SG Budget Babe

It'll be a bit of an understatement to say I'm disappointed by how our Presidential Elections happened.

Is it still considered an election if the winning candidate was selected for us, instead of being elected by us?

What really disappointed me wasn't the #notmypresident hashtag (which I see as an overreaction) or the fact that a minority election runs counter to our city state's meritocratic ideals. And obviously I don't really care that we lost a potential public holiday.

I'm disappointed that we were robbed of the chance to celebrate.

For the same outcome, this week could have well turned out to be vastly different. Singaporeans head to the polls, choosing between Halimah Yacob, Salleh or Farid. We tune into the television eagerly, waiting with bated breaths for the results announcement. Halimah wins, and news headlines will scream, Singapore voted for their first female President! We throw confetti; we shout and celebrate.

Instead, given the same outcome, the news headlines now read:

"People feel muzzled and angry because they could not vote" (CNA)
"PAP prepared to pay political price for reserved Presidential Election" (Mothership)
"How Singapore elected a president without a vote" (CNN)
"Why Singaporeans aren't all glad to get the President they wanted" (BBC)

I've no doubt that Halimah would have won over the other nominees. We could be celebrating yet another successful Singaporean story spurred by our system of meritocracy, and how any Singaporean daughter or son (even if you're born from a poor family with no powerful connections) can rise up the ranks to become the nation's symbol of power.

The Internet would have been abuzz with tweets and Facebook statuses of "OMG we really elected our first female President! TAKE THAT AMERICA!" or "big breakthrough for feminism! Female power FTW!". #proudtobeSingaporean could have been trending, instead of #notmypresident

But as a result of how our government chose to run this year's elections, and by disqualifying the other two candidates, it is no wonder that Singaporeans are unhappy.

My friend who lives overseas said that we can still celebrate anyway, because the fact remains that we now have our first female President, but I reckon a celebration in lieu of the circumstances surrounding her appointment to office is moot.

I've written previously about how I didn't vote for the opposition, but also why I feel the PAP is still far from perfect. This incident is one of the scars that will continue to taint the PAP's reputation, and I've no doubt that its critics will continue to quote #PE2017 against them for years to come.

There's a strong case to be made for the government to select who is to become President : that allowing the people to vote may not always lead to the best person being nominated in. Certainly, not all democratic elections have resulted in the best or most qualified candidate being elected, but I wish our government had trusted us enough to vote in our first female President.

Source: The Straits Times

Some argue that a reserved Presidential Election should not have been held in the first place, and you may throw apples at me for this unpopular opinion, but I was one of the few rooting for a minority election this year.

Did having a reserved election run counter to meritocratic ideals? Yes.

Did we compromise meritocracy for representation? Perhaps, but ours is a country that does impose an ethnic integration policy on public housing anyway, so why should we be surprised?

Did it violate our right to vote as citizens of a democracy? Yes, but come on, academic scholars have long described our governing model as that of an authoritarian democracy instead.

In a country where the government has to contend with balancing multi-racialism, democracy AND meritocratic ideals, sometimes trade-offs have to be made.

(I'm not saying I support how our government conducted the elections, but I'm trying to understand why they did what they did.)

But why not allow Salleh and Farid to run against Halimah Yacob? I've no doubt Halimah would have won.

Today, there's little cause for celebration, people are protesting, and Singaporeans are lashing out at the PAP.

Source: Channel News Asia

We weren't given the chance to vote Halimah Yacob in.

I wanted to vote in our first female President, and the government took that away from me.

With love,
Budget Babe

Can you hold a (budget) wedding without looking cheap?

The answer is, yes!

See what our wedding looks like in the exclusive 6-page feature in Her World Brides (September 2017 issue), where we share some sneaks into our wedding, as well as how we went about planning it on a budget. In addition, I was also asked to contribute an article specially for Bride(s) on a Budget and how you can hold your own dream wedding for a fraction of the costs (and most importantly, without looking cheap)!

You can find this on the cover story of the magazine: 7 smart ways to save.

This issue also comes together with peeks into Jesseca Liu and Cheryl Wee's wedding, which are absolutely gorgeous as well. In our feature, I also open up for the first time about How I Met My Husband! You'll find exclusive photos of our wedding, including the morning tea ceremony and the lovely bridal silk "kua" I donned, which was the very same one my husband's mom got married in.

Go grab a copy of the magazine to read the full story! (There's 2 Budget Babe articles in this issue.)

The reason why I decided to share our story is because I want to show you guys that in today's era of Pinterest-perfect and Instagram-worthy weddings, you don't have to feel like you need to spend a bomb in order to have the wedding of your dreams.

Let's define what makes a successful wedding. Traditionally, weddings were held to celebrate the union of a couple in the presence of their family and friends. By that definition, any wedding (regardless of scale or cost) where the couple gets legally wed can be said to be a successful one.

However, over the years (and especially today) weddings seem to have evolved into some kind of competition to see who has the most Insta-worthy wedding. It is no longer enough to have a wedding - your wedding needs to look good for social media as well. Custom themed-decor, photo booths, professional emcee services, band performances and 5-tier cakes aren't even enough; have an overseas engagement party! Buy lavish gifts for your bridesmaids, or even better, pamper them with a spa session beforehand!

Now, there's absolutely nothing wrong about throwing a big grand party if you can afford it. The problem is when you can't, and borrow or rely on your guests to help cover the costs for you.

We didn't want to put such a pressure on them. We wanted them to just come and celebrate with us.

On top of that, I just don't see the point of blowing an entire year worth of salary on a one-day affair. I'd rather spend the money on travelling or getting our house - in other words, stuff that would add more value to my marriage, rather than a one-day show for the whole world to see.

I talk about all these issues, together with tips on how to plan and stick within your budget. Details about our wedding and the lovely vendors (I sourced from over 100+ vendors before deciding on the ones we used in the end, which I felt offered really good value-for-money) we worked with, as well as full transparency of our costs, are all provided within the magazine!

If you would rather get the digital copy, it is also available at this link.

Love,
Budget Babe

I've been raving about Wongamania being one of the best board games for learning about personal finance since 2015, so when my good friend Xeo invited me to try out their newest game, Debtzilla, I agreed in a heartbeat.

Unlike Wongamania where you pit yourself against the other players to win, Debtzilla requires you to work together for the benefit of everyone. You either win as a team, or lose together.

In today's day and age of consumerism and a rising occurrence of financial scams, this game could not be more relevant.

The Gameplay

The game premise is a little more complex than Wongamania, but not too difficult to understand either. You take on the role of a hero and race against time to bring down the villains before the law of compounding debt interest destroys the world.

By day, you're an ordinary citizen who needs to work, save and borrow to finance your crime-fighting vigilante lifestyle ; by night, you're a superhero fighting the villains who are scamming the hard-earned savings of ordinary folks. Unlike many superheroes where your abilities are already a given, the heroes in Banana Republic are more realistic.

But watch out! Every debt you take on will feed the ultimate monster of mass destruction: Debtzilla.

Our gameplay. That's me as Lady Easing / Jane Yeelen

There are 4 phases in each round:
(i) In the day, you work to accumulate savings, or borrow, or repay your loans.
(ii) Once you've enough money (wonga), you can go shopping in the second phase for gadgets that will aid you in your fight against the bad guys,
(iii) At night, you work with your teammates to fight the villains and try to save the citizens. Sometimes you fail to protect them, and for each citizen successfully scammed, Debtzilla grows.
(iv) Each time Debtzilla crosses a threshold (its power grows when you take on debt, when a citizen loses their life savings, or for no other reason other than inflation), it triggers a Boss Event that brings you one step closer to the final showdown.

The Heroes
The heroes are inspired by real-life financial and political titans who have considerable influence on the world's economics and financial markets. You'll definitely recognise most, if not all, of them.

You can take the conservative route by saving up and paying off debts (which weakens Debtzilla), or go on a debt-fuelled spending spree to power up your hero with gadgets and weapons that will take out the villains.

Here's a sneak peek:

Fun tidbit: I played Lady Easing in the game, where my superpower was to restore wealth to the scammed citizens. I think she's my favourite character, but I'd want to try taking on the roles of the other superheroes as well!

In case you were wondering about why Donald Trump and Batman ended up being linked together, here's why.

The Villains

Inspired by people and events from the dark side of the financial world in real life that you've probably read about in the papers. Here are some of the ones that I really liked:

Shopaholics, don't laugh!

Debtzilla Events

Of course, there will be very real consequences of debt and inflation. These events are triggered each time Debtzilla grows and crosses to the next threshold (30 to 40, 40 to 50, for instance). Bet you'll be able to relate to these events for sure.

The Final Fight: Take down Debtzilla!

Thought the game was over once you successfully took down all the villains? Nope, now you've moved onto the final phase of the game where you confront Debtzilla and attempt to eliminate him for good!

The difficulty is that if you had taken on too much loans in the beginning of the game (to purchase your gadgets), you would have indirectly contributed to Debtzilla's power, making it even harder to fight him at this stage. Yet, if you had been extremely conservative and focused merely on saving and repaying your debts, you won't have been able to buy the gadgets necessary to defeat him either!

Lessons learnt

Just like in real life, there will always be a trade-off. The key is to strike a good balance. Too much debt will eventually spiral out of control and end up crippling you, whereas avoiding debt entirely isn't wise either if you want to get ahead in life.

I also appreciate the fact that Debtzilla separates itself from its predecessor, Wongamania, by focusing on the element of teamwork in this game. This is another aspect that we observe in real life - that no matter how well you take care of your personal finances, you'll ultimately also be affected if your family members don't share the same goal. Getting insurance for yourself without ensuring your parents or loved ones are covered will still turn out to be useless. At the end of the day, you'll really need to work together as a team.

Apparently, our game facilitator told us that none of the groups she facilitated had ever beaten Debtzilla, but we did! I won't reveal our combination of superheroes here, but I would attribute it to great teamwork, strategy and of course, luck as well!

Here's a photo of our winning moment:

I'm a huge fan of games that are both fun and educational, and in this aspect, I think the creators has really outdone themselves with Debtzilla. For anyone trying to understand how debt and money works in the new economy, this game offers great insights while being exciting enough for you to warrant a second round, and then a third, and more.

How does it stack up against Wongamania? Well, I'll be hard-pressed to choose only one. Wongamania's focus was on developing personal financial literacy at the different stages of the economy, whereas Debtzilla touches on concepts relating to debt, financial scams, and inflation. Personally, I also felt that the tension in Debtzilla is much higher due to the escalating mechanisms built in. In fact, I would recommend getting both, if you haven't already bought Wongamania previously. The educational value you'll get out of both games will far exceed any of your branded purchases!

If you're keen to purchase Wongamania, you can get it online or via the retail locations listed here(before you purchase, read my review, as well as what others had to say about the game).

Support Debtzilla on their Kickstarter project here!
I've already contributed as a Premium Backer at the highest tier, and I absolutely cannot wait to get my hands on this game! It'll be one I intend to play with my kids in the future.

As a treat, readers of Budget Babe will get to try out Wongamania and a briefing of the financial lessons covered in the gameplay afterwards. We last did this in January with Wongamania to great success, and you may indicate your interest for the tentative upcoming session here.

P.S. NOT a sponsored post. All opinions expressed are of my own independent review.

With love,

Budget Babe

A number of readers have been asking me about housing loans lately, so I thought I'd touch on this topic today. I'm generally more inclined towards bank loans at this point in time (and have been since I highlighted it here in 2016), given how they're mostly cheaper given the low interest rate environment we're in right now.

(I’m in the midst of writing another article comparing the pros and cons of getting a HDB vs. bank loans, so you can keep an eye out for that if it has been an issue weighing on your minds as well.)

In the meantime, this article is for those of you who have been asking me which bank loans to look at in 2017.

Background: What you need to know about interest rate packages

There are several banks in Singapore offering home loans at similar, yet varying interest rates. Fixed rate packages and floating rate packages are the two most popular rate offerings prevalent in the market. As the names suggest, a fixed rate package involves fixed repayments on a monthly basis for a specific period of the loan, while a floating rate package is subject to slight variations in interest rate throughout the loan tenure due to market and economic fluctuations.

If you’re looking for a home loan in Singapore, arriving at the best deal can be quite an effort, especially when the competition is stiff. Banks use various means, including periodic promotions on interest rates, to lure borrowers and augment their market share. With the steep increase in the number of borrowers, banks are frequently adjusting their offerings to lure more customers. This generally means good news for us.

Related: 5 questions to ask before purchasing a new home

Let’s check out what different banks have to offer and figure out the best housing loan deals for buying private property in Singapore.

Here are the 5 best bank loans for housing right now

1. DBS Home Loan

One of the most attractive features of the DBS Home Loan is that you can benefit from an interest rate ceiling on the floating rate package, for a 2-year period. The floating rate package is pegged to the DBS 9-month FD interest rate (FHR9). For the first two years of the tenure, your floating rate of interest would be below 1.72% p.a. Under the promotional floating rate package, you can expect an interest rate of FHR9+1.07%. FHR9 currently stands at 0.25%.

The floating rate currently stands at FHR9+1.55% p.a. The fixed interest rate package comes with an interest rate of 1.68% p.a. for the first 3 years.

Besides, you can choose a tenure of your choice and also get preferential rates if you have an existing relationship with the bank.

Related: SIBOR, Home Loans, and the US Economy – The Money Cycle

2. HSBC Home Loan

HSBC offers a SIBOR-pegged rate package and a 2-year fixed interest package. SIBOR-pegged loan rates depend either on 1-month SIBOR or 3-month SIBOR – which are currently at 1% and 1.124% respectively. These rates are updated by the ABSevery day, so you can check them for yourselves.

For buying a new property – whether under construction or completed – HSBC Home Loan comes with SIBOR packages of SIBOR + 1% p.a. for personal banking customers. Advance and Premier Banking customers can have it at lower rates, though. HSBC doesn’t disclose its fixed rate package on its website, but I reckon it is likely to be around 2% to 2.2% p.a. going by the current trend.

Up to 30 September 2017, the bank is running a home loan promotion where they’re offering SIBOR-pegged package for loans of S$800,000 or more at SIBOR + 0.52% p.a. (1.52% currently), and the 2-year fixed rate package at 1.52% for the first two years. Though essentially this is the same rate for now, SIBOR keeps fluctuating, albeit slightly, so future rates are likely to keep varying. The rate for the SIBOR-pegged package from 3rd year onwards is SIBOR + 0.75%, and for fixed rate package is SIBOR + 0.75% for the third year and SIBOR + 1% from the 4th year onwards.

Also read: Should you pay off your HDB loan in advance if you can?

3. OCBC Home Loan

OCBC has four different interest rate packages to offer for buying a house. Two of the package offerings are fixed rate offerings, one is variable, and the other is dependent on SIBOR.

In the fixed-deposit linked rate offering, the interest is pegged at 1.4% for the first year, and 1.5% subsequent to that for the duration of the loan. The rate is basically adjusted in accordance with OCBC’s 15-month fixed deposit interest rate.

The second rate package is a short-term fixed rate package where the interest rate remains fixed for the first two years, after which a floating rate will take effect. The current rate on the short-term fixed package is 2.38% p.a. The third and fourth rate packages – the SIBOR-dependent and Variable rate package – also have similar rates to offer. SIBOR-dependent rates are 3-month SIBOR+0.50% or 1-month SIBOR+0.55% (customers can choose either of the two). The variable interest rate stands at 1.25% p.a. for the first 2 years.

4. UOB Home Loan

UOB provides you with financing of up to 80% of the value of the property or HDB flat you wish to purchase. You can also get a bridging loan for a down payment if you’re expecting payments from a flat/home you intend to sell.

UOB’s Private Home Loan comes with three kinds of interest rate packages – fixed-rate, floating-rate, or a combination. Under the fixed-rate package, the rate remains fixed for the first two years.

Currently UOB has a promotional interest rate running. The fixed-rate package starts from 1.58% for the first couple of years, following which you the rate will be FDP+1.43%. FDP is the internal benchmark that UOB uses, based on its fixed deposit interest rates. The current FDP rate is 0.25% p.a.

Also read: What You Need to Know About Bridging Home Loans

5. Citibank Home Loan

Citibank offers you a rate of SIBOR+0.7% p.a. on your home loan, again, a low rate of interest in comparison to most banks in Singapore. You can choose from a 1-month, 3-month, 6-month and 12-month SIBOR-adjusted interest rate when you pick Citibank for your mortgage loan.

Note that if you wish to apply for a mortgage loan from Citibank, the minimum requested loan amount should be S$750,000 (i.e. if you apply for the loan online).

A quick recap :

Bank	Fixed Interest Rate Package	Variable/Floating Interest Rate Package	SIBOR-Linked Package
HSBC	● 1.52% p.a. for the first two years. ● SIBOR+0.75% for third year and SIBOR+1.0% subsequently	● SIBOR+0.52% for the first two years and SIBOR+0.75% henceforth for a loan amount of S$800,000 or more ● SIBOR+0.52% for the first two years and SIBOR+0.75% thereafter for a loan amount of S$200,000 or more (lesser than S$800,000)	Same as floating rate package.
DBS	● 1.68% for the first three years. ● FHR+1.55% subsequent to the third year	● FHR9 (Fixed Deposit Home Rate)+1.55% for the first three years ● Under the promotional offer, first two years will be FHR9+1.07% p.a.	NA
UOB	● 1.58% p.a. for the first two years. ● Subsequently, FDP+1.43%	NA	NA
OCBC	● 2.38% for the first two years (this is a short-term fixed interest rate package) ● 1.40% for the first year and 1.50% thereafter	1.25% for the first two years	3-month SIBOR+0.5% for the first year or 1-month SIBOR+0.55% for the first year
Citibank	NA	SIBOR-pegged	SIBOR+0.7% p.a. (you can choose from 1-month, 3-month, 6-month and 12-month SIBOR).

Before you commit to any housing loan, remember to first compare to see which bank offers you the best rates!

Disclaimer: This post was written in collaboration with BankBazaar.sg.

With love,
Budget Babe

In my last post, I promised to elaborate more on the common dilemma faced by most new homeowners: should you get a HDB or a bank loan?

To put things into context, BTO prices range from $200k (Yishun) - $600k (Bidadari), whereas the average price of a 4-room HDB resale flat in Singapore can go up to $670k in a central location. Depending on how much housing grants you're eligible for (calculate here!), most of us probably will need to take out a loan to pay off the remaining sum.

Source: Stacked Homes

I've mentioned about how I'm generally more inclined towards bank loans at the moment, given that they're charging lower interest rates. Aside from the DBS Home Loan which I previously highlighted here as a good deal, the interest charged by the rest of our local banks have stayed below 2.15% in the last decade.

Here's a comparison table which I drew up when we were evaluating our options:

	HDB Loan	Bank Loan
Interest rate	2.6% (based on last 15 years data)	1% to 2.15% (based on last 10 years data)
Eligibility	Gross monthly household income cannot exceed $12,000	Depends.
Downpayment	10%	20%
Cash for downpayment	0% (if using CPF)	At least 5% cash upfront
Early repayment	No penalty for early repayment	Approx. 1.5% penalty
Refinancing options	You can refinance to bank loans later on	Cannot refinance to HDB loan ; conditions vary for inter-bank refinancing

Eligibility considerations aside, HDB and bank loans offer different benefits, and there really is no right or wrong answer to which option is better.

Instead, a better way to derive your answer would probably be to ask yourself the following questions:

1. How much cash can I spare for the downpayment?

If you do not have much spare cash lying around, you should probably go for a HDB loan instead as bank loans require you to pay 5% of the initial downpayment for your property in cash. On the other hand, HDB loans allow you the flexibility of paying this either in cash or in CPF, if you come up short.

2. Do I prefer stable repayments, or lower interest?

HDB loans offer stability and a peace of mind, as your interest rate is generally fixed (2.6% over the last 15 years) and is unlikely to change in the event of economic boom / downfall. This allows you to plan in advance and not have to deal with any surprise with loan repayments.

The biggest appeal of bank loans are their lower interest rate and promotions, where you can enjoy either dirt-cheap interest rates for a promotional period, or get a free gift with successful loan application, or both. But while the interest rate of bank loans may be lower than HDB's (as it has been for the last decade), there is no guarantee that the bank will not raise the interest rate, especially if the Fed decides on the same action. Will you have money to pay off the extra if that happens?

3. Do I want to utilise my CPF for my house?

I've noticed that those who have a positive view of the CPF and see it as a vital component of their retirement nest are generally less inclined to tap on their CPF monies for their housing, preferring to opt for cash instead.

On the other hand, folks who are frustrated by the fact that their CPF monies are "locked up" generally choose to use it for their housing repayments, as you can't simply withdraw your CPF as and when you want otherwise. Although you can use your CPF to pay for your bank loan, there is a cap, which is known as the CPF Withdrawal Limit (120% of the Valuation Limit of your property).

4. If I do not use my CPF, do I have cash to finance my monthly repayments?

Couples who opt for CPF repayments on HDB loans usually have little to worry about every month because they need not fork out a single cent (unless they buy a reallllllly expensive flat...). Thus, it is much easier to manage your monthly household finances.

Those who are on bank loans typically get stressed out if they lose their job or get a pay cut, as it may affect their ability to repay their monthly loan.

5. How likely am I to repay the loan early?

A key consideration would be the early repayment penalties imposed by banks if you choose to pay off your entire loan earlier than the loan period (usually 25 years), whereas there's no such thing with a HDB loan.

Source: CPF

Conclusion
If you prefer not to take any risks and there's a chance that you might pay off your loan early, opt for the HDB loan instead. At any rate, you'll also be able to refinance it and switch to a bank loan later on if a good opportunity (i.e. promo rate) comes up.

If you want to enjoy higher savings and you're fine with taking the the risk that your interest rate might fluctuate, then bank loans might be a better option instead. However, just ensure that you've enough liquid cash (ideally, an emergency fund which I've detailed here).

Before you buy, check out this quiz to find out how much CPF housing grants you're eligible for!

With love,
Budget Babe

With a wealth of information out there today, it is easy for anyone to get lost in a sea of financial jargons and articles that keep telling you, XX things you MUST know before investing!

Recently, I received an email from a reader who asked me what I would look out for before I buy any exchange-traded fund (ETF). She mentioned that she was keen to explore index investing, but got overwhelmed by all the information online.

I've previously talked about how index investing is an easy way out for anyone who wants to avoid losing 1/3 of their wealth to the underlying fees associated with unit trusts or mutual funds here, but realised that I've never really done a proper post about this method of investing before, so today's article will focus on what you should look at before buying into any ETF, as well as some recommendations.

What to look at before buying an ETF

1. Which stocks do the ETF buy into?

Components of the STI ETF (Image from SGX)

The Straits Times Index (STI ETF) comprises of securities from the 30 largest blue-chip companies in Singapore. Every unit of the STI purchased allows you to own (albeit indirectly) shares across all these companies, which concurrently helps you to diversify across different sectors at the same time.

Here's a good introductory video by SGX:

Aside from broad market indices, there are also industry-specific ETFs which enable you to buy into different stocks within a sector. The Vanguard Energy ETF, for instance, buys into stocks of Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Haliburton and other companies involved in the exploration and production of energy products such as oil, natural gas and coal. Want to invest into the growth of social media? The Global X Social Media ETF allows you to buy into Facebook, Tencent and Twitter; you would have made a whopping 46% in returns if you had bought into that at the beginning of this year and held it until today!

There are also ETFs for consumer staple products, financials, health care, etc.

2. What is the expense ratio?

The expense ratio basically tells you how much annual fees you'll be charged for every $1,000 you invest. An ETF with a expense ratio of 0.5% means you'll be paying $50 in annual fees if you invest $10,000 into it.

Ideally, you'll want to look for ETFs with low expense ratios - anywhere between 0.1% to 0.3% is my personal benchmark, although I tend to apply a higher expense ratio limit of 0.5% when I look at overseas ETFs as the fees could range up to 0.7% abroad.

Vanguard ETFs are known for their low expense ratios, and you can choose from a variety of indexes. (Nope, #notsponsored to say this)

3. Does the ETF have a low tracking error?

Look at how much the ETF deviates from the index which it tracks. Locally, if you wish to buy into the STI ETF, you can choose from SPDR STI ETF or the Nikko AM STI ETF. The annual tracking error for these ETFs are 0.66% and 1.01% respectively, which makes the SPDR STI ETF potentially a better choice. (However, the reason for the discrepancy is due to the fact that Nikko AM does not engage in derivatives to replicate the index, so the margin of error could be larger.)

4. What is the liquidity of the ETF?

Look at the market capitalisation of the ETF to determine if the pool of investors buying into it is small; you'll want to find ETFs with a bigger market cap which makes it easier for you to buy and sell units of it.

5. What about other types of ETFs, such as synthetic, leveraged or inverse ETFs?

Synthetic ETFs, also known as swap-based ETFs, mimic the behaviour of an ETF through the use of derivatives. They do not actually own the shares of the companies being tracked, although proponents of synthetic ETFs claim that they do a more accurate job of tracking indexes than their physical ETF cousins. Instead, synthetic ETFs make agreements with a counterparty (usually an investment bank) who will pay the ETF the return of its index. Such ETFs are quite popular in Europe, but if you buy into a synthetic ETF, you basically expose yourself to counterparty risk as there is no guarantee that the bank will carry through with its obligation to pay the supposed returns.

Inverse and leveraged ETFs, on the other hand, are more common and popular in the US.

Inverse ETFs deliver the opposite of the benchmarks they track. For instance, when crude oil prices tumbled recently, the ProShares UltraShort DJ-UBS Crude Oil ETF was very much in demand by investors looking to short the oil index. When the index goes down, the inverse ETFs yield a positive returns, so you generally won't want the market to recover when you invest in such ETFs.

Leveraged ETFs, as their name suggest, attempt to deliver multiple times of the index benchmark returns. The ProShares Ultra S&P 500 ETF offers double the return of the S&P 500 for a single day, and this is achieved using stocks and derivatives such as futures contracts.

Tip: If you invest into inverse or leveraged ETFs, remember that they are designed to achieve their objectives on a daily basis, so you may not want to hold onto them for the long term.

Trying to construct a diversified portfolio with global exposure? You could even use a combination of ETFs to that effect! Or save on research time and try the below combination, as recommended by John Prestbo a.k.a. the editor of Dow Jone Indexes:

Source: MarketWatch

Instead of trying to time the market, try applying the dollar-cost averaging (DCA) method instead so that you regularly buy into your ETF of choice. This doesn't require much analysis (or actually, none at all! It is a pretty no-brainer approach). Locally, I like POSB InvestSaver, which allows you to start investing with as little as $100 a month, and helps you buy more stocks when they're cheaper (and less stocks when the price increases). Combine it with the POSB Cashback Scheme to maximise your returns from this move; that's what I call real cashback kung fu!

Still not convinced? Hey, even legendary investor Warren Buffett is a huge fan of ETFs. If you wish to start your investing journey but aren't yet too keen on analysing individual stocks (or if you've no confidence to do so), ETFs might very well be your answer.

With love,
Budget Babe

Ever wondered how much you'll make if you quit your day job and turned to driving Uber (like Wolverine) instead?

In 2015, I wrote about how I encountered a taxi driver who told me he earns $7,000 a month. Back then, ride-hailing apps like Uber and Grab were fairly new, but he was one of the early adopters of the technology and benefited tremendously from the bonus incentives. He was also immensely hardworking, and shared with me that the reason why he could earn so much more than most folks despite only having a GCE 'N' Level qualification was largely due to:

- Driving 12 hours every day, 7 days a week
- Driving when taxi drivers take their breaks and change shifts
- Using Uber and Grab to get more customers and reduce his waiting time plying the road for passengers

With more drivers joining the trade, I've heard that the bonus incentives are no longer as attractive as before, but driving for Uber and Grab remains an appealing option for those working in today's gig economy.

Try out this game here to find out how much you'll make!

Here's my scores (I fared really badly, by the way. It is a good thing I stick to my managerial day job.)

In easy mode:

In hard mode:

Doesn't seem that lucrative anymore, does it?

Plus, don't forget the opportunity costs you're incurring while you drive, as being a Uber or Grab driver probably won't impress your future employer too much. Unless you've got no other choice, I'd rather you focus on building up your career than chasing money through driving instead.

With love,
Budget Babe

Ever heard of FIRE?

It's the new age movement that is taking the world by storm - Financial Independence and Retire Early.

Living in Singapore can be stressful. We've been voted the world's most expensive city, cost of living is skyrocketing, and our wages have failed to keep up in tandem.

It can get pretty frustrating. Which is why I'm such a huge advocate of FIRE, and spend hours on this blog sharing my tricks and teaching folks like YOU how you can turbo-charge your own savings and be on your way to financial independence sooner.

What do you want to do if you no longer had to work for a living? I want to travel the world. I've so many dreams and side projects that I want to embark on, but they won't pay the bills. Well, what if I never have to worry about having enough money to pay for my monthly expenses anymore?

That's what FIRE is about.

Given how complex (and daunting) personal finance can be, I've put together a Roadmap to Financial Freedom to help you get started on your journey. It covers stuff you'll never learn in school, and basically stuff that no one will tell you about.

The best thing is, this is a JOURNEY, not a competition. It is your journey, so your time to reach each milestone may be different. Celebrate each of these milestones, because it means you're closer to being financially free!

I'll see you on the other side!

With love,

Budget Babe

MLM (Multi-Level Marketing), also known as pyramid selling, is a controversial marketing strategy where the revenue of the MLM company is obtained from the people who join the MLM.

Typically, the idea is that you recruit newcomers, who pay a fee to join in order to gain access or start selling the exclusive MLM products / services. World Ventures, Nuskin and Amway are probably the first few names that come to mind, but that's not it.

I was quite shocked when some of my friends tried to rope me in:

"If I could show you a way to earn from...(insert description here) that specialises in...(insert super-amazing niche here)...and you can earn potentially UP TO (insert high returns or amount here)... I think this is really a great opportunity for you!"

or

"I'm looking for a business partner and was wondering if you would be keen to join me? I would like to share with you this fantastic business opportunity to earn UP TO (insert high returns here)...to be part of the pioneer group and make good money while helping others..."

(adapted from my own real-life experiences)

Now, not all MLMs are bad, but many schemes have gotten a really bad name for themselves in recent years. For some, investors have even lodged police reports against them for not fulfilling their high investment returns as promised in the beginning.

And unfortunately, some investors lose a lot of money in such MLMs, potentially even their life savings. For one of the "opportunities" which my friend tried to share with me, it required me to "invest" a 5-digit sum in order to start selling what they purported was the new "cure to cancer".

I don't know about you but it sounded odd to me that if there really was such a miracle cure, then why hasn't it gained massive traction among the public? Why haven't hospitals, doctors and even governments talked about it yet? Why hasn't the world gone jubilant that we've finally defeated the C-monster?

You get my drift.

Anyway, if you've ever wanted to find out how to identify a MLM scheme so you can decide whether to join or stay far, far away, here's an interesting thread by an insider that you HAVE to read.

Read this thread contributed by an insider on a MLM in Singapore here.

Disclaimer: I don't know who this anonymous source is and cannot verify if what he/she says is entirely true, but this was definitely an eye-opening read for me!

Stay safe and informed.

With love,
Budget Babe

The Beautiful Teeth Whitening Kit, which was popularised by various social media influencers and sold like hotcakes earlier in the year, has now been confirmed to be potentially harmful by the Health Sciences Authority (HSA), who has now banned sales of it to the direct public.

Social media was littered with popular influencers promoting the kit to their followers, with plenty of before-after photos that looked rather promising. Curious to know how they managed to amass so many photos? Well, they made buyers take photo to serve as a "1 month guarantee" for any faulty parts, that's how.

On 20 July, I decided I had enough of the irresponsible marketing and promotional antics surrounding the much-hyped kit, and decided to verify whether it really was as good as many influencers were claiming.

I warned about how the kit was not approved by HSA (contrary to what the distributors were claiming), was potentially damaging to your teeth and health if accidentally swallowed. The so-called certifications they claimed were also questionable (I verified that it wasn't true).

Screenshot from an influencer who was promoting the kit.

I also pointed out how it looked suspiciously like a MLM pyramid scheme (see also: How to spot a MLM scheme) and that what many of the distributors / influencers were telling people to be careful of fakes because only the $70 version was the "official, authorized" kit. But elsewhere, someone who got recruited revealed that her commission was $50(while a reader of mine pointed out that the kit was available on Taobao for just $20. You do the math.) To recruit folks into selling for them, some of the original distributors were posing with lots of cash with the message "Want to earn? Come be a distributor!"

You can read my original exposé here.

Credits: HardWareZone

"One seller, who only wanted to be known as Margaret, told Channel NewsAsia that she was not aware of the legal and health concerns surrounding the product. In a span of six months, she said she has sold more than 300 Beautiful teeth whitening kits and has not received any negative feedback." (CNA)

In other words, that's $15,000 in commissions for sale of a product that HSA has now denounced as potentially corrosive and which are not allowed for sale directly to the public. Another was boasting about how she earned $20,000 within a single month.

"Sellers of the product could face a fine up to S$20,000, a jail term of up to 12 months or both, for supplying an un-notified cosmetic product. Suppliers of products which do not comply with the labelling requirements may face a fine up to S$50,000, a jail term up to two years, or both." (CNA)

Is this new wave of influencer marketing the new MLM?

The funny thing is, it remains to be seen whether the social media influencers who profited from selling this product to their followers will be held to accountability, or even fined. A little birdie tells me this is highly unlikely, and it won't be long before we see history repeat itself.

But next time, it might not be in the form of a teeth whitening kit.

For the risk-adverse, higher interest rates on your money often come tagged with multiple requirements or a reallllly long maturity period. However, there's a disruptive new offering that doesn't require you to tie up your money for 10 to 15 years anymore, yet you can get a competitive rate of 2.02% per annum, with your capital guaranteed and free insurance protection during the period.

Sounds too good to be true? Well, you'd better believe it!

I run a Facebook group supporting women on their personal finance journey (and questions), and not too long ago we had a brief discussion regarding FWD's newest endowment offering which promised 2.02% p.a. returns when one of my readers raised this to our attention:

The discussion was short because we concluded very quickly that this was a good deal. But the applications closed in August, so many of us didn't make it in time to apply.

Well, the demand was apparently so overwhelming that FWD is now back with a second tranche! I'm generally not a fan of traditional endowment plans, which typically provide low returns for a large sum of capital and comes with a high commitment lock-in period. However, the new era of short-term endowment plans offer a pretty compelling alternative.

If you're not ready to invest yet (who's still waiting for a crash?) and you're looking for a way to take as little risk as possible while growing your money, I'd usually recommend either a high-yield savings account, fixed deposits, or now, short-term endowment plans. Or, why not combine with a mixture of all?

High guaranteed annual returns of 2.02% p.a. for a 3-year endowment plan.
None of the fixed deposits even come close. Enough said.

The highest fixed deposit for the same 3-year commitment right now is under DBS, who's offering 1.1%. You might as well max out FWD's offering first!

Capital is guaranteed.
For those who don't want to take any risks with their money (and for whom the high-yield bank savings are not an option), you can rest assured knowing that your money is safe and protected.

Free insurance protection during the 3-year term.
You'll also be entitled to free insurance - death benefit coverage - during this period. (Please note that this should not replace any of your current policies as it only lasts for 3 years.)

Who should consider this

There are a few groups I can think of:

1. Students who do not have much savings, and who don't qualify for the high yield bank accounts because you can't meet the monthly salary crediting requirements. At just $1000 per entry, you can park your money here without worries and get more interest than if you kept it anywhere else.

2. Couples saving up for their wedding / house / baby, and who will need the cash in a few years time.

3. Older folks like your parents or grandparents who might prefer to take as little risk as possible. Instead of going for fixed deposits, get more interest back on your money with FWD's endowment plan. Hey, at least you'll know your grandparents won't be falling prey to magic stones or MLM pyramid schemes while their money is parked in here.

4. Anyone else who has spare cash to park outside of your existing accounts, and who aren't keen on investing into the markets at this moment.

How to apply

Head over here to sign up! It is a pretty fuss-free process as you can sign up for this online, instead of having to go through an insurance agent.

Sponsored message: FWD's 3-year endowment plan offers you a unique combination to insure and save online with as little as S$1000, while giving you a high guaranteed return of 2.02% per annum. You'll have to move fast as this offer is for a limited time and only while stocks last! Don't miss out!

I've been a fan of FWD's disruptive insurance offerings ever since they launched last year, and previously reviewed their travel and motor insurance here. Since you do not have to go through an agent, FWD's offerings are perfect for the DIY consumer, and prices are often lower or at least really competitive. Since then, the digital insurer has extended its offerings to include term, personal accident insurance, and now endowment plans as well. I've also seen a lot more insurers follow in their footsteps after the August endowment tranche was released.

There's only a few more slots left, so don't miss the deadline this time!

Disclaimer: This article is written in collaboration with FWD. All opinions are of my own.

Disclaimer: I loved UOB One, but nothing riles me up faster than a badly marketed financial product (okay fine, a badly marketed financial product through lifestyle influencers who mislead their followers for the monetary benefit of a sponsored post come a close second). And because a lot of people have been asking me about UOB Stash, I thought I'll do a review here so folks know what you're REALLY signing up for.

Err, that's a lot less than what you'll earn on the UOB One account, which is a much more
superior account to park your money in if you're using UOB, in my humble opinion.
Read on to find out why.

I'm a huge fan of high-yield saving accounts that give you more bang for your buck. In fact, I've openly talked about the various options available on this blog before, including UOB One. But hey, UOB Stash isn't one of them.

I had hoped UOB (as well as social media influencers working on future UOB campaigns), would have learnt their lesson from the UOB Krisflyer saga on how NOT to market a bank product. In fact, I had even offered to chat with the UOB Stash marketing team directly to share with them my thoughts on how they should manage this round of marketing in order to avoid getting flak for it as well, but was told that my offer got shot down. Oh well, maybe they know better so they don't need my inputs, I thought.

Apparently not.

If you're still wondering what on earth happened on the UOB Krisflyer saga, head over here for a quick recap: Does the UOB Krisflyer Influencers' Campaign Reek of Dishonesty?

Anyway, I digress. I'm not here to talk about UOB Krisflyer, but about UOB Stash instead. Take a look at one of the campaign posts promoting the account, by one of the same influencers involved in the UOB Krisflyer saga:

"From now till 31 Oct, we can all unlock a 1.2% p.a. interest

when we all reach 6,000 applications" (Christabel Chua, 2017)

I showed some of my friends this same post and asked them what they understood from the Instagram caption. Most of the conversations sounded somewhat like this:

Me:
What do you think of this account? Considering most savings accounts only pay 0.05% p.a. of interest, do you think this is a good product?

Friends:
I get 1.2% p.a. interest right?

Me:
What do you suppose that means? What does per annum mean to you?

Friends:
I get 1.2% in one year lah, duh.

Me:
So if you put in $10,000, how much should you be getting after one year?

Friends:
(opens the calculator app) $120.

Me:
WRONG! If my calculations are correct, you'll get slightly under $15. For $10k you only get 0.05% of interest for the whole year. That 1.2% that Christabel is telling you about? It lasts only for the month of November. Which means you'll be getting 0.05% for the remaining 11 months.

Friends:
WTF?!?!?!?!!?!?

So is the campaign misleading again? I'll let you be the judge.

Lost? You're not alone. Let me break it down.

The first thing you need to know about UOB is that their interest rates are oftentiered. This is an important caveat, especially for the UOB Stash account, but this was the part which none of the sponsored influencers actually bothered to tell you about. (The only ethical one who did was Dollars & Sense, and that's the only sponsored post on UOB Stash that you'll want to read.)

What this means is:

- Your first $10,000 gets 0.05%.

- Your next $40,000 gets 0.8%.

- You'll only get 1% on your subsequent $50,0000.
And if you fall below $10,001 anytime, you can expect to get a miserly 0.05%, which is pretty much the same as your POSB Passbook saving account that you've had since you were a kid.

Therefore, your effective interest rate is a lot lesser than if you had parked your money elsewhere. Heck, you'll even get higher interest by opening UOB One instead.

But wait! That's not all, because here's the worst part:

Read the full T&Cs here.

Let's repeat that, in case you missed it:

After 30 November 2017, the Promotional Interest no longer applies. The prevailing Base Interest and Bonus Interest shall apply to the Account thereafter.

In other words, you're NOT really getting 1.2% for the whole year, but for ONLY one month (don't ask me why it was still marketed as p.a. lah, because per annum = per year to me as well).

You know that 1.2% interest that all the lifestyle influencers were hyping about this campaign? Yup, it lasts only for ONE month, which all of them conveniently left out while trying to influence you into opening an account.

But wait, unlike Melissackoh who claimed she ticked Sydney off her bucket list all thanks to #Krisflyer UOB the debit card (I've no words if you genuinely believed she spent $60k just to redeem a flight to Sydney, which you can get for just $500 on Scoot LOL), I shall refrain from jumping to conclusions and assuming the remaining influencers didn't know about this point. Take a look at what they captioned instead.

I was actually really confused by this post.
Perhaps Leia and Lauren must be flush with cash if they're opening a UOB Stash at this age?
Hey mama Amber! I've got a better lobang for you.
Check out the CIMB Junior Saver account instead,
which gives you 0.8% immediately from your first $1000 onwards (instead of $10k!)

Let's play a game of Spot The Difference! Do you see it?

Eden, Roz, Nat, Amber and Zoe Raymond all said 1.2%*, but I'm wondering why Christabel was the only one who didn't put an asterisk behind the 1.2 p.a. Just like how she didn't declare the post was sponsored in the UOB Krisflyer campaign, then later quietly added the #ad hashtag after Aaron and I called them out on their bluff here. I don't know what to make of this, but it does explain why more consumers are losing faith in influencer marketing today.

But is a simple * enough for you? I'll let you decide, because it isn't sufficient for me, but hey maybe my standards are just too high.

Oh, here's another thing that baffles me. When I viewed the UOB Stash website a few days ago, this was what greeted me:

Which was surprising, considering how the total views stood at over 115,000 when combined across the 6 influencers on the 24th. This equates to a sign-up rate of lower than 2% when I last checked.

There were no sponsored posts that went out after 21st October, but when I checked last night (28th Oct), the bar changed to show the target of over 6,000 applications had been met! Wah, 4k applications within 4 days!?!? Incredible.

Congrats guys! To the 6,000 of you who signed up, I sure hope you know what you were getting yourself into. You now qualify to get $10 in November for every $10,000 you park inside the account!

All that work for $10. Very joke lol.

Today (29th Oct), the UOB Stash website looks like this instead:

The 1.2% is completely gone! There's no mention of it anywhere on the site anymore. I won't be surprised if someone visits this website for the first time and thinks the maximum interest they can get is now only 1%.

But wait, the promotional period hasn't yet ended, so why was it removed?

Source: UOB Stash T&Cs

I'm sure glad I didn't sign up for the account. Give me UOB One over this anytime instead.

Here's better alternatives to UOB Stash

Are you disappointed? Don't be! If you're looking for somewhere to park your cash, here's what I'll recommend instead.

Other High-Yield Savings Account

For starters, I'd recommend you look into DBS Be Your Own Boss, OCBC 360, UOB One, Bank of China SmartSaver and POSB Cashback. I've reviewed each of them at length, so you can just click to read on how to maximise the interest under each scheme.

Or, if you just want a plain vanilla bank account, how about CIMB FastSaver, which gives you 1% (capped at $50k) with no frills? If you already have that, other options could be CIMB StarSaver (0.8% p.a.) or RHB (1% p.a. after your first $10k, please check out their tiered interest table here).

Fixed Deposits

If you don't need cash liquidity, try these fixed deposits instead (I compared across some really awesome ones here).

Short-term Endowment Plans

You can now get short-term endowment plans from the various insurers which offer capital and interest guarantee on your monies.

Take the FWD endowment plan for instance, which allows you to start from just $1,000 and guarantees 2.02% interest on your deposits. (To avoid exploiting the scheme, there's a cap of $15,000 per person.) This would be great for if you're looking to park your emergency funds somewhere or you're saving up for a big-ticket item in the future, as you'll need to leave it there for 3 years.

You can read my review on FWD's endowment plan here. Just note that this needs to be money you don't have to use in the next 3 years, because early termination of endowment plans generally incur charges, and the same applies here.

Aside from FWD, the other insurers - Great Eastern, Prudential, Etiqa, etc - have also run their endowment offerings quite recently. However, most of them have since closed, and Etiqa requires you to put in a minimum of $10k+$5k and lock it up for 6 years instead of 2.

TLDR

Did you get misled by the 1.2% p.a. when you saw those posts? So did I. But at least now we know better.

So where should you park your money? Well, when you compare these alternatives to UOB Stash like I have, I think the answer is pretty obvious. Or, if you're at a UOB branch already, then just open the UOB One account instead and its tagged credit card. (UOB calls it the most generous rebate card in Singapore.)

Hey, at least it'll give you a lot more bang for your buck than UOB Stash.

With love,
Budget Babe

Budget Babe has a passion for helping her fellow Singaporeans get more out of their savings. No gimmicks and no marketing fluff. Oh, and always full disclosure. I don't believe in misleading my readers just because I'm paid for a sponsored post.

Note: If you can't tell by now, this is NOT a sponsored post, and neither is it an ad for UOB One, although my previous review here was. 2 years on, I still think no other UOB savings account comes close to being as good.

Just a few months ago, I declared that for anyone who

Spends less than $500 on your credit card in a month and / or
Earns less than $2,000 a month,

the DBS Be Your Own Boss (BYOB would be the best account in the market with the highest interest rates.

Since then, 2 new contenders have popped up in the market for those chasing high interest yields - the UOB Stash and DBS Multiplier.

I reckon you can pretty much forget about the UOB Stash - read my review and suggestions for what you'll be better off with here. And while the DBS Multiplier came out inferior in my last review against OCBC 360 about three years ago (no links because that was before this blog was born), its latest changes warrant a second look.

If you missed the BYOB sign-up even though I said you should totally go for it (hey, you had 3 months, up till 31 October), please smack yourself on the head now because you've just said goodbye to a golden opportunity to earn about 4% interest. But don't fret, because I'm about to introduce to you the next-best alternative by DBS.

Some of you also complained to me that the BYOB seemed age-discriminatory against anyone older than 30. (Haha I'm not DBS leh, I don't make the rules.) So if you didn't qualify for BYOB previously, you're probably going to appreciate this:

The revamped DBS Multiplier account.

Before I go on, here's a full disclosure. This post isn't sponsored, but I wish it was HAHA. The fault is actually mine, as I was approached about a month ago to do a sponsored review for DBS Multiplier to coincide with their relaunch, but turned it down as I couldn't commit to the timeline given my kids are sitting for their GP A Level exams during this period. Nonetheless, the product does look pretty good and I've been asked by a few readers to review it, so here goes! (TLDR: not sponsored.)

How much interest can I earn on the DBS Multiplier?

With the new changes launched this week, the enhanced DBS Multiplier now allows you to get at least 1.55% by transacting as little as $2,000 a month (instead of the old version which required $7,500 in transactions to get 1.05%). Now take note of this important game-changer: the transaction amounts includes your salary! This means that if you're earning $1,900 you can simply spend $100 on your DBS credit card to hit the 1.55% interest tier right away.

The maximum interest cap has also been increased to 3.05% (from its original 2.08%), but I personally feel that isn't realistic AT ALL for most folks so I won't be talking too much about it in this review.

This combined infographic done by the folks at BigScribe sums it up pretty well.

The tiers are confusing! What should I be looking to get?

Get 1.55% if you earn lower than $2,000 and combine with a credit card transaction (no minimum, so any amount works).
Get 2.2% if you haven't yet opened a POSB InvestSaver account

If you already have an existing POSB InvestSaver account, it won't count as part of your transactions as only new sign-ups will be considered.
Dividend interest from CDP into ANY of your existing DBS / POSB accounts (even joint accounts) will be counted

Get 2.3% if you have / are looking at getting a home loan with them (DBS/POSB Home Loans are generally very competitive, see my last review here).

Feel free to ignore the 3.5% which I reckon is generally quite out of the reach for most of us unless you earn an eye-popping salary each month.

Realistically, I think you'll be looking at 1.55% to 2.3% p.a.

If you (qualify and) want anything higher, check out my review on Bank of China's SmartSaver and UOB One here.

Before you open the DBS Multiplier account, you can also read the original (sponsored) review by my friend My15HWW here.

Honestly, from the standpoint of a frugal millennial, I'd say you really should have signed up for the DBS BYOB because it would have given you almost double interest at 4%, but too bad that sign-ups are now closed. This is your next best option now.

How can we get 3.5%? Is it even possible?

Yes, couples might be able to hit this. For couples already banking with DBS / POSB in any of the transactions, you'd probably want to open your own individual Multiplier account as the combined total is counted, helping you to reach the higher tiers faster.

Another important point to note before you sign up:

If you're already on the POSB Cashback scheme, it probably won't make much sense for you to switch over to DBS Multiplier as the total interest will work out to be somewhat the same. Neither can you play both accounts to stack up the interest rate.

Read more T&Cs here.

Can I use my miles card with DBS Multiplier?

Great question! If you're on the miles bandwagon, you should already have a DBS Altitude Card in your stable. (Otherwise, check out Miles Hack #3 here.)

Now you get BOTH miles AND 2.2 - 2.3% interest for swiping that! Read The Milelion's take on it.

With love,
Budget Babe

P.S. Look out for the upcoming showdown of the age-old MILES VS. CASHBACK debate between The Milelion and SG Budget Babe!

Get Debtzilla on Kickstarter here!

Unlike Wongamania where you pit yourself against the other players to win, Debtzilla requires you to work together for the benefit of everyone. You either win as a team, or lose together.

In today's day and age of consumerism and a rising occurrence of financial scams, this game could not be more relevant.

Our gameplay. That's me as Lady Easing / Jane Yeelen

In case you were wondering about why Donald Trump and Batman ended up being linked together, here's why.

The Villains

Inspired by people and events from the dark side of the financial world in real life that you've probably read about in the papers. Here are some of the ones that I really liked:

Shopaholics, don't laugh!

I'm a huge fan of games that are both fun and educational, and in this aspect, I think the creators have really outdone themselves with Debtzilla. For anyone trying to understand how debt and money works in the new economy, this game offers great insights while being exciting enough for you to warrant a second round, and then a third, and more.

If you're keen to purchase Wongamania, you can get it online or via the retail locations listed here (before you purchase, read my review, as well as what others had to say about the game).

Support Debtzilla on their Kickstarter here!

I've already contributed as a Premium Backer at the highest tier, and I absolutely cannot wait to get my hands on this game! It'll be one I intend to play with my kids in the future.

P.S. Not sponsored to write this review, but am doing so because I genuinely love the game (as regular readers would have known since the days of Wongamania). All opinions expressed are of my own.

With love,

Budget Babe

I've been seeing a lot of recent ads on Facebook selling the idea that HDB owners who earn as little as $6k - $8k combined monthly income can:

- Upgrade to a private condominium AND
- Own a second property AND
- Get a 5 to 6-digit lump sum of capital

all WITHOUT forking out any additional cash.

Images are not mine, but I've removed hyperlink credits as some readers have commented it is indirectly promoting these agents, which defeats my intentions. Hence, source credits will only be provided upon request.

For many of you who have been targeted by these ads and are wondering what the catch really is, I'll be debunking this today and sharing with you why I think such a message is completely unrealistic and misleading.

Got such a good deal meh? How does it work?

To be fair, the situation isn't completely impossible. Here's how:

1. Sell your HDB flat at a higher price than what you bought it at previously
2. Use the cash profits from your HDB sale to pay for the minimum downpayment of 2 condos (1 to stay in, 1 to rent out).
3. The remaining cash forms your emergency fund.
4. Rent out your second property for $XXXX a month and use that to pay off your mortgage loan on that same property, ideally with excess to spare.

Unfortunately, for a family whose combined income is $6,000 a month, I feel that agents who recommend such a strategy aren't being financially responsible.

What's the catch?

There are many downsides that these agents aren't telling you about. I spoke with an honest property agent whom I'd trust with my life (aka my husband lah) in order to clarify this, and here's a backward projection we came up with.

(Note: This is only ONE projection. I cannot possibly cover all the different scenarios, much less yours, in a single blog post. If you'll like to understand more about your specific circumstance, please consult an agent for advice instead.

To obtain the full backward projection I used in this post, please fill up my contact form here and I'll send it over to you when I have time! Note that any requests after 31 Dec 2017 will not be entertained.

We tried very hard to work out a backward projection that meets the claims purported in these ads, and I struggled to come up with scenarios where the above marketing claims were met in full. It eventually only worked out after we assumed a 1-bedder condo (for $800k) was purchased, and used overly optimistic figures for rental yield and excluded all other reasonable expenses.

But there are many glaring issues that make these assumptions problematic, and this is where I take issue with. For instance, is a smaller condo even realistic for a family with kids?

Moreover, there are many hidden fees not addressed:
- Condo maintenance fee
- Vacant periods where you're in between tenants
- Property tax
- Higher income tax (due to rental income)

A few assumptions that we used in order for the backward projection to work out:
- Your HDB was a Built-To-Order (BTO) flat which you bought more than 5 years ago for cheap
- You sell your BTO flat for more than at least $100k - $150k of what you bought it at
- You "upgrade" to a condo but with smaller area (eg. 1 or 2-bedder)

BUT! Don't forget that:

If couple earns $6k monthly ($4,800 take-home pay…)

How will they afford to upkeep all these expenses WITHOUT dipping into their emergency funds?

What happens when the emergency funds run out?

What happens if one loses their job?

What happens if interest rates go up?

What happens if they can’t find a tenant?

While you'll indeed be "upgrading" from a HDB to a private condominium lifestyle, ask yourself if a smaller house, possibly in a further location, is truly an "upgrade" at all.

Think about all your transport costs for a location much further away from the MRT station.

Next, now that you're so highly leveraged, what happens if you lose your job? Will you be able to continue servicing your monthly mortgage debt?

What happens if the Fed raises interest rates, and your mortgage loan suddenly becomes more expensive to service?

What happens if you're unable to find decent tenants to rent your second property to? Where will you get that additional income?

So...what's in it for these property agents? Why are they hard-selling this lifestyle to me?

Plenty. They earn not just the commission from selling your HDB, but also TWO more commissions for helping you to buy your condo and additional property.

As for you, congratulations! You're now knee-high in debt.

Is that what you REALLY want?

If your agent is simply selling you unicorns and rainbows instead of telling you the hard truth behind this magical-sounding strategy, I'd be wary of working with such an agent.

Property investment can indeed be your pot of gold, but if you go into it blind without really realising what you're signing up for, don't blame anyone but yourself (and your agent certainly isn't going to take responsibility when it explodes on you years down the road...)

Look for one who is REALISTIC about fitting in such a strategy into your life and financial circumstances, without landing you knee-high in debt while they walk away with a smile earned from the three commission deals they've done for you.

Notes:
- To obtain the full backward projection I used in this post, please fill up my contact form here and I'll send it over to you (when I have time). Note that any requests after 31 Dec 2017 will not be entertained.

- One key limitation of our calculations are in the numbers projected, which match only a very small fraction of Singapore's population. I personally think it is more realistic to do your own calculations, or get an agent to do them up for you, in order to assess your suitability. If you're a HDB owner who's keen on pursuing this strategy and wish to know whether your numbers and financial situation makes this realistic, please approach an honest agent whom you can trust to evaluate your situation without hard-selling you this dream. If you know of none, drop me an email if you want me to get my own agent to speak with you.

With love,
Budget Babe

My husband and I recently travelled to Hanoi for a budget getaway, and our total expenses added up to about $700 per person for the entire week.

Here's a quick breakdown:

Flights (return)	S$250
Accommodation	S$128 (6 nights)
Halong Bay cruise	S$66
Hoa Lu – Tam Coc tour	S$75
Transport	S$21
Food & drinks	S$95 (approx. $15 per day)
Shopping / massage	$70
Total per person	$705

Against the backdrop of Hoa Lu

Flight tickets
For a short flight, Vietjet was our budget carrier of choice. Personally, we felt seats were comfortable enough and service was decent.

We paid $200 per person inclusive of taxes.

Accommodation
I would strongly encourage you to book a hotel or hostel within the Old Quarters, even though the ones outside the area offer more affordable rates.

Trust me, you'll want to pay for that convenience because none of the tours will pick you up at your hotel if you're located outside the Old Quarters. Most of the tour groups average about 8 to 15 pick-ups at the different hotels within the city every morning, and have only 30 - 45 minutes to gather everyone.

So save yourself the headache from the horrendous morning traffic of trying to get into the Old Quarters on time, and just pick an accommodation in the area. You can't put a price tag on convenience for this.

Local hotels are aplenty, and you'll find many backpacker hostels going for as little as USD 4 per bed a night. Pay for the level of comfort you desire.

Us at Hoa Lu, the old capital of Vietnam

Transport & Wi-Fi
Get local wifi (we opted for a portable wi-fi egg from Klook which was conveniently delivered straight to our hotel) so that you'll be able to navigate Google Maps easily, and download the Grab app for cheap transport options before you go. In our case, we had no trouble with the wifi even while in the rural areas with our wifi egg (while other tourists were struggling to get a stable connection), which latches onto the area's strongest wifi signal and supports up to 5 devices.

The Uber equivalent in Vietnam is called Grab, and you can book taxis, private cars and even motorbikes on the app for cheap.

Do not take the non-authorised taxis from the airport. Their taxi meters are rigged to run at a faster speed, so you'll still end up being overcharged! So please learn from our mistake and either get your hotel to book for you, or just book via Grab.

Another example: we got quoted 100,000 VND by our hotel and a tour agency for a taxi trip to Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, when it turned out to be only 25,000 VND on our Grab app -.-

Food and other expenses
In general, food in Hanoi is perfect for the budget traveller. You'll be able to get a satisfying sandwich for as little as USD 1 on the street, and coffee that is better than Starbucks for just USD 2+. A bowl of pho (rice noodles with beef / chicken soup) will set you back by USD 3. You can also get the local beer for just USD 0.30 (5,000 VND - you didn't read that wrong!) along Beer Street.

If you're up for some learning while on vacation, you can also try out the Vietnamese home cooking class we did here - it was a real treat!

Getting around the city via Grab bookings was extremely easy and cheap.

Manicure services start from as little as USD 4, whereas you can get fantastic massages for USD 7 and up.

DIY walking food tour
There are plenty of tour agencies offering guided food walks within the Old Quarters, but if you're up for an adventure like we were and prefer to customize your own walking tour, here's what we DIY-ed:

- Local appetisers at Bánh Cuốn Bà Hanh (26B Au Trieu Street). Try the lemongrass pork!
- 4-cheese pizza at 4Pizzas
- Grilled pork with vermicelli soup + crab spring rolls Bún Chả Hàng Mành 1 (don't go to the imitation one across the street!)
- Coconut coffee at Cong Caphe
- Egg coffee at Cafe Giang (the original) or Lakeview Cafe (we preferred this)
- A mug of Bia Hoi (local beer) along Ta Hien Street
- Eel porridge and dry vermicelli at Miến Lươn Đông Thịnh
- Custard apple & "breastmilk" apple at any fruit stall
- Bonus: get the best (and cheapest) foot massage at Vạn Xuân Foot Massage at the end of the day!

(Just download Google Maps and search using the stall names - it'll show up!)

The fried eel porridge we had in Hanoi was the best I've ever tasted in my life.
Thinking about it now is making me drool again.

In addition, we did a cooking class with the local Vietnamese and it was one of the best experiences ever.

Cycling in Tam Coc to see the limestone sights.

Click here to check out what we whipped up!

Day trips out of Hanoi
If you're the spontaneous sort, I would recommend that you head there directly to any of the numerous tour agencies to book your day trips out of Hanoi. There are at least 2 - 3 on every street.

However, if you're the anxious type who prefers to have all your bookings confirmed before you fly, then I highly recommend using an online booking agency instead. NEVER book directly through your hotel, as most of them will mark up the prices and sell you for a higher rate than what you'll find on the streets.

I personally have been using Klook for all my travels in Asia, and never had an issue. Their mobile voucher redemption (no printing, hooray!), instant confirmation and impeccable customer service have won me over numerous times. What's more, their prices are extremely competitive as compared to the local ones we did.

Our hotel manager told us to shop around but not book outside, boasting that he could match any price or even get it for cheaper. Unfortunately, that all turned out to be a lie as they sold us a day tour to Hoa Lu and Tam Coc for USD 50 per person, when Klook offered the same tour for USD 40 (less after using promo codes).

I highly encourage the following day trips:
- Hoa Lu and Tam Coc
- Halong Bay (do the 3D2N version if you can, otherwise you'll be spending 8 hours travelling to and fro on a single day trip)
- Sapa

Us at Halong Bay

At a beautiful cave we explored while on our Halong Bay tour with Klook

We kayaked in Halong Bay too!

Being rowed along the scenic river of Tam Coc

For first-time users, you can key in the promo code BB5 to add a $5 off voucher into your wallet (you can add the code into your wallet first for future use, valid until 30 November 2018). Don't forget to also get $50 off in their year-end sale if you're doing any bookings soon!

Click here to check out our adventures to Hoa Lu, Tam Coc and Halong Bay!

With love,
Budget Babe

Everyone's fussing about the recent claims that there will be a GST hike soon, but I honestly think there's no point overreacting.

In case you're not in the loop, DBS recently released a report claiming that Singapore's GST could soon increase to 9%. This sparked much public outrage, with some claiming that the hike is too much and it is time for them to migrate elsewhere.

My friend was discussing this on her Facebook page and said this, which I thought was worth sharing:

But don't forget that every country in the list above has its downsides as well.

In Hong Kong, property prices are exorbitant.

Bangkok struggles with massive traffic jams and air pollution.

Personal incomes in Malaysia and Thailand are 3 times lesser than Singapore.

Taiwan is located at the junction of two tectonic plates with high vulnerability to earthquakes.

Japan struggles with a shrinking economy and has the highest percentage of senior citizens in the world.

And at the end of the day, who will be the ones who have to pay the most due to the rise in GST?

Those who spend the most, of course. (Shopaholics, I'm looking at you.)

Instead of being sour about the impending rise in taxes, wouldn't it be better to figure out how we can reduce our GST expenditures instead?

With love,
Budget Babe

All my cashback aficionados raise up your hand.

This is a challenge. An ultimate showdown. The one you've been waiting for (since it was first mentioned on 2 Nov in this post, to be exact).

As some of you might have already heard, there's a crackpot in town known as Aaron Wong (MileLion), who has been going around calling us cashback folks "fools" and "noobs". Read his piece here: ST writer prefers cashback to miles, fluffy kittens everywhere die.

He's not the only one, by the way. Talk to a miles hacker and they'll most likely call you silly as well.

We need to prove him, and all his fellow miles-chasing addicts, wrong.

So join me on Thursday as we fight it out once and for all, like what mature adults do, and put this matter to rest. You can tune in via Facebook Live from the comfort of your own home.

Here's the event page with details on our upcoming debate.

2018 is just around the corner. You should definitely review your credit card strategy! We've invited a panel of miles and cashback hacking legends to share their ideas.

Featured panellists:
- Budget Babe
- MileLion
- ShopBack
- Mileslife
- CardUp

Learn how to:
- Develop your card strategy
- Stack payments smarter (maximise both cashback and miles)

Best suited for:
- Working adults fresh to the cards world
- Couples who may be planning your wedding soon
- If you're planning to make a big purchase soon (eg. renovation)

Because hey, who's gonna stand up for the cashback folks?

(In case you can't tell, I'm only joking about The MileLion being a crackpot. Aaron and I are friends, as you can see from our collaboration posts here, here and here. He was also the first person I ranted to about my frustrations towards how the UOB Krisflyer campaign was being marketed by social media influencers, and we both wrote our comebacks right after.)

P.S. Let me know in the comments below which is your favourite miles or cashback credit card(s), and I'll try to touch on them during the discussion!

With love,
Dawn

With Bitcoin's price having broke through the $10,000 threshold a few days ago, many of us are kicking ourselves in the ass for not having invested earlier.

For me, I'm kicking myself for not putting in MORE earlier.

It is easy for us to look at Bitcoin's historical graph today and think, "Dang, it was so obvious. I'd be rich today if I had invested back then!"

But let's get real. Reality isn't that simple when you zoom in deeper, especially when you have no crystal ball to tell you what the future price will be.

If you had invested $10,000 in Bitcoin in January 2013 and held it until December (a 1000% gain), you'll probably be celebrating the fact that you grew your pot to $100k. But then suddenly, the price starts free-falling. In less than 3 weeks, your $100k has suddenly shrunk to $50k. That's half your wealth gone!

What do you do? You'd probably sell in panic before you lose all your gains entirely. Then, as price starts recovering, you'll be kicking yourself for making such a stupid mistake and buy back more Bitcoins.

Then it drops again, this time crashing to below $500, and for the rest of 2014 it continues on a downward spiral until it bottoms in January 2015. But then it stays low.

In 2015, price (slowly) starts recovering. What will you probably think? Bitcoin will have to more than triple in value to reach back its previous peak. And as it inches closer to the $1000 mark, you look at the charts and think, "Hey, that looks like it could hit $1000 and then crash again". You decide to stay out.

Be honest with yourself. Each time you think about how you could have been rich today if you bought back then, ask yourself if you would have really been able to stomach the ride and hold onto your Bitcoins until now.

What would you have done?

"Shit, I better sell all my Bitcoins now before it goes to zero."

"Nah, the price increase must be temporary. I'll wait." (and wait, and wait, and wait...)

"I don't know if I dare to put in a large amount into this..."

Warren Buffett could have said the same - we all know about how he missed out on the meteoric rise of Internet companies - but does he?

In my case, I invested only money I could afford to lose, and I know that if I were to go back in time again, I would have done the same because I simply didn't have the knowledge then that Bitcoin would rise to $10,000.

It is easy to say "I wish I invested in XX a few years ago". Heck, I do it too; just ask my husband.

Then I smack myself and say, "Okay Dawn, stop it. You know very well you would have made the same decision."

A friend of mine shared this post, written by a Joseph Lee, which I thought was worth sharing here to serve as a reminder for myself to keep coming back to this post whenever I start to harbour similar (useless) thoughts.

Joseph referenced Amazon's stock, and there are many parallels here to Bitcoin. His words are reproduced below in grey:

When we look back at selected stocks 10 or 15 or even as far back as 20 years ago, we all wished we had looked into the crystal ball 20 years ago and seen the explosive growth of companies like AMZN and poured in all the money we had at that time, sat tightly for the next 20 years and today, we might even afford to buy a private jet!

But is it that simple ?

Look at how many choppy ups and downs the company went through between the years 1998 and 2012 before it finally took off steadily to hit a record high price of $1,186 today. The chart resembles the choppy waters of a raging sea doesn’t it?

Suppose you had been lucky enough to invest several thousands in AMZN at around $10 in 1998 and it shot up to $120 ( a 12-bagger) at the peak of the dot-com bubble in year 2000, would you not have sold most of it, if not all of your investment in AMZN since you grew your money 12-fold in a few short years?

Imagine what would have happened if you had become greedy and think the stock will continue smoothly up to give you maybe a 120 bagger in another 3 years time in 2003?

That’s how most people get sucked into that kind of thinking whenever there’s some mania going on and everyone is telling everyone else the kind of easy money they made and why you should not miss the boat and join the ‘party of easy money’.

What happened then?

The music stopped, the bubble burst and the party came to an abrupt halt.

Anyone who did not take profit while AMZN was rising to $120 got badly burnt- particularly if you had joined the party too late and bought near $120, you’ll be the victim who suffers the “highest degree burn” in that calamity.

Will you be feeling very happy hanging on to a stock you had bought at say $100, watched it plunge all the way down to a bottom of about $7 in 2001 - a 90% loss?

AMZN never recovered back to $120 again until almost 10 years later in 2010.

How will you feel during those 10 long years?

Let’s get real.

If I were you, I’d probably be kicking myself when the crash happens for my greed in joining the ‘party of easy money’ and most likely will dump AMZN sometime between 2002 and 2010 just before AMZN took off!

Then after dumping AMZN in the year 2010, let’s say, you watched AMZN lift off from that point to $200 or even $400 in 2015 but you were already too scared to touch AMZN since you were badly burnt in 2001. How will you feel?

Will you not kick yourself again for being so foolish not to load up on this super stock in 2010 instead of dumping it off since it just broke even after 10 long years, having bought it at the peak before the bubble burst?

You see, everyone is a millionaire or a billionaire on hindsight.

You and I will never be so clever as to spot every opportunity or smell danger by recognising a ‘bubble ‘ until it’s too late.

So why do I even bother to ramble on and on with my long story, you may wonder.

It’s to prove to you and me and all who bother to read, that we should refrain from talking in terms of “if only I had done this and that” then ‘I will be sitting on a pile of cash today’. “If only I knew… “ “ If I had the foresight to know…”

Things are never that simple in life.

Instead of lamenting and regretting for having missed the boat of cryptocurrency and Amazon, allow me to gently but strongly advise you to make the greatest investment in your life.

Invest in yourself.

Then the returns in future will be so handsome you’ll never have to kick yourself again because you’ll be so wise, you’ll be able to recognise most opportunities when they come by and profit from them slowly but surely, that at the end of the rainbow, you’ll surely find the proverbial pot of gold.

I know why I bought Bitcoin only a few months ago, and why I only bought it using money I could afford to lose. The price has more than doubled since then, and it is easy for me to wish I had bought it even sooner (or more of it when I did), but I know why I didn't. Do you?

You see, we often forget that we have information today that we didn't have in the past. What is obvious today was not obvious in the past, but nothing has really changed about the fundamentals of Bitcoin.

Harping on these kind of self-defeating thoughts don't bring us anywhere, nor do they make us richer (unless you can invent a time-turner...or get Hermione Granger to lend you hers).

Folks invested in Amazon, Facebook and Apple because they believed in their strategy and that these companies would eventually come to dominate. The ones who invested in Bitcoin did so because they believed in its breakthrough technology and that it would become a store of value in the future. They made a projection of the future of the company based on hard facts and then decided to put in their money. None of us had any clue that Amazon / Facebook / Apple / Alibaba / Bitcoin would succeed, but they believed it would based on its underlying fundamentals.

So let's focus on the future. If you want to make sure you don't make that kind of ~~stupid~~ mistake again, then the best thing you can do for yourself is to invest in your knowledge.

Read. Take courses. Go for workshops. Talk to like-minded people. Listen to experts speak. Watch the news. Absorb information.

That'll increase your chances of spotting the next Facebook or Bitcoin.

That's what I'm doing. What about you?

With love,
Dawn

I've been getting a number of emails and Facebook messages these few days about how to buy Bitcoin, so I thought I'd pen it down in a post today for everyone's reference!

(Note: This is largely written for Singapore residents, but foreigners can use this as a guide to buying Bitcoin regardless of where you are located.

This post contains affiliate links. You can opt to sign up without them, but then you'll have to source for your own promo code.)

Before I invested my first dollar into Bitcoin, I spent quite a significant amount of time and money attending Bitcoin (preview) courses by so-called "gurus" or "master crypto traders". While there was some sort of value from their workshops, what frustrated me the most was that NONE of them told me explicitly HOW to buy Bitcoin.

And mind you, I did ask! I raised my hand during the class, and even stayed back after the workshop(s) to ask how exactly can I buy Bitcoin in Singapore. The answer was always:

"It's a complicated process and I need to walk you through step-by-step. No worries! Come for my ($XXX - $XXXX) course and I'll teach you!"

None of these "teachers" were interested in telling me how to buy Bitcoins. Their workshops were mostly a preview - for them to up-sell their thousand-dollar course.

So guess what? I consulted some savvier friends instead who have been in the crypto space for much longer than I have, and found out how to buy Bitcoin safely and securely in Singapore. Here's sharing with you, so you don't have to pay any "guru" a 3 or 4-digit fee just to find out, because it really isn't that complicated as they'll have you believe!

After evaluating both apps and asking both my friends in Singapore and abroad, I decided on using Coinbase instead. Some of the key reasons driving my choice came down to which site had more users, a higher level of security and more trustworthy team (including an ex-Google software developer), as well as the fact that Coinhako had their bank accounts abruptly shut by our local banks quite recently.

So my choice was Coinbase.

A step-by-step guide to buying your first Bitcoin

1. Sign up here www.bit.ly/coinbase13sgd (and get SGD 13 free)

2. Create your account as an individual

3. Prepare your documents for verification. You'll need to provide the back and front copy of your national ID (NRIC / passport), a copy of your latest bank statement (with your address on it), and a selfie. This is needed as part of the KYC (know your customer) process, similar to that of a bank or stock exchange.

4. Once you've been verified, you should receive an email that looks something like this:

5. Download an authenticator app, like Google Authenticator.
(Coinbase used to send an SMS to your registered phone number as their 2FA method, but this has since been switched to a digital authenticator.)
Scan your QR code in your authenticator app to link to Coinbase.

6. Create an Xfers account here using your registered phone number with Coinbase: www.xfers.com
(This isn't compulsory, as you can also opt to buy using your credit / debit card, but I won't encourage it because of the high fees.)
Once your Xfers account is set up, you'll need to do a test transfer to verify your bank details. When you transfer funds into Xfers, remember to transfer to your Digital Wallet and not General Wallet!

7. Additional security layers: I highly recommend that you make full use of Coinbase's multi-layer security. Write down your secret seed...

8. ...and set up your own digital vault. This makes it harder for folks to hack your account, as they'll need to hack BOTH your emails in order to withdraw any cryptocurrencies.

9. Click on Buy / Sell in the Coinbase menu bar.

10. Click on Bitcoin (or Ethereum / Litecoin). Enter the amount you'll like to buy (either in SGD or a denomination of Bitcoin, known otherwise as a satoshi). Set your payment method to either Xfers or credit / debit card.

11. Click to confirm buy transaction.

Congratulations, you've now successfully bought your first Bitcoin! (Or, a fraction of it.) You should soon see this email:

Note that even though at time of writing, one Bitcoin is trading at above USD 11,000, that does not mean you need to have a lot of money before you can buy any Bitcoin.

You can buy Bitcoin for as little cash as you want! Try $100 for a start if you're only just starting out, but remember to do your due diligence before buying.

Head over to Coinbase now to start buying your first Bitcoin, and get SGD 13 free after you're done!

Hopefully this guide helps you guys out, so you don't have to pay for as many crypto workshops where they don't even teach you these stuff -.-

With love,
Budget Babe

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