Your Way Home with Hongbin Jeong

What if power wasn’t just about wealth or status, but about opening doors for those shut out? That’s the idea behind ErudiFi, a student financing platform founded by John Tan, which has already helped tens of thousands of young people in Southeast Asia pursue higher education. But can a business built on social impact also stand on solid financial ground? And how do you measure success...

In Singapore, migrant domestic workers are legally allowed to work only for their registered employer.  Yet some are turning to part-time “moonlighting” jobs due to financial pressures, family obligations, or debt, despite the serious penalties involved.  A recent case saw a helper fined S$13,000 for working for two unofficial employers, highlighting the high stakes for both...

Fine wine prices are at multi-year lows, creating a rare window for investors and collectors to snap up some of the world’s most coveted bottles. But with risks like liquidity, storage, and counterfeits, the market is far from simple. How are these price trends reshaping investment strategies? Which vintages and regions could outperform? And what should both new and seasoned investors be wat...

The STI opened higher at 4,315 points but closed down 0.2% at 4,302 as early momentum faded. Across Asia, markets were mixed after the Fed’s rate shift, with eyes on an upcoming Trump-Xi call. Japan’s Nikkei slipped 0.59% after the BOJ held rates steady, while Taiwan is poised to overtake South Korea in GDP per capita as early as 2025. What do these signals mean for investors? And...

Airport workers at 15 major hubs in South Korea, including Incheon and Gimpo, will begin a nationwide strike tomorrow that could stretch through Oct 9, overlapping with the peak Chuseok holiday rush. The dispute centers on exhaustion, safety concerns, and calls for improved shift schedules. Airlines are already bracing for widespread delays and cancellations that could hit millions of passengers....

Singapore’s equity market is buzzing with activity. The MAS has rolled out a S$5 billion Equity Market Development Programme, aiming to boost liquidity and attract investors, but what does it really mean for valuations and market confidence? Momentum in some stocks is rising, yet the balance between technical signals and fundamental value remains a puzzle. Which stocks are poised for longer-...

Stick ’Em is a hands-on STEAM education platform that makes learning accessible, affordable, and fun for kids everywhere. Using simple chopstick-based robotics kits and an online academy, Stick ’Em empowers students to build hundreds of creations ranging from catapults and hydroponic farms to bomb-disposal robots, while encouraging creativity with everyday materials like cardboard, str...

Singapore's Straits Times Index (STI) opened lower in early trade, as investors reacted to caution stemming from the US Federal Reserve’s first interest rate cut since December 2024.  Among key stocks, DBS, OCBC and UOB fell between 0.6-1%. This comes as current rate pressures and sector rotation weighed on the counters. Meanwhile, Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed, with Japan’s b...

Today we’re going to dive deep into a company which plays an instrumental role in the Defence, Aerospace and Cyber & Digital Sectors. With over 83,000 employees dotted across five continents, our guest Thales provides solutions, services and products to help companies, organisations and governments carry out their critical missions.  Think about air traffic management, training and...

Want to help rent out a flat?  Criminal syndicates pushing illegal e-vaporisers are hunting for exactly that, young people willing to rent rooms as secret storage.  When raids happen, it’s the tenant who takes the fall. So how do these schemes actually work? The Straits Times went undercover to speak to the advertisers to find out. On The Big Story, Hongbin Jeong speaks with Andrew...

Singapore is on the brink of one of its largest intergenerational wealth transfers. Younger high-net-worth families are rethinking legacy planning, balancing tradition with modern investment strategies, and exploring new ways to safeguard and grow their wealth. What trends are shaping this transfer, and which strategies are redefining how wealth is passed on? On Wealth Tracker, Hongbin Jeong speak...

Would you leave a distinguished career in the civil service to redesign what a ‘good life’ means in Singapore? Three female founders have done just that to establish a development studio that helps young people step off Singapore’s achievement treadmill and design lives of greater meaning. On The Right Business, Hongbin Jeong speaks with Clarice Song and Hong Ruoyi, Co-Founders o...

Singapore stocks opened higher this morning, despite Asian markets trading mixed as investors await the outcome of the US Federal Reserve’s two-day meeting, where it is expected to cut interest rates.  The Benchmarket STI closed lower -0.3% at 4,323 points The Asian benchmark this week also surpassed its previous all-time high set in early 2021, helped by a weaker dollar and a strong AI...

A businesswoman has taken her former relationship manager to court, alleging negligence in a financial transaction that went wrong.  The defense, however, argues that this is simply a matter of ‘seller’s remorse.’ It’s a case that raises bigger questions: what duty of care do financial professionals actually owe their clients?  Where does personal responsibility b...

Tokenization is no longer a fringe idea. It's becoming a major force in Asia’s investment landscape. From MAS’s Project Guardian connecting Singapore and UK asset managers, to billions of dollars in real-world assets being digitised regionally, institutional adoption is moving from theory to practice. This shift is opening up private markets, pre-IPO deals, and alternative assets to a...

CynLr is a visual object intelligence platform that enables industrial robots to see, identify, and manipulate objects in unstructured environments. Unlike conventional robots that require extensive pre-training, CynLr’s technology allows machines to grasp, re-orient, and place objects they’ve never encountered before, providing flexibility in handling a wide variety of products. Throu...

Singapore shares dipped today despite most Asian markets trading in the green. The Straits Times Index was down 0.22% at 4,328.85 points at 2.39pm Singapore time, with a value turnover of S$826.72M seen in the broader market. In terms of companies to watch, we have SIA Group, after the airline group yesterday reported a 5.4 per cent increase in passenger traffic for August compared with the previo...

Days of youth-led protests over corruption, joblessness, and social media curbs have forced Prime Minister K. P. Sharma Oli to step down. In his place, former Chief Justice Sushila Karki is now Nepal’s first female prime minister, leading an interim government until elections in March 2026. But this isn’t just about a change at the top, it’s about a new generation. Nepal’s...

Gas and LNG power most of Singapore’s electricity today, but as the world pushes toward renewables, is this still a growth story or just a temporary bridge? And for investors, does gas remain an opportunity… or a risk? On Wealth Tracker, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Lu Ming Pang, Senior Analyst, Gas & LNG Research, Rystad Energy , to find out more. See omnystudio.com/listener for priva...

Aspire is an all-in-one financial platform designed to simplify business finance for modern companies worldwide. Founded in 2018 and headquartered in Singapore, Aspire serves over 50,000 businesses across 30+ markets, helping them save time and reduce costs by consolidating financial operations into a single, user-friendly platform. The platform offers multi-currency business accounts, corporate c...

Singapore shares were little moved today as Asian equities traded mixed. The Straits Times Index was flat at 4,344.24 points at 12.52pm Singapore time, with a value turnover of S$650.64M seen in the broader market. In terms of companies to watch, we have Seatrium. That’s as the offshore and marine energy solutions company failed in a Singapore court appeal to block a US$126.6 million rig con...

Investment-Linked Insurance Plans, or ILPs, have long been one of the most hotly contested financial products in the market.  On one hand, they are promoted as a two-in-one solution, combining life insurance protection with access to investment funds, promising long-term wealth growth while keeping you insured.  On the other, critics argue that high fees, lock-in periods, and complex str...

Vibefam is a growth operating system for service-based businesses. Designed to go beyond basic scheduling software, Vibefam helps entrepreneurs streamline operations, manage clients, and unlock new revenue opportunities. While the platform has built its strongest traction in the health and wellness space powering gyms, yoga studios, and fitness coaches, it also supports a growing range of service...

Equities just bounced back to new highs, but was that tiny dip all the correction we’re going to get? Or are investors underestimating the risks ahead? On Wealth Tracker, Hongbin Jeong speaks to  Steve Brice, Global CIO, Standard Chartered , to find out more. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Singapore shares dipped today despite a broadly positive day in the region. The Straits Times Index fell 0.2% to 4,347.25 points at 2.25pm Singapore time, with a value turnover of S$836.62M seen in the broader market. In terms of counters to watch, we have CapitaLand Investment and CapitaLand China Trust. That’s after CapitaLand Investment said today that CapitaLand Commercial C-Reit’s...