An interest rate of 10.68% per annum for a fixed deposit!

In January, I shared in my blog about POSB's Chinese New Year fixed deposit special.

The offer was:

Get 1.88% per annum for a 12 months fixed deposit from a minimum sum of $1,000 to a maximum sum of $1,000,000.

I tried taking part in it and because I am such a dinosaur with IT stuff, I wasn't sure if my application went through.

In fact, when a reader asked me about this during the second "Evening with AK and friends" last week, I was not able to give a clear answer.

Anyway, I checked earlier and I found that my account has been credited with $88. Apparently, I was one of the first 10,000 customers! My application was successful!

We need little happy surprises like this from time to time in life.

For POSB customers who deposited only $1,000 and received the $88 ang bao, they are actually getting an interest rate of 10.68% per annum!

In fact, it is more than that since the $88 ang bao is given now and not at the end of the 12 months period!

Thank you, POSB, for the generous ang bao.

I'm smiling. :)

Where to put your emergency funds? Fixed deposits aren't too bad. See related post number 1 below.

Related posts:
1. A special chest for emergency fund.
2. Should I put money in a foreign currency FD?

Why have I been silent on Mr. Lee's passing (till now)?

So many people have blogged about the passing of our country's founding Prime Minister, Mr. Lee Kuan Yew. Some asked me why I have not said anything in my blog?

Well, apart from the fact that other bloggers have done such a good job of it, I am really not very good at writing eulogies. I do feel very sad and, actually, it goes beyond sadness. It is a deep sense of loss.



After all, even after he retired as Prime Minister, he was still very active, dispensing good advice and, for a while, it felt as if he would always be there for us.

Anyway, why am I blogging about him now?


Mr. Lee Kuan Yew "wore the same exercise shorts for 17 years. And when it tore, he patched it up, or his wife patched it up for him." 

This was revealed by Law and Foreign Affairs Minister, Mr. K Shanmugam.

Mr. Lee Kuan Yew was a very frugal person.

I might not understand all of Mr. Lee Kuan Yew's great wisdom even if I tried but I can certainly identify with his frugal habits.

When I see some of my relatives throwing away perfectly good clothing just because they were out of fashion or children not finishing their food just because they didn't like it, I would feel very sad. I would worry, probably needlessly.

I remember the hard times my family had to go through. I remember being told never to waste food and, till today, I will finish all the food on my plate. When I buy cooked food, I would tell the vendor to give me less rice because I don't want to throw away what I cannot finish.

Once, I actually told my brother in law's sister to finish her food when she left so much unfinished. She looked at me, irritated, and asked if I would like to finish it for her. If I wasn't going to do it, keep quiet. I was surprised. She was quite a few years younger than I was and I probably expected her to listen. Anyway, it wasn't a response I was expecting.

Life is too good now, perhaps.

Waste not, want not. This is something we should all try to remember. Not something to do with meritocracy or good governance, perhaps, but this is something Mr. Lee Kuan Yew would probably want us to remember too.

Farewell, Mr. Lee Kuan Yew. Thank you for all that you have done for Singapore. We owe you a great debt that can never be repaid. May you rest in peace.

Related posts:
1. Some of my stuff (Part 1).
2. Saving time and money but lost face?
3. An essential habit to becoming richer.