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Hello everybody!
This is AK.
I am back!
Time for another update.
I talked about how I achieved financial nirvana in a YouTube video a few months ago and also how I have not been consuming any finance related content.
This is still true.
I have said before that my portfolio was more or less on auto pilot and that I didn't have to keep looking at it.
I do check quarterly to calculate total dividends received and that's about it.
Sounds pretty relaxing?
Regular readers know that for many years after achieving financial freedom, I still struggled to stop worrying.
Well, I think I have finally done it.
Done what?
Stop worrying.
The fact that I am turning 55 this year helps as it means my CPF account becomes a savings account.
More accurately, the Ordinary Account becomes a savings account which means I can make withdrawals from the account if I wish to.
Of course, if you have been following my blog for some time, you would know I have quite a bit of money stashed in the CPF.
Now to share my latest CPF numbers.
Interest earned in 2025,
In total, before any voluntary contribution this year, the numbers are as shown below,
I did top up my Medisave Account to max it out like I always do in a new year.
A 4% interest rate makes this a no brainer and I have blogged about how interest earned pays for my Medishield policy, year after year.
I like getting "free" medical insurance in Singapore.
I also did a voluntary contribution to my OA and SA to max out the annual limit.
Of course, this is something I have been doing consistently over the years and in my retirement, lacking earned income, I have been doing this without any outside help in the last 10 years or so.
Some might not find 2.5% and 4% interest rates interesting but they are, in my opinion, pretty attractive for an asset that is risk free and volatility free.
I have blogged about this often enough over the years, ignoring the naysayers.
After voluntary contributions in January, here are the latest numbers,
Total CPF savings,
$1,336,457.40
Ever since I started blogging in 2009, I have been saying we are lucky to have the CPF system and sharing how to take full advantage of it.
I will be able to enjoy the fruits of my labor soon.
Of course, regular readers would remember that I also said the CPF was one of two pillars in my retirement funding strategy.
CPF alone is insufficient unless we are happy with a rather basic retirement lifestyle.
What about the second pillar if we want more options in retirement?
I said I was also investing for income.
Specifically, I was investing in income producing businesses listed on the stock exchange.
I kept doing it over the years, getting it wrong sometimes but getting it right most of the time, fortunately.
I have been able to achieve more than $200,000 per year in passive income this way in recent years.
In 2025, full year passive income received from my investments in public listed businesses was
$240,009.09
On average, that's $20,000 per month in passive income which is very comfortable for the kind of lifestyle I have.
If I should choose to withdraw interest earned in my CPF OA in future, then, yearly passive income would get a boost.
I don't see any need to do so but it is good to have the option.
I have been retired from active employment for 10 years by now and I have been pretty careful with money as a retiree most of the time.
I think what I have achieved financially is probably more than enough to last me till I say goodbye to this world unless something goes seriously wrong.
I still have CPF LIFE which will pay me a monthly income from age 65 which is 10 years from now for me.
I blogged about this and also made a video about how I would get about $3,400 a month from age 65 by opting for ERS, the Enhanced Retirement Sum, which requires approximately $400,000 to be transferred to a newly created Retirement Account when I turn 55.
CPF LIFE is the best annuity available and I have blogged about this too.
Having another reliable monthly passive income stream in my old age is a good thing.
Independent of market conditions and not requiring any active monitoring, CPF LIFE is probably the most passive of passive income.
Stop worrying, I tell myself.
If you are still reading, you would probably get the impression that this took me many years to achieve.
Yes, it has.
Regular readers who have been following my journey over the years know this to be true.
Why is this important?
My experience shows that it is possible for regular folks to achieve financial freedom even in Singapore.
It takes discipline mostly and time does the rest.
For sure, my way is not attractive to everybody and some people may even look down on me.
Peasant millionaire? LOL.
However, for regular folks who do not mind getting rich slowly, my way is probably worth considering.
Of course, we want to do the right things.
Having discipline but doing the wrong things will not produce good results.
If you are new to my blog or if you want to learn how to invest for income in a structured manner, I am happy to say that Dividend Machines is open for registration again.
Here is the link for registration,
I have been promoting Dividend Machines as it is a high quality, value for money course yearly since its inception but this time will be the last time I am doing so.
This is because I will be making a full retirement as a content creator which also means this is my final blog post.
Although I will be going away, my blog will always be here and some blog posts are timeless which means readers could revisit if they like.
I hope my journey to financial freedom will continue to provide inspiration to anyone who might come across my blog in future.
Please take advantage of Dividend Machines and revisit my blog whenever you feel the need to be inspired.
Remember, even for regular folks in Singapore, financial freedom is not a dream.
If AK can do it, so can you.
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