‘Thrive with Grab’: New financial products including the opportunity to invest on the Grab app

Grab logo

Last Tuesday (28 July), we wrote about how Grab might be implementing a 0.32 SGD platform fee on each ride to help cover its costs.

Today (4 August), Grab Financial Group, the financial services arm of the ride-hailing company has announced a few new financial products including a micro-investment scheme that would allow you to invest as you spend on the Grab app.

The new features are part of the ‘Thrive with Grab’ strategy which aims to tap into Southeast Asia’s mass-market financial services opportunity.

According to Grab Financial Group senior managing director Reuben Lai, the strategy will allow consumers to “build their wealth, manage their finances and protect what they value during this uncertain period”.

Here are the deets.

#1: New third-party consumer loan

You will soon be able to access personal loans offered by Grab’s licensed bank partners. The group is working with its bank partners to integrate their application programming interfaces (APIs) so you can securely apply for loans directly from the Grab app.

#2: Micro-investment scheme: AutoInvest

After Grab Financial Group’s acquisition of robo-advisory start-up Bento Invest, they have created AutoInvest. AutoInvest is a new micro-investment product that will allow the public to invest at least 1 SGD per transaction on the Grab app. 

The good news? You will earn returns of about 1.8% per annum and the amount will be paid out to your GrabPay wallets.  

“AutoInvest sets GrabPay apart from other e-wallets by allowing users to invest their wallet balance easily. The invested sum can then be withdrawn at any time, with no penalties, to spend on Grab services or at any merchant accepting the GrabPay Card,” said Grab in its news release.

And of course, nothing comes for free. When AutoInvest rolls out in early September, you will need to pay a fee to use the service.

#3: Expansion of “buy-now-pay-later” payment plans

Following the launch of AutoInvest in September, expansion plans for its “buy-now-pay-later” scheme will also come to play in October.

You can look forward to PayLater Instalments, giving you the ability to split your purchases into monthly instalments. In addition to that, there’s also PayLater Postpaid, where you can defer your payment to the following month. It will only be applicable to selected e-commerce stores in Singapore and Malaysia in October.

The news comes after a report yesterday (3 August) that Grab is raising 200 million USD (275 million SGD) from South Korean private equity firm, Stic Investments.

What are your thoughts on Grab’s new initiatives?

 

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How To Maximise Your Returns Investing In Gold With Everest Gold

The arguments of having gold in your investment portfolio have already been well articulated by scholars, but do you know how to go about doing it in Singapore in a cost-efficient manner?

The traditional way of buying gold jewellery and passing it down to the next generation is highly cumbersome and costly. Purchasing gold bars from a bank and storing them in a vault will not be cheap either. Fret not, your chance to start building your own dream gold portfolio is finally here with the launch of Everest Gold in Singapore.

Traditional Ways Of Investing In Gold

The most traditional way of investing in gold is to purchase and store gold jewellery at home while waiting for capital appreciation. However, this is a costly way of investing in gold because of leakages such as workmanship costs and 7% GST on the purchase price.

The other way of investing in gold is to purchase gold from the banks. However, there is often a minimum quantity to purchase which may put it beyond the reach of retail investors who do not have a significant amount of money to set aside in the first place.

Purchasing gold directly from the banks is also not a cost-effective way of investing in gold because of the significant bid-ask spread and storage fee charged by the bank. Bid-ask spread at the bank could go as high as 30% while storage fees are often levied as a separate service charge at 0.25% of the current portfolio. All these fees significantly dilute the returns investors can potentially make from gold.

An Elegant and Tech-savvy Solution To Own And Trade Gold

To maximise your returns from investing in gold, you should own and trade gold on Everest Gold. Everest Gold is a fintech company working to make gold trading and investment accessible and affordable for retail investors on a secure online platform. Everest Gold uses 999.9 pure investment-grade gold. Its 1kg gold bars are obtained from Metalor Technologies Singapore Pte. Ltd, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Metalor Technologies International SA, the leading worldwide precious metals refiners based in Switzerland.

Everest Gold employs advanced technology which allows clients to track real-time gold prices as they seamlessly build, invest, trade and sell their gold portfolios. Here are the key cost advantages of using Everest Gold to invest in gold:

  • Affordable: No minimum amount required such that the capital investment is low. Start trading gold from as low as 0.01g of gold!
  • Trade with peace of mind: Your investment assets are fully insured.
  • Lower gold price: Benchmarked against international gold price, price of gold sold on Everest Gold is significantly lower than banks (USD$0.558 vs USD$0.783 per 0.01 of gold) during its Gold Subscription Event
  • Maximise Returns: No transaction fees mean all your principal are invested in the possible capital appreciation of gold
  • Accessible: 24/7 trade for instantaneous liquidity, something which the banks cannot provide

Additionally, investors do not need any specialised trading experience to yield higher profits when investing in gold via Everest Gold. Everest Gold is truly the most affordable and accessible platform for retail investors to start investing in gold today. Say no to workmanship cost, GST, high bid-ask spread and storage fees once you start investing in gold via Everest Gold.

Everest Gold is available for download on Android, iOS and desktop. 

For more information, visit https://everestgold.sg 

Enter referral code “WAVTW” when you register your Everest Gold account. Be rewarded with 300,000 reward points (worth US$30) for each successful account verification. Promotion valid till 31 July 2020.

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Financial Planning In The Wake Of COVID-19

Financial planning has never been an easy task, but the pandemic has made it even more difficult. Finance professionals are used to consistency and accuracy. They are not trained to plan for unclear economic conditions. No one is! The five-year plan that we are supposed to send to our supervisors is now completely out of the window.

How can you plan for your finances, if you do not know what is going to happen in the future?

#1: HAVE A ROBUST PLAN

You can better understand your financial resources such as investments and cash flows, if there is a robust financial plan in place. A comprehensive plan covers the ares of budgeting, investment, insurance, retirement, credit, and estate planning. When these areas are well covered in a sound financial plan, you have a greater clarity on how each financial decision affects another.

Specifically, the financial-planning team should focus on the following five steps: getting a clear view of the company’s position, building a fact base, aligning the financial plan to a concrete direction, determining the best moves, and identifying the trigger points that prompt businesses to adjust.

#2: KNOW WHERE TO START

Companies and individuals must know where to start. To get this, you need the support of experts. Together, you can see the historical and current financial trends. The January 2020 financial plan can be a good place to anchor on. This can help you to establish any assumptions that will need to change as a result of the pandemic.

#3: ENSURE THAT YOU HAVE POSITIVE CASH FLOW

Set up a realistic budget, which indicates your money inflows and outflows. Having an emergency fund that covers you for three months can ensure that you have enough liquidity to tide you and your dependents during financially difficult times. Doing so will give you some peace of mind even if you suffer temporary setbacks such as losing a job or are unable to make a living because you must be quarantined

#4: GET INSURANCE COVERAGE

Insurance is a means to cushion against financial losses and unexpected events. Find a suitable hospitalization and life insurance plan to cover your hospital bills and critical illnesses. There are also insurance plans that are related to growing your savings like endowment plans and investment-linked insurance plans.

Image Credits: pixabay.com

Focus on what you can control. Set up a sound financial plan, carve a realistic budget, get insurance protection, diversify your investments, and commit to a long-term strategy to achieve our life goals.

Sources: 1 & 2

 

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What are investment bonds?

Simply put, bonds are a type of fixed-income investment that results in an investor lending money to the bond issuer in exchange for interest payments. The cash you inject into these funds will be invested in a variety of assets, for example property or shares.

You will received steady interest income with a potentially higher yield compared to the interest from a savings account.

However, the amount you get back isn’t guaranteed and depends on how successful (or not) the investments have been. The value of your investment can fluctuate greatly – you may either see a huge return on investment or you may lose money. This means there is a financial risk involved as there is a possibility you’ll get back less than you invested in the first place.

How do they work?

If you want to invest in bonds, you will require a lump sum – and some bonds require a minimum cash amount. Most people that invest in bonds will use a qualified professional or investment company who will explain the different funds available for you to invest in. As explained above, there is usually no minimum term length, so a lump sum will be paid to you either on death or when you request to withdraw money from your bond. It’s worth noting that if you wish to withdraw early on, you may have to pay a penalty charge.

What are the pros and cons of buying bonds?

Here are just a few of the pros and cons of investment bonds.

Pros

  • You may see the money you invested grow, meaning you get back more than you put in
  • Certain investment bonds have conditions that you won’t get back less than you invested
  • As bonds are a type of life insurance, certain policies may pay out a lump sum higher than the value of the bond if you die
  • Usually, you can withdraw cash from your bond each year up to a set limit
  • They can be an effective way to save long-term

Cons

  • The value of your investment may go down, meaning you get back less than you put in
  • You may face penalty charges if you want to withdraw money early on
  • This means your money will be tied up for several years
  • You may also have to pay charges when setting up the bond

There are many other pros and cons associated with investment bonds. Fully understanding the associated risks before investing is essential – as bonds are not suitable for all investors. It’s important to seek advice from a financial professional before making any type of investment.

 

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Want to Invest in REITs but Don’t Know How? Use the FREE Seedly REITs Tool and Start Collecting Dividends Like a Bo$$

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Interested in investing in REITs but don’t know where to start?

For starters, it’s going to take a lot of work.

Like. A LOT.

Imagine this.

You just got home after a long day at work.

All you want is a shower, dinner, and to relax.

You wouldn’t want to waste time cooking a meal when you could be catching the latest episode of that new Netflix series that everyone’s talking about.

Source: American Dad | Giphy

And the last thing you would want to do is pore through pages of financial statements or do your own valuation of data just to pick the best Singapore REITs to invest in.

Not that there’s anything wrong with doing that… but wouldn’t you want to spend your time doing something else that you REALLY like?

I mean, why isn’t there a magical resource or tool that can help people start their REITs investing journey?

Enter: The Seedly REITs Tool

With up-to-date data, sound analyses, and tonnes of information just a click or tap away.

The Seedly REITs Tool is a REITs investor’s best friend — no matter whether you’re a noob or a pro at REITs.

Best of all?

It’s FREE TO USE.

If You’re a REITs Investing Noob

If you’re just starting out, you’re probably feeling lost and have no idea where to start when it comes to REITs investing.

With the Seedly REITs Tool, you have a one-stop resource where you can get useful information like:

  • What are REITs?
  • What are the types of REITs which you can invest in?
  • A simple 10-step checklist to pick the best Singapore REITs

Feeling more confident now that you know what you’re getting yourself into?

Great!

The next step is opening a Central Depository Account (CDP) and an online brokerage account — if you don’t already have them.

Instead of heading out into the vast wilderness of the internet to do your research…

Simply scroll down to discover what are the best online brokerages available!

In order to make an informed decision, important information like:

  • Trading fees charged
  • Minimum fees charged
  • Stock holding type (if you’d prefer not to use a custodian account)

are all available at a glance!

Prefer to find out what others have to say about their personal experience with these online brokerages?

You can also read real-user reviews to get insights like:

  • Customer support
  • Market access (in case you want to invest in global markets)
  • Products on offer (in case you wish to invest in more than REITs)
  • User experience (because you’re allergic to lousy user interfaces)

This way you know for sure what you’re getting yourself into when you sign up with your choice of brokerage.

Made up your mind?

Just click on ‘Visit Site’ to sign up and you can begin investing in REITs!

If You Already Know About REITs Investing

The first thing you’ll probably want to do is check up on the fundamentals of the REITs you’re interested in.

While you could go about your standard routine of going to the individual REITs website or SGX to look for the REIT’s financial statements or annual reports.

Why not use the Seedly REITs Tool to find what you need without going all over the place?

Just search for the REIT you want, click on it and…

You’ll have immediate access to:

  • Sound and in-depth REITs Analyses (researched and written by Seedly’s very own content team; we aren’t paid by anyone to write about them so you know that our analyses are objective!)
  • Company Announcements
  • Financial Statements
  • AGM Minutes
  • Investor Relations website (just in case you need more information about the REIT)
  • Best brokerages available

“How about REITs valuation data? Do I have to calculate that myself?”

The Seedly REITs tool gives you easy access to data like:

  • Unit Price
  • Market Capitalisation
  • P/B Ratio
  • Dividend Yield
  • Gearing Ratio

that is updated daily at the end of every day.

And because the information is readily available on the same page.

You can do your comparisons easily without having to navigate back and forth or go through multiple pages on different sites!

The Seedly REITs Tool Sounds Great and All… but Why Is Seedly Doing This?

The Seedly team believes that everyone deserves to achieve financial independence and freedom.

And the reason why so many people don’t start investing is that they lack the knowledge and guidance to take the first step.

This is why they created the Seedly REITs Tool and made it free for any and everyone to use.

If you understand what REITs can do for you and believe that they can play an important part in your investment portfolio.

Then the Seedly REITs Tool is the perfect accompaniment to help you start or make your REITs investment journey a little easier.

So when you come home from work…

Source: American Dad | Giphy

you can focus more on relaxing and collecting dividends.

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