Providend's Money Wisdom

More often than not, many investors assume that once they have completed their wealth plan when they are younger, they do not need to revisit it. However, this is not a reliable approach to managing your wealth plan. As accumulators, there are numerous unexpected events for which you may not have planned. Similarly, there are concerns as retirees that you did not encounter when you were younger. I...

In a previous article written for The Business Times, Chris, our CEO, explained the different ways an adviser could be compensated – commission-based, fee-based, or fee-only. However, it is important to note that the different compensation methods alone do not determine if an adviser is the right one for you. In this week’s Money Wisdom episode, Chris shares the three things you should take note o...

After finding the right instrument to invest in, the next question many investors might have is whether they should invest their entire amount all at once (Lump Sum) or spread it out over a few months (Dollar Cost Averaging). There are merits to both approaches, but which one is right for you? In this episode, Zhi Han, our Client Adviser, shares the historical evidence for both methods and highlig...

The third quarter of 2023 has been a challenging three months, as the MSCI All Country World IMI Index and the Bloomberg Global-Aggregate, our references for equities and bonds respectively, both fell this quarter. In this week’s Money Wisdom episode, Choon Siong, our Research Analyst, shares the key catalyst of market movements and discusses the outperformance of value stocks over growth stocks....

Investment-Linked Policies (ILPs) have always been a heavily debated and controversial topic among investors. To make matters worse, there are multiple types of ILPs being sold, and all with varying features. At Providend, we had previously stated our stance against the use of ILPs in our clients’ portfolio. However, with the changes around the new Wealth ILPs, will this change our stance? In this...

Previously from other big financial institutions, Joyce and Zhi Han both coincidentally applied for an advisory role at Providend after watching this video where Christopher, our CEO, shares the reason why he left the insurance agency - Joyce Chng, our Associate Adviser, and Toh Zhi Han, our Client Adviser, both coincidentally applied for a job at Providend after watching this same video where our...

At Providend, in order to help our clients achieve enough returns in the most reliable way to enable their life goals and life events, we started using the Ibbotson-Chen Model early this year to be more robust in deriving the planning returns used for constructing our clients’ wealth plan.  In this episode, Chris clarifies that these planning returns are actually not our portfolios’ target re...

“When I was much younger, we used to stay at a much bigger place. We had two cars and two maids, then subsequently, we just had one car, no more maid, downsized a little bit and went to rent instead. In my younger childhood years, I didn’t really have to worry about money, but the change was quite apparent after that, and I began to feel like money is very hard to come by.” In this episode, Seth s...

For the past 22 years, our CEO, Christopher Tan, has always been at the front line to share more about the humble beginning of Providend and how we persevered despite all the hardships faced to tirelessly journey along side our clients as their trusted wealth adviser. In this episode (which coincides with our 22nd birthday!), we specially invited two of Providend's founding members, Loh Mei Kuen a...

With the recent COE prices reported to be at an all-time high, the idea of owning a car in Singapore has become even harder to justify. In this episode, our Client Adviser, Ray Zheng, shares the deep conversations he had with some of his clients to better help them determine where car ownership ranks in terms of their other important life priorities and key considerations before making a car purch...

In this fast-paced financial landscape where businesses are in pursuit of faster revenue, interactions between wealth advisers and clients are highly transactional such that the value is often placed on the sale of products and not actual advice itself. In this episode, our CEO, Christopher Tan, shares what value you should be expecting from your adviser and emphasises the importance of consu...

"When you say people get free advice here, I laughed because in the end when you think about how this world works, nobody works for free. So you are paying for what you are getting somehow. And in my mind, if you’re specifically paying for advice, to me, it’s a much more transparent set up than getting free advice or freebies packaged in some other ways that I don’t fully know. I’m less comfortabl...

Recession, the pandemic and shifting demographics are intensifying the pressures on the ‘sandwich generation’ – those taking care of both their elderly parents and young children. This can put a strain on not just their finances but on their emotional and time capacity as well. In this episode, our Advisory Team Lead, Loh Yong Cheng, shares his personal challenges balancing the roles, re...

Estate planning is an essential component of both life and wealth planning that is often overlooked. Neglecting this critical aspect can lead to dire consequences, leaving loved ones with unnecessary burdens and financial challenges. In this episode, our Head of Solutions, Eddy Cheong shares the three key areas of estate planning – Distribution, Creation and Preservation, as well as considerations...

As we appear to take a 'passive' approach to investing by not doing the typical tactical asset allocation (TAA) or market timing approach, many seem to think that nothing much is done once a client invests with us. So, why should clients pay us an ongoing advisory fee if we take a 'passive' instead of an 'active' approach to investing?  In this episode, our CEO, Christopher Tan, explains why...

In the past quarter, we have seen multiple trends emerging in the investment market, most notably the buzz around artificial intelligence (AI). Many investors watching the AI trend are curious about how to get exposure, hunting for undervalued opportunities in an overvalued space. In this episode, our Research Analyst, Lim Choon Siong, summarises key market events that happened in the past quarter...

The total cost of university education can range from $100,000 to $1 million in SGD today, depending on many factors such as country, university, academic field, degree level, inflation, and foreign currency exposure. It is not a small amount to set aside and requires a well-considered financial plan to achieve successfully. In this episode, our Solutions Specialist, Tan Choong Hwee, and our Insur...

*Due to unforeseen circumstances, we will be postponing the episode on Investment-linked policies to a later date. Do keep a look out for it in the coming months and meanwhile, we hope you will find this new episode useful!* At Providend, we divide the whole process of planning for our demise into 3 stages – End-of-life planning, Legacy & Estate planning and Administration. In today's episode,...

One of the most challenging aspects of insurance planning is determining how much coverage you need. Buy too little insurance and you won’t have enough to get through a tough situation when you actually need it to do its job the most. Buy too much insurance and you’re wasting money every month on premiums when you could be saving more for retirement or another long-term goal. In this episode, Mike...

Did you know that back in 2013, a panel set up to review the financial advisory industry has rejected an outright ban on commission for financial advisers in Singapore? In this episode, Chris shares his thoughts behind this matter, one that is close to his heart, and also elaborates further as to why the commission-based approach actually makes more economic sense for individuals with less complex...

"There have been many bad money decisions because I know how to buy (stocks) but I don't know how to sell!" In many industries like healthcare and legal, it is a norm for people to pay for professional advice. However, when it comes to the wealth industry, many are still hesitant to pay a fee for advice. In this episode, our CEO, Christopher Tan, speaks with Lee Soo Chye , Managing Partner of Wee...

Are you making the most of your CPF account? In this episode, Isaac discusses the strategies for optimising your CPF accounts and integrating them into your personal wealth plan with Tan Chin Yu, our Advisory Team Lead. Discover valuable tips and insights that will help working Singaporeans and PRs harness the full potential of their CPF monies. Meanwhile, stay tuned for our upcoming episode featu...

Aside from conventional investment assets like stocks and bonds, there are other alternative investments that investors can consider. Among these, investing in private equity is deemed to be more sophisticated and while many may have heard about it, not many fully understand how it works. In this episode, Isaac speaks with our Head of Investment, Cheng Chye Hsern , where he shares what investors n...

With all the buzz surrounding Singapore Treasury Bills (T-Bills) over the past 18 months due to its rising yields, our CEO, Christopher Tan , took the opportunity to explain the nature of these short-term, risk-free instruments in his latest article on The Business Times. In this episode, he further emphasises the opportunity costs involved especially during a high inflation period like now and sh...

We all know Kyith as the brain behind Investment Moats , Singapore's most well read financial blog, but how much do we know about his motivations and money values that led him to where he is today? In this episode, our CEO, Christopher Tan , walks down memory lane with the Chief Editor of Investment Moats and Providend’s very own Senior Solution Specialist, Kyith Ng, as he shares stories of his gr...