitted final team reports in December, from which the top 50 teams were selected in January, and now the time had come to announce the top 10 finalists.
The Finalists Revealed
It was a tight race for the 15 judges tasked with evaluating the semifinalist presentations!
Here are the top 10 teams advancing to the Wharton Investment Competition’s Global Finale:
👏 BAM Investing, Deerfield Academy, Massachusetts, U.S
👏 Bolt Brokers, Lightridge High School, Virginia, U.S.
👏 Cornerstone Capital, Delbarton High School, New Jersey, U.S.
👏 DMV’s Finest, Thomas Jefferson High School for Science & Technology, Virginia, U.S.
👏 Evergreen Asset Management, St. Robert Catholic High School, Canada
👏 FA Quakers, Friends Academy, New York, U.S.
👏 Fig Capital, Stuyvesant High School, New York, U.S.
👏 Finance From France, Lycée Français de Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
👏 FlyNance, Amity International School, Noida, India
👏 Tailored Investments, West Forsyth High School, Georgia, U.S.
Congratulations to the top 10, as well as all the semifinal teams. In addition to earning paper and digital certificates, each top 50 team member won the opportunity to take a Wharton Global Youth online summer program for 50% off the tuition cost.
“Success in investing and in life isn’t just about the numbers; it’s about understanding people.” –Ladi Ayoola, Wharton Investment Competition Client
While student team leaders attending the week’s five events highlighted their new knowledge and an appreciation for the creativity and camaraderie of the competition, featured judges joining the events echoed one theme: the supreme talent of the Top 50 teams.
“A lot of work went into putting your written reports and the videos together, and it clearly came across,” said Melissa Ko Hahn, a Wharton MBA and managing member of Covepoint Capital Advisors in New York City, who served as a judge for the semifinals. “I was so impressed. If you have this much ability, enthusiasm and passion at 17 and 18, I can’t wait to see where you go from here. Overall, one of the tendencies of people who are just starting out is to fall into this trap of hiding behind fancy terms and formulas. I would encourage you to fight against that. Oftentimes, the best solutions are made up of simple, elegant ideas.”
The list of judges who reviewed and evaluated the 50 team presentation videos includes:
Group 1
Antal Desai, Co-managing partner, CPMG
Melissa Ko Hahn, Managing Member, Covepoint Capital Advisors
Marcus Shaw, CEO, AltFinance
Group 2
Jeanette Ourada, Retired VP and Corporate Controller, Chevron
Yanbing Qiu, CEO, Infore Development
Jason Ray, Founder and Chief Investment Officer, Zenith Wealth Partners
Group 3
Valerie Mukherjee, Founder & Managing Partner, Ramirez Mukherjee Family Office
Roel Peeters, Co-founder and CEO, Roost
Thom Phan, Retired Finance Professional
Group 4
Mark Brookshire, Founder and CEO, Stock-Trak
Patricia Werhahn, CEO, RedSteel Properties
Judge A, Philadelphia Financial Advisor
Group 5
Pav Dharwarkar, Managing Partner, Cadenza Capital Management
Sulaekha “Su” Kolloru, Chief Strategy Officer, Pearson
Rajesh Sehgal, Managing Partner, Equanimity Investments
‘Investing Shouldn’t Be a Gamble’
The semifinal events also served as a platform for student voices and reflections as teams considered the competition’s profound learning journey.
Shoutout to Chelsea, team leader of Nova Investments at Carmel High School in Indiana, for her thoughts about the Wharton Global High School Investment Competition. “The market is uncertain, and the smartest investment decisions mean investing in businesses that you thoroughly know and understand,” she noted. “Our team continues to push the importance of research-backed investment decisions, because investing shouldn’t be a gamble, rather a calculated decision based on sound analysis, research and hard work.”
The 10 finalist teams are now preparing for the competition’s Global Finale, to be held April 25 (Learning Day) and 26 (Competition) on the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania campus in Philadelphia. Who will take top honors? We can’t wait to find out. Be sure to subscribe to our monthly Wharton Global Youth newsletter to get the latest competition news and results.
Chances are, this year’s competition client will also be on campus for the big event. Just as all the 2024-2025 competing teams started by getting to know their potential client, Ladi Ayoola, let us wrap up this phase with a few of his thoughts from this week’s celebration of the semifinalist teams.
“Success in investing and in life isn’t just about the numbers; it’s about understanding people. It’s about recognizing opportunities and having the courage to make informed decisions,” Ladi said. “First of all, always stay curious. The world of finance is ever-changing, and continuous learning is key. Secondly, embrace teamwork. Your ability to continue to collaborate effectively will serve you well in any career. And lastly, don’t be afraid to take calculated risks… Be proud of what you have accomplished. You’re not just investing in portfolios, you’re investing in your future.”
Registration for the 2025-2026 Wharton Global High School Investment Competition will open in June 2025. Grab a team and let’s go!