Lukas Walton
Birth nameLukas Tyler Walton
Birth dateSeptember 19, 1986 (age 40)
Birth placeSan Diego, California, U.S.
EducationColorado College (BS)
SpouseSamantha Walton
ParentsJohn T. Walton
Christy Walton
RelativesSam Walton (grandfather)
Helen Walton (grandmother)
Walton family

Lukas Tyler Walton (born September 19, 1986) is an American billionaire heir. He is the grandson of Sam Walton, the founder of Walmart. As of September 2025, Forbes estimated his net worth at US$41.5 billion.[1]

Early life and career

Lukas Walton is the only child of John T. Walton (1946–2005) and his wife Christy Walton. He grew up in National City, California, and Jackson Hole, Wyoming.[2] His father, John T. Walton, died in a plane crash in 2005. Following his father's death, he moved with his mother to Jackson, Wyoming.[3]

When he was three years old, Walton was diagnosed with a rare kidney cancer, from which he eventually recovered.[4]

He has a bachelor's degree in environmentally sustainable business from Colorado College, where he graduated in 2010.[2][5]

He went on to work at True North Venture Partners.[6]

Politics

In 2020, Walton gave $5,600 to the Biden campaign and $142,000 to the Democratic National Committee.[7]

Personal life

Walton lives in Jackson, Wyoming[8] and Chicago.[9] He is married to Samantha Walton,[10][11][12] who is listed as the co-president with Lukas Walton in the Builders Initiative, which is a Walton family foundation.[13]

In 2022, Walton was ranked 106th in the Forbes annual list of the world's billionaires with a net worth of $16.5 billion.[14] In 2024, Forbes estimated his net worth at $28 billion, ranking him as the 60th-richest person in the world as well as the richest person in the state of Illinois,[8][15] which he had previously been in 2020[9] and 2023.[16]

References

  1. ^ "Forbes profile: Lukas Walton". Forbes. Retrieved 8 February 2025.
  2. ^ Levitz, Eric (November 6, 2015). "Meet the 29-Year-Old Who Was, Until Today, a Secret Megabillionaire". NYmag. Archived June 17, 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved November 7, 2015.
  3. ^ "Meet Lukas Walton, the fiercely private heir to the Walmart empire who has donated millions from his fortune to find solutions to environmental problems". Business Insider. February 20, 2020. Archived November 10, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved November 10, 2020.
  4. ^ Levitz, Eric (2015-11-06). "Meet the 29-Year-Old Who Was, Until Today, a Secret Megabillionaire". Intelligencer. Retrieved 2026-01-23.
  5. ^ De Jong, David (November 6, 2015). "A Wal-Mart Heir Is $27 Billion Poorer Than Everyone Thought". Bloomberg L.P.. Archived March 5, 2019 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved November 7, 2015.
  6. ^ "Meet the 29-Year-Old Who Was, Until Today, a Secret Megabillionaire". New York Magazine. November 6, 2015. Archived June 17, 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved November 10, 2020.
  7. ^ "Data shows some Walton giving leans to left". Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette. October 18, 2020. Archived November 16, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved November 10, 2020.
  8. ^ "Lukas Walton". Forbes. Archived April 21, 2019 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved February 16, 2019.
  9. ^ Strahler, Steven R (September 11, 2020). "Turns out the richest Illinoisan is not Ken Griffin". Crain's Chicago Business. Archived October 17, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  10. ^ "Find out why philanthropist Lukas Walton is a #Crains40Under40". Crain's Chicago Business. November 5, 2020. Archived March 7, 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
  11. ^ "Turns out the richest Illinoisan is not Ken Griffin". Crain's Chicago Business. September 11, 2020. Archived October 17, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  12. ^ "Return of private foundation". foundationcenter.org. Archived April 15, 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
  13. ^ "Return of private foundation". foundationcenter.org. Archived June 10, 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
  14. ^ "Forbes World's Billionaires List: The Richest in 2022". Forbes. Archived from the original on May 1, 2022. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
  15. ^ Grosser, Annika (May 23, 2024). "The Richest Billionaire In Every State 2024". Forbes. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
  16. ^ "These are the richest people in Illinois, according to Forbes". NBC 5 Chicago. October 5, 2023. Retrieved November 26, 2024.