What are the traits of a smart investor? Is there a secret recipe that we can follow to be one? Boasting speakers with years of experience in the financial markets, The Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS), MoneySense and Securities Investors Association (Singapore) (SIAS), hosted the 10th year of My Money Seminar on 16 November 2019. With an experienced line-up of speakers, we went down to the seminar (with more than 900 other people) to pick the brains of these investment professionals to discover the secret recipe to smart investing. Read Also: [Updated] Upcoming Personal Finance Events In Singapore You Should Attend In 2019 Here are the 8 ingredients for smart investing. # 1 Monitor & Stay On Top Of Your Investments We need to monitor the investments that we make. David Gerald,

Singapore Investors who are looking to open a brokerage account will find a wide variety of choices. In this article, we run you through the main things you should be looking at when picking a brokerage: Price Reliability Access to Research Platform Ease of Use Opening a Brokerage Account for Singapore Investors   CDP and Custodian Explained  There are two main routes to share ownership for Singapore stocks specifically – the Custodian System and holding them in your CDP (Central Depository). Essentially with a CDP system, the shares go into your CDP account and you are the legal ownership of the shares. You get to attend AGMS, will receive Annual Reports & Circulars and If you are a top 20 Shareholder, your name will appear under the top 20 shareholder list. With a custodia

With an acronym like MUST, it seems like investing in Manulife US REIT will not go wrong. Indeed, the unit price had been surging from USD0.80 since the start of the year to the current USD0.94. Listed in May 2016, this REIT has a strong sponsor in Manulife Insurance Company, a leading Canada-based financial services group. Despite having a strong pedigree, it has not always been a bed of rose for this REIT. Like many of its peers, Manulife US REIT unit price had been lacklustre in the initial year of listing. Looking back, the counter had been trading below its offering price of US0.83 per for most of 2016 and 2017. Then the unit price took on a life of its own when Temasek Holdings, through DBS Bank, increased its stake from 3.78% to 5.49% in July 2017. Subsequently, Manulife US REIT uni

Today, we are going to share with you how to invest your CPF investment money in a no-brainer way. The best part? You need not be financial savvy to do this. A beginner can do it! And I’ll reveal the exact step-by-step process, which you can follow easily. What is CPF Investment Scheme (CPFIS)? It is to provide option to CPF members to invest their CPF savings in your Ordinary Account (OA) and Special Account (SA) in various instruments such as insurance products, unit trusts, fixed deposits, bonds and shares in Singapore. The Average CPF Interest Rate is 2.5% to 4% for Ordinary Account. Check their latest CPF interest rate here. Below is the latest CPF rate (1st Oct to 31st Dec 2019).   Share this Infographic On Your Site </p><br /><br /><br /><br /&

One of the most popular industries among local investors is the banking industry. There are many good reasons to like our local banks: their stable business performances, solid dividend track records, and more. Another good reason to like these banks is their undemanding valuations compared to the Straits Times Index (SGX: STI). Despite this, investors might still want to know which bank among the three has the lowest valuation now. After all, investors are always searching for good value in the stock market. In this article, we’ll try to answer this question: Which is the cheapest bank among the trio of local banks, DBS Group Holdings Ltd (SGX: D05), Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited (SGX: O39), or United Overseas Bank Ltd (SGX: U11)? To do so, we will compare the valuati

DBS Group Holdings Ltd (SGX: D05) is one of Singapore’s three largest local banks. The group offers a comprehensive and wide range of banking services for individuals, SMEs, and multinational corporations. DBS has a strong and recognisable brand name in Asia and has also demonstrated a long track record of great service. The bank has grown from strength to strength over the years and has grown impressively since the days of the Global Financial Crisis in 2009, which dented sentiment and caused many banks to trade at depressed valuations. In its Q2 2019 earnings, DBS reported a record net profit, declared a quarterly dividend of S$0.30, and saw rising net interest margins. However, despite the impressive attributes above, here are three reasons I’m avoiding DBS for now. 1. Digi

Here we are again — back to looking at various fallacies and biases that can trip us up as investors. This is part 10 of the series, but amazingly, there are so many more types of biases that can affect and negatively impact our investment decision-making process. Note that these are all adapted from the book “The Art of Thinking Clearly” by Rolf Dobelli. The idea here is to know and understand these biases better so as to be able to avoid their pernicious effects and become better investors. While it is not possible to eliminate such biases completely, we can mitigate their effects by being aware and conscious of them when we make investment decisions. Forer effect The forer effect is present when generalised statements are made that everyone can agree with and are with

DBS Group Holdings Ltd (SGX: D05) is one of Singapore’s three big banks and provides a comprehensive range of banking services to individuals, SMEs and multinational corporations. The group has a presence in 18 markets and employs around 27,000 staff. DBS continues to grow from strength to strength as it reports loan growth and rising net interest margins. H1 2019 net profit rose to a record high of S$3.25 billion, with return on equity hitting 13.7% from 12.5% a year ago. Net interest margin stayed healthy at 2.18% for Q2 2019, while gross loans grew 5% year-on-year to S$15 billion, driven mainly by non-trade corporate and consumer loan growth. The group has identified various methods of growing its business, not just in terms of identifying suitable market segments to target, but

Investors who buy banks as part of their portfolios may not fully comprehend how they make money, as financial institutions are complex businesses with many moving parts. I always find it easier, when analysing a company, to split up a business into its component parts or divisions. In this article, I will be looking into how Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited (SGX: O39), or OCBC Bank, makes its money. The best way to do this will be to break the group up into separate components: its core banking division, the non-interest income division, the wealth management division, and the insurance division. Net interest income (NII) The core business of a bank is to make loans, and the net interest income (NII) represents the difference between the interest rates charged by OCBC on loans

Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) are hugely popular investments in Singapore. The reasons for this lie in two key characteristics – 1) its focus on property investments, which Singaporeans just cannot get enough of, and 2) its ability to pay a good annual distribution yield of typically between 5% and 8%. It should come as no surprise that when a new $1.5 billion REIT initial public offering (IPO) is announced, there will be plenty of interest. To guide you in your assessment of whether to invest in Lendlease Global Commercial REIT’s IPO, here are 10 things you should know. # 1 What Is Lendlease Global Commercial REIT? Lendlease Global Commercial REIT will own properties primarily in the retail and/or office space. The initial REIT portfolio comprises two properties – 313@So

Temasek Holdings is Singapore’s state-owned sovereign wealth fund that manages its assets using a long-term view and based on rigorous due diligence. Temasek holds a diverse range of assets ranging from private to public equities, and as of the end of the 2019 financial year (31 March 2019), the portfolio had a net value of S$313 billion, up slightly from 2018’s S$308 billion. The fund’s total shareholder return over 10 years stood at 9%, and Temasek’s portfolio includes at least 25 listings on the Singapore Exchange (SGX). In a write-up published by SGX, it highlighted the three-best performing SGX-listed non-REIT stocks within Temasek’s portfolio on a three-year total return basis. Investors who are searching for steady performers need not look elsewhere, a

LendLease Global Commercial REIT is going ahead with their IPO. However, the number of properties that will be injected into the IPO will only be 2, contrary to what I have speculated in my first article. The Australian based group LendLease will be looking to a placement and public offer of 387 million units. The IPO price is set at S$0.88. In total, there will be 1,167 million units outstanding. This will make the market capitalization of LendLease Global Commercial REIT to be close to S$1.56 billion. This IPO is a strange for the following reasons: I struggled to find what is the indicative dividend yield of LendLease Global Commercial REITIt is a mixture of office and retail REITLendLease Global Commercial REIT’s portfolio have a fair bit of concentration risk

Dividend investors like to invest in companies that can sustain dividend payments over the long term. Generally, this can be found in blue chip companies that have established long term track record such as Singapore Exchange Limited (SGX: S68) or DBS Group Holdings Ltd (SGX: D05). Nevertheless, there are smaller companies that have good potential to become solid dividend stock in the long term. In this article, we will look at this company that’s well-positioned to deliver good returns to dividend investors in the next few years. The contender The company that we will be looking at here IS SBS Transit Ltd (SGX: S61). For starters, SBS transit operates public bus and rail services in Singapore. It operates mainly in two segments: Public Transport Services (the bus and rail services

Here are some of the most popular articles that have appeared on The Motley Fool Singapore’s website over the past week. 3 Best Singapore Dividend Shares to Buy Now Through to 2020 We are less than four months away from a brand-new year. As cliché as it may sound, time really flies. If you are looking for high-quality income stocks to buy from now at regular intervals through to 2020, you have to check out this article. Investors Turned $100k Into $370k Investing in This Solid REIT “REITs are generally perceived as investments that give slow and steady returns to investors. In other words, they are “boring.” Yet, investing in REITs can generate significant long-term wealth for investors. Let’s look at one of those REITs that gave investors significant

Real estate investment trusts (REITs) are one of the most popular investment vehicles among dividend investors, mainly due to their stable income profile, as well as high profit pay-out ratio (at least 90% of net profit). Moreover, investing in solid REITs like CapitaLand Commercial Trust (SGX: C61U), or CCT, is likely considered as a no-brainer among dividend investors. Yet, if investors are looking for a dividend stock that will give them the best long-term return (at a reasonable level of risk), then buying CCT is probably not the best idea for now. In fact, I think DBS Group Holdings Ltd (SGX: D05) offers a much better deal now. Show me the money To start with, dividend investors are looking for investments that offer an attractive dividend yield. Generally, REITs offer better divide

In a changing world, it’s hard to find stocks that will last the test of time. Technology is advancing at a rapid pace. Companies that are unable to embrace change and grow with the times may find themselves becoming obsolete. As such, it is getting increasingly difficult to find stable stocks that we can count on for the long-term. However, I believe I have found two companies that fit the bill. These two companies have: (1) a long track record of stable earnings and cash flow; (2) businesses that are likely going to be required years from now; and (3) been willing to return excess returns to shareholders.  Dibs on DBS Singapore’s largest bank, DBS Group Holdings Ltd (SGX: D05) is one of my top picks to buy and hold for the long-term. Established in 1968, DBS has grown t

My Foolish colleague, Peter Stephens, recently wrote that amid the market volatility, the best way to invest might be to buy “high-quality dividend stocks at regular intervals”. So, what are some high-quality income stocks listed in Singapore to consider for your stock portfolio? Here are three of them that you can buy now through to 2020. (Tip: All of the companies mentioned below have dividend yields higher than that of the SPDR STI ETF (SGX: ES3), which has a yield of 3.8%. The SPDR STI ETF is an exchange-traded fund that tracks the fundamentals of the Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI).) No. 1: DBS Group Holdings Ltd DBS Group Holdings Ltd (SGX: D05) is Singapore’s largest bank, with operations in many Asian countries. This year, it became the world’s first bank

Singapore banks have all given investors plenty to cheer about, especially for shareholders of DBS Group Holdings Ltd (SGX: D05). Over the last five years, shares in DBS, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp Limited (SGX: O39), and United Overseas Bank Ltd (SGX: U11) have climbed strongly. However, the strongest performer of them all was Singapore’s largest bank; DBS. DBS shares rose 34% in the past five years, versus a negative return for the Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI). The strong share price growth is not surprising, given DBS’s net profit and dividend have increased the most among the banking trio. From FY2014 to FY2018 (DBS has a 31 December year-end), earnings from DBS grew 8.4% per annum while its dividend per share climbed 19.9% per year. DBS also ended FY2018 with the hi

Dividend investors like to invest in companies that are well-positioned to sustain their dividend payments over the long term. Generally, this trait can be found in blue-chip companies that have established long-term track records of paying dividends such as Singapore Exchange Limited (SGX: S68) or DBS Group Holdings Ltd (SGX: D05). However, there are also other less well-known companies that have the potential to grow into solid dividend stocks over the long term. Let’s look at one such stock that’s strongly positioned to deliver positive returns to dividend investors in 2020 and beyond. The company I’m talking about is HRnetGroup Ltd (SGX: CHZ), the largest recruitment firm in Asia excluding Japan. It was listed two years ago on the Singapore stock exchange. High divid

This article contains affiliate links. DollarsAndSense may receive a share of revenue from your sign-ups. The rise of robo-advisors is apparent not just in Singapore, but also in many other countries globally such as USA and Canada. Here in Singapore, investors have more than 10 different robo-advisors to choose from. Two prominent robo-advisory platforms known by many are AutoWealth and StashAway, which were amongst the first in the field. Other FinTech companies competing in the robo-advisory field include Endowus, FSM MAPS and MoneyOwl. You can read up more about what these companies by following the respective links. The latest entrant, Syfe, was just launched in July 2019. Here are 5 things you need to know about Syfe before investing with them. Read Also: Robo Advisors in Singapor