Personal Finance Archives | Page 80 of 145

Know These 7 Share-worthy Money Facts

It goes without saying that money is essential in all aspects of our lives – it even makes the world go round! We use it just about every day, but how much do we really know about it?

Widen your knowledge about our currency and the history with these 7 share-worthy money facts:

1. From soaps and grains to bear’s teeth and bird’s claw, there have been a variety of bizarre currencies throughout the history. The cowry is one of the longest and most widely used form of money. It is none other than the vibrant shell of a sea snail. Its durability made it a popular choice among the early civilizations.

2. Focus at the back of the S$1,000 note. A microtext of the entire lyrics of the national anthem is printed on it. See for yourself!

3. Why is the piggy bank called as such? Do pigs have their own financial institutions where the tellers would dress in suits? Not in this lifetime! In Old English, “pygg” refers to a type of clay used to make dishes and jars that contained funds. This was eventually morphed to the piggy bank that we know today.

Image Credits: pixabay.com

4. Why are polymer notes circulated instead of paper notes? For starters, polymer notes last three to four times longer than its paper counterparts. Its tear-resistant feature entails that you do not have to worry about emptying your pockets before loading your jeans into the washing machine. What’s more? Polymore notes have the ability to incorporate more security features.

5. Most modern counting machines can tally about 2,500 coins per minute. While, a bank’s note-counting machine can tally up to 100 bills in four seconds. The machines can also spot counterfeits!

6. Have you ever heard of the Roman goddess Juno? Worry not, if her name does not ring any bells. Let me provide you with a brief insight on Roman mythology. Juno is the “Goddess of Good Counsel”, whose mere name means adviser. While Moneta is the “Goddess of Memory”, a name where words mint and money were acquired from.

Image Credits: pixabay.com

These two goddesses were symbolized in “The Temple of Juno Moneta”. Ancient Romans made their coins in this temple alone as the goddesses were perceived to protect the funds.

7. The lushious tree found at the S$5 note is an actual tree in the Botanic Gardens. This Tembusu tree is believed to be at least 200 years old. It is even older than the 156-year-old garden! Amazing, right?

That rounds up seven of the most interesting facts about money. Leave a comment below, if you want to share your own mind-blowing or unusual financial fact.

Sources: 1 & 2

How Your Investment in Peer-to-Peer Lending Supports Local Businesses

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are at the heart of Singapore’s economy. They make up 99% of our enterprises, employ two-thirds of our workforce, and account for about half of Singapore’s GDP. To date, there are nearly 200,000 SMEs in Singapore.

While we often see success stories on news and social media, the road to success is sometimes not as straightforward. Find out how you can invest in peer-to-peer (P2P) lending with Funding Societies and support emerging Singapore SMEs.

Your contribution can directly make an impact on the business you’re supporting

According to a 2017 Straits Times poll, 40% of SMEs said that they thought the Singapore economy would grow in the next 12 months and 43% felt positive sales growth was on the cards.

By investing in SMEs through P2P lending, you directly contribute to immediate cashflow needs of the SMEs to grow their businesses. In return, you’re rewarded in monetary returns from the interests of the business loans. Funding Societies is one such platform in Singapore that is supporting local businesses through crowdfunding.

Read about how peer-to-peer lending works.

You earn potentially high returns on your investments while supporting local businesses

P2P lending harnesses the power of people to help local, homegrown businesses to grow and expand. Investing in P2P lending allows you to potentially earn up to 14% per annum returns on your investment.

It is actually really easy to invest in SMEs in Singapore through P2P lending. Funding Societies is a digital P2P lending platform that is dedicated to serving SMEs, therefore the mission of Funding Societies is aptly, “Stronger SMEs, Stronger Societies.” Investors receive monthly repayments which they can re-invest to support even more local businesses.

Support SMEs across multiple industries

The Ministry of Trade and Industry announced a $4.5 Billion industry transformation programme to systematically raise productivity, develop skills, drive innovation, and promote internationalisation, so as to catalyse transformation and achieve the stated vision of each industry. There’s also Infocomm Media Development Authority’s Go Digital Programme — an initiative that allows SMEs to increase productivity and capture more online sales through digitalization of their businesses.

However, the Singapore Budget 2017 recognizes that the government alone cannot help all businesses transform and the need to strengthen partnerships and collaborations in order to help SMEs succeed. Financial institutions, including alternative finance companies such as Funding Societies, play an important role in providing financial support to help SMEs grow and prosper.

As the minimum investment for peer-to-peer lending starts as low as $100 on the Funding Societies platform, you could help the economy holistically by investing in multiple industries and companies at the same time, in turn diversifying your investment portfolio across sectors.

Since its inception in 2015, Funding Societies has already expanded to two more Southeast Asian countries over the last two years – Indonesia and Malaysia. It is the only P2P lending platform to have won the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) Fintech Award in 2016 and was recognised as one of the Top 250 Fintech companies globally.

More than 23,000 investors are already on Funding Societies’ platform regionally. Find out how to invest on the platform here.

Interested? Sign up for your investor account with Funding Societies now.

Disclaimer

This article is contributed by Funding Societies.

It should not be construed that Moneydigest is endorsing this article or any of the products and services provided by Funding Societies.

Nothing in this article should be construed as constitute or form a recommendation, financial advice, or an offer, invitation or solicitation from Funding Societies to buy or subscribe for any securities and/or investment products. The content and materials made available are for informational purposes only and should not be relied on without obtaining the necessary independent financial or other advice in connection therewith before making an investment or other decision as may be appropriate.

Use Medisave To Overcome 11 Vaccine-Preventable Diseases

Health has long been associated with wealth. According to this age-old proverb, good health plays a vital role to reaching a prosperous life. Having poor immune system may lead to more abseentiesm at work or at school. Furthermore, you illnesses are usually accompanied by medicines and medical fees. You waste time and money when you are constantly sick.

The good news is that the Ministry of Health (MOH) has established the National Adult Immunisation Schedule (NAIS) for Singaporeans aged 18 and beyond. You are encouraged to protect yourselves against vaccine-preventable diseases under the NAIS. In the beginning of next month (November 1, 2017), you will be allowed to use your Medisave to acquire recommended vaccinations for the specific population groups that you belong to.

To reduce confusion, I am highlighting that Medisave is different from MediShield. Medisave is the national medical savings account that Singaporeans need to fulfill to cover future medical needs. Individuals or your employers need to regularly contribute as long as you are employed. On the other hand, MediShield is a low-cost medical insurance scheme aimed to pay for larger hospitalization bills.

Now that you are enlightened about Medisave, I must eagerly note that this vaccination scheme is highly encouraged. However, it is not mandated! You are free to discuss your vaccination needs with your trusted physician. You do not want to be allergic to the ingredients of a particular vaccine (e.g., the latest Influenza shot I took was not suitable to individuals who are allergic to egg)! That will only make matters worse.

If you wish to use your Medisave, you must ask your healthcare provider prior to the vaccination. You will be able to use up to S$400 at public healthcare institutions, Medisave-accredited GPs, and private hospitals. The eleven diseases covered by this scheme are:

(i) Influenza;

(ii) Pneumococcal (PCV13/PPSV23);

(iii) Human Papillomavirus (HPV2/HPV4);

(iv) Tetanus, Diphtheria and Pertussis (Tdap);

(v) Measles, Mumps and Rubella (MMR);

(vi) Hepatitis B; and

(vii) Varicella.

Let us part ways with the significant words stated by the Senior Minister of State for Health – Dr. Lam Pin Min.

Image Credits: pixabay.com

“Vaccination provides a person with protection against infectious diseases, and is one of the strategies to reduce the risk of disease outbreaks in the community. While the coverage for vaccinations under the National Childhood Immunisation Programme has been high for most of the vaccines, there is low awareness of the benefits of adult vaccination for personal protection and protection of at-risk family members. With the introduction of the National Adult Immunisation Schedule (NAIS), we hope to encourage Singaporeans to take up the recommendations made in the NAIS, to protect themselves and their loved ones against the relevant infectious diseases.”

Sources: 1 & 2

Things that you need to learn as currency trader

If you want to stand in the financial market, you should be a brave person. You might be wondering what bravery has to do with trading. Of course, courage plays a vital role in trading. We will cite an example to make it more transparent if a trader hesitates to enter into a trade how he or she can trade the market? Moreover, this is a volatile market if you don’t bear the risks or if you don’t handle the risks, you cannot survive. The bottom line is you should be brave enough to trade the market successfully. The Singaporean traders are highly successful due to their braveness in trading the market. If you consider the Singaporean traders, they never hesitate to enter into a trade or they never think twice about trading the market. Facing losses is also part of trading so the trader should be able to accept it. Trading will be simple if the traders look at easily. If the traders look at the market as if it is complex then definitely it will be. The fault is in the gaze of the traders. Let us read to learn more.

Market information should be learned

You are not the only trader in the market, so the competition is high. You need to compete with other traders to become successful in the market. To become successful traders, you should learn the market information thoroughly. You should make sure to learn the market news, financial news, market changes, market movements, economic changes, etc. to trade successfully. It is evident that the news impacts the market profoundly when the market is affected it will be a significant impact on your trading career. So, as traders, you should not be neglectful regarding the market. You should be a trader who does not want to see market surprises meaning you should be attentive regarding the market changes. If you study the changes, you will not know even if the value of the currencies changes so how can you also trade? As CFD traders you should bear in mind when trading CFDs the changes in the currency value will impact a lot on your trades. You should be up-to-date with these factors to become a successful trader.

A wise trader has a bright career

A knowledgeable person will lead a successful life so likewise, a wise trader will have a brilliant career. When the trader is wise he or she will not let the market to fool so the trader will collect the details regarding the price movements. When the trader knows what the market has prepared trader can make the wisest move.

Do not waste your emotions

There are three things a person should never waste. These are food, water, and emotions. So as traders; you should not waste your feelings. The market does not mind even if you lose a win it will move according to its wish you should be intelligent to tame the market.

All the novice traders had to face an extreme level of difficulty in the early stage of their trading career. They don’t know how to deal with the market dynamics. In fact, the majority of the traders think that this market is easy to trade and thus trade with big lot size. Some even start trading with high leverage account to make a huge amount of money from a small trading account. Every single one of them blows their entire trading account within a short period. So if you want to avoid such situation then make sure that you are not taking unnecessary risk.

Learning is a continuous process for every full-time trader. You need to make sure that you are well aware of the global economic factors or else you will find yourself in a miserable condition. Read the financial news to assess the economic performance of the country.

Newbie’s Guide To Bitcoin Investing

ACT LIKE CASH, MINED LIKE GOLD

Cryptocurrency continues to gain popularity among investors and venture capital firms. Several of these individuals are betting that Bitcoin is here to stay! Before taking a stand, let us have a quick look at the basics of Bitcoin.

Bitcoin is a decentralized payment system developed by Satoshi Nakamoto (a Japanese pseudonym). This innovative digital currency was publicly released in 2009. We came a long way since then! A myriad of improvements or updates have been made by a network of developers.

Image Credits: pixabay.com

In simple terms, bitcoins act like cash and are mined like gold. How so?

Global retailers may allow you to purchase goods and services through this “intangible” currency. However, its acquisition poses challenges. Solving extensive mathematical equations are needed to discover new bitcoins. You will have to unlock each block and be rewarded afterwards.

It is fascinating that the developer has set a finite number of bitcoins to be mined – 21 million to be exact. The uncovered bitcoins skyrocketed in the recent years. At this rate, the final bitcoin is projected to be discovered by the year 2140.

THE ART OF ACQUISITION

Develop a strategy to obtain bitcoins by weighing the advantages and disadvantages of these primary options. You can either outright buy, mine for, or receive it.

The easiest way for beginners to acquire bitcoins is to purchase from specialized companies such as the www.coinbase.com. Coinbase.com sells bitcoins to customers at a mark-up of about 1% over the current market price. On the other hand, traders can go to bitcoin exchange websites such as the BitStamp. BitStamp eliminates the middleman as it allows you to transact with other users. See for yourself!

The second option is to dedicate your time on bitcoin mining. Bitcoin miners are crucial to the completion of transactions and the validation of genuine bitcoins. Using the computer, bitcoin miners need to verify a series of transactions that are guarded by a virtual lock called “blockchains”. Miners will run a software to find the key that will open said lock. For finding the coveted key, miners get a reward of 12.5 newly generated bitcoins. Research showed that it takes 1,789,546,951.05 attempts to find the correct key. Imagine how much effort you have to exhaust for that!

Last but not least, you may receive bitcoins offline by selling goods or services. You should apply the usual precautions when meeting a stranger for the bitcoin transaction. Meet in a public place at daytime and bring a friend (i.e., if possible).

Image Credits: pixabay.com

Are you going to embrace the future of money or treat it as a chaotic addition to the stock market?

Sources: 1, 2, & 3

Your contribution can directly make an impact on the business you’re supporting

You earn potentially high returns on your investments while supporting local businesses

Support SMEs across multiple industries

Market information should be learned

A wise trader has a bright career

Do not waste your emotions

Search the site