The Financial Coconut Podcast

Every Singapore business that outgrows Singapore looks north. Most stop at Johor. It's close, it's familiar, and anything further feels like a different order of decision. Sabah is three hours away and does not make the shortlist.

Closing that gap is now Kevin George Ukang's job. Five months into running Invest Sabah, after sixteen years inside a regional development authority, his pitch to Singapore SMEs is narrower than you'd expe...

Everyone says Singapore stocks are going cheap. So one guest pulled the Bloomberg numbers before walking into the studio: small caps here trade at 13 times earnings on average. Hong Kong? About four. Malaysia, 11. Her verdict: not undervalued. "Fairly priced."

Meet Lawrence Loh, the NUS professor who has scored SGX-listed companies on governance for over a decade, and Hwee Li Ong, the SAC Capital CEO who takes companies to market. N...

Most investors love talking about equities.

But in a world of higher interest rates, geopolitical uncertainty, tariff risks, AI disruption, and shaky market narratives, fixed income may be more interesting than many people realise.

Natalie Tan, Head of Wholesale for Southeast Asia, and Nathaniel Wilson, Fixed Income Investment Specialist at Aberdeen Investments, break down how bonds, credit strategies, investment grade, high yield, e...

Burnout stories are common. What is rare is someone who actually steps off the “helicopter track” and rebuilds life from scratch. Dr Faith Nadine Choo, The Side Quest Doctor, did exactly that. After clocking 70 to 80 hours weekly and surviving 30‑hour hospital calls, she realised she was running on empty. Her turning point came during a palliative posting, watching a patient her age face terminal illness. That moment fo...

A millionaire tennis coach sounds like a flex… until you hear the grind behind it.

Meet Jun Chong, a tennis coach who started the sport "too late" at 13, who runs Jun Tennis Academy in Singapore, and who today is a self-made millionaire investor behind SGWealthJourney.

Explore his story on the early gains that made him cocky, the all-in earnings gambles that almost wiped him out, and the painful pivot to a calmer, emotion-awar...

Manhattan Fish Market is setting its sights on a comeback by returning to what made the brand memorable in the first place: familiar flavours, accessible seafood and a distinctly Malaysian identity.

At Franchise International Malaysia 2026, CEO Deric Yeo and COO Sheikh Imran Iskandar shared how the home-grown halal seafood chain is rediscovering its original DNA while adapting to changing consumer habits. That means bringing back mu...

Many retail investors chase tips, trends and rumours, yet overlook the one thing that consistently improves results: better thinking.

We break down how AI‑style reasoning helps investors ask sharper questions, reduce emotional bias and build clearer decision frameworks.

Learn:

- Practical habits such as defining investment objectives, stress‑testing assumptions

- Understand how data guides long‑term choices.

- Gain a grounded ...

From one gym in 2017 to 16 clubs today, Jaya’s Anytime Fitness journey shows what disciplined reinvestment can achieve.

Instead of taking profits out, he channelled earnings from each successful outlet into the next. That steady approach helped him scale across the Klang Valley while continuing to run other businesses. Meanwhile, Anytime Fitness Malaysia has grown from just 17 gyms in 2017 to around 130 in 2026, with even fast...

He failed his startup. Lay awake at night convinced he'd ruined his financial future. Ten years later, he's sitting on a $4 million portfolio.

Meet FIREPath Lion, the pseudonymous Singaporean blogger who shares everything most personal finance creators won't: his exact salary, every bonus, every investment, every number on the way to FIRE. No gurus, no day-trading, no genius stock picks. Just Bogleheads-style passive investing, aggr...

Franchising can be one of the fastest ways to grow a business, but it can also become one of the costliest mistakes if you overlook the legal requirements.

In this episode of The Financial Coconut Business Show, franchise lawyer and registered franchise consultant Damien Yeo unpacks the legal framework behind Malaysia's Franchise Act 1998 and explains why many businesses unknowingly cross the line from licensing into franchising. Si...

Most people want to get rich faster.

But what if the smarter move, especially in your 20s and 30s, is not squeezing every dollar out of a tiny portfolio?

For busy professionals, wealth accumulation may start with something less sexy but far more powerful: growing your income, managing your spending, and consistently investing the difference.

Chris How (semi-retired, founder of retireby50.me), Chris Chong (45K-sub FIRE YouTuber, ex-acc...

Your “global” portfolio might not be as global as you think. Many investors buy a world index believing they are diversified across the planet. But if a large chunk of that exposure is still concentrated in the US, and especially in US tech, are you really spreading your risk? Reggie flew to Paris for the Amundi World Investment Forum and sat with Guy Stear, Head of Developed Markets Strategy, Amundi Investment Institut...

Wise and Shine is coming back, and this time, we are looking for a new voice.

The career landscape has changed. It is no longer just about climbing the ladder, asking for a higher salary, or figuring out how to survive middle management. Gen Zs are entering a workplace shaped by AI, higher expectations, tougher competition, and new definitions of success.

That is why Wise and Shine is opening the door for a Gen Z co-host who can spea...

Why are more Singaporeans investing overseas instead of at home?

In this episode of Chills with TFC, Reggie sits down with Louis and Jameis to unpack what it would really take to make Singapore’s stock market more vibrant again.

The conversation goes beyond returns. It looks at the deeper issues behind the SGX, from company fundamentals and corporate governance, to liquidity, retail participation, and whether stronger local cap...

Would you move back to Singapore if your salary doubled?

For some Singaporeans living in Paris, the answer is not as obvious as we think.

Yes, France comes with higher taxes, strikes, smaller apartments, language barriers, and a very different pace of life. But the trade-off is also real: stronger healthcare coverage, more holidays, cheaper schooling, employee benefits, unemployment support, and a lifestyle where money is not always ...

We spend a lot of time talking about wealth strategies, career moves, investing, business, and personal growth.

But what if some outcomes are shaped not just by effort, but also by timing, environment, and the patterns we keep repeating?

Dawn, SG BudgetBabe and Anthony sit down with Grandmaster David from Imperial Harvest to explore a different lens on success: Ba Zi, Imperial Feng Shui, luck cycles, AI, decision-making, and whether ...

Three Singaporean software engineers. One target: $30,000 monthly recurring revenue. One end goal: retire in Chiang Mai.

Meet the Jobless Club — Sean, Joseph, and Jonas — a trio of full-time engineers spending their nights and weekends building side businesses that could free them from the corporate grind. Their bet against the lone-wolf indie hacker model? Three founders are more sustainable than one. They've already tu...

Singapore loves the story of social mobility. But behind the headlines, there's a quieter story: poverty is often an entrenched social class, and very few people actually climb out of it.

Syainda Abdul was one of them.

At 17 she was changing diapers. Married into an abusive relationship. Living in rental flats. Surviving on $900/month ComCare aid with $1,200 in expenses, and using $20 of that aid to buy a Canva subscription so she co...

Creators, freelancers, and micro-business owners often only think about contracts, IP rights, payment terms, and legal recourse after something goes wrong.

But by then, it may already be messy.

In this live TFC Business Show session, recorded live at Whiskdom Cafe, we unpack what creators need to know to protect their work and get paid properly.

We discuss what happens when a stockist does not pay, why contracts matter, what creators ...