Finances

The first article of 2014, we bring to you one of the most successful blogger and one of the best selling book author. Many people will definitely know him, especially for those of you who are from financial industry. With his popular blog named KCLau.com , he shared with readers some financial tips which is very useful and practical. Let's head over to the exclusive interview session with KCLau as below: Hi KCLau, what makes you so passionate about financial education? In actual fact, everybody is not born equal in this world. Some are born in the third world countries and most of them don't stand a chance to live a wealthy life. But some are born with golden keys, destined to be billionaires because they are in the elite family. Understanding this fact, I just want to play my part to give the extra push most people need to live a better life. Although we agree that money can't buy everything, with adequate financial knowledge, you won't be poor. Since I know a little...

Christmas is coming to town, but before that, it was also the time when many people are rushing to enroll/top up their Private Retirement Scheme (PRS). Why? Main reason is they want to enjoy the tax relief given of up to Rm3,000 per year. However, social media has over-took the whole atmosphere with the purported 25% tax on PRS. Is this true? All I want for Christmas is Tax-Free ... Why suddenly got 25% tax? It was all started with the below video... Anyway, some people had misunderstood the meaning and translated into such chaos in social media with more than few thousand likes and comments. Well, it seems like the respond garnered already impacting the PRS contributions for many people. Since then, the Private Pension Administrator (PPA) which was set up to monitor and administer the whole PRS scheme, had issue a statement to clarify on this matter. Likewise, Inland Revenue Board (LHDN) also issue a statement on this matter. ( Click here to view ) To summarize: NO tax on...

Today, Bursa Malaysia introduced eStatement services to CDS account holders. It enables CDS account holders to receive statements and notices directly from Bursa Malaysia via email. What's the benefits ? To receive CDS statements and notices efficiently and on a timely basis with NO extra cost To receive CDS statements and notices directly to your personal email Minimize risks of not receiving your CDS statements and notices Less cumbersome to keep hard-copy statements compared to soft-copy For many of us, this is definitely an environmental friendly way of communicating. Also, it effectively reduce the cost of doing business for Bursa Malaysia. Once it implemented successfully, the profits of Bursa should be better... Considering to invest in Bursa shares now? How to register? From now onward, you CDS statement of account and any notice you receive from Bursa Depository will include your " Unique Password Phrase ". (This will ceased once you successfully provide your ema...

Maybe the timing was not right, DBKL is in hot water these few weeks, lambasted by KL citizens for its proposed assessment rate hike up to 200%. Just when GST is coming to town, coupled with the fact that the more expensive electricity bill next month, citizens were feeling the pinch in their pocket. What's the reason for the hiking? Answer: " The last increase was more than 20 years ago. " As simple as that? It must be joking us... Why don't you lower down your salary because you haven't done so for past years? We're not objecting about the increase for sake of objecting. But, some form of better reason should be justify for the proposal. Is DBKL running out of money? According to Star newspaper, Tan Sri Ahmad Fuad Ismail, predecessor to the current mayor, pointed out that he had raised reserves amounting to RM3bil prior to retiring last year. This means that the current mayor inherited RM3bil when he took over. With additional development expenditure and gr...

When coming to investing, do you wonder why retail investors always lose out? What are the common mistakes they made? In this article, Finance Malaysia blog pointed out the top 3 investing mistakes by retail investors. The 3 common mistakes: Trying to time the market. "Every often, investors thought that they can forecast the short-term direction of share market, or listen to other people (market timers). It's a big mistake. It was like a gamble, guessing the ups and downs. Can you see a gambler become millionaire?" Being an active trader. "Buying blue-chip counters with long-term profits as a goal is the real way of investing. Don't trade actively which can resulting your goal being blurred along the way." Using those high cost investing tools. "Every single penny you saved contributes to the total returns you gained from an investment. Investors should avoid those high charges investing tools to optimise their return. Can you guaranteed the company th...