Excelsior Financial Blog

  How many overseas trips do you do a year? For me, that number is as many as I can squeeze in. I’m an avid traveller, you see:   solo travelling, travelling with friends & family, backpacking to the least densely populated countries in the world. If you can name it, I've most probably done it.   Solo backpacking trip, en route to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. In my travels, I like to explore and fully immerse myself in the culture of a place. I throw myself into all kinds of new and exciting activities to enrich my travel experience. This is why I find one of the most important and under-rated tool for any trip is a travel insurance policy. Travel insurance generally provides coverage in these areas: personal accident, medical cover, travel inconvenience, personal liability, lifestyle cover and other additional benefits included by individual companies. Of course, Covid-19 coverage has also become an essential part of the cover in the aftermath of the pandemic. Allow ...

We analyse an example of inadequate insurance coverage, and offer suggestions on how such gaps can be plugged for peace of mind. Credit: Image taken from article In this 8 Days article , famous Taiwanese actress, Lin Chiling, fell off a horse while filming in China in 2005. As she did not have adequate insurance coverage, she was unable to claim back the medical fees incurred. She had suffered six broken ribs and a punctured left lung, and was air-lifted out of China so she could seek treatment back at home in Taiwan. Not only was she bed-ridden for ten days, but she took two months to recuperate then underwent four months of rehabilitation before returning to work. She did not have comprehensive insurance coverage, relying instead on the insurance coverage provided by the management agency and advertiser. However, the coverage they had procured had only covered her for death, permanent disabilities and burns. She was thus unable to claim back medical expenses and loss of income....

Do you still play Wordle ? Are you still obsessed with Wordle? Credit: NY Times / Wordle Since it first launched in October 2021, Wordle has drawn in millions of daily players who desperately try to guess one new five-letter word each day – in no more than six attempts. I won’t deny that I contribute (still playing) to that statistic. Seven months in, a plethora of variations to Wordle has since surfaced. The last I checked, there were 18 variations and each variation more mind-boggling than the other. Here are the five most-played variations . 1. Nerdle Nerdle is the mathematics enthusiast’s answer to Wordle – but instead of guessing a word, players have to figure out a math equation. Credit: Nerdle There are eight “letters” to guess, with each “letter” being one of “0123456789+-*/=”. The same way you cannot enter random letters to guess in Wordle, your Nerdle guess must also be mathematically correct. 2. Sweardle Sweardle , the sweary word guessing game. Credit...

Credit: Photo by Khamkéo Vilaysing . When markets are in turmoil and every asset class seems to be experiencing some setback or other, investors may find themselves wondering what they should invest in to preserve their capital yet ensure steady growth over time. In this article, I’ll explain how the humble participating endowment plan has been a stable source of low volatility returns, and how it has been providing potential capital growth to policyholders in the preceding decades. What is a Participating Policy Definition from Investopedia: “A participating policy is an insurance contract that pays dividends to the holder. Dividends are generated from the profits of the insurance company that sold the policy and are typically paid out on an annual basis over the life of the policy. ” Is It The Same As Insurance? Basically, if you have ever owned a whole life insurance policy, you may have received annual reversionary bonuses from a par fund and seen the value of your ...

  Mother’s Day was last weekend – while we should be showing our appreciation for our mothers every day of the year, it doesn’t hurt to have an extra special day for the extra special woman in our lives. Credit: Unsplash / Annie Spratt You can opt for one of the bouquets available from florists, or even try to DIY your own floral bouquet for your mother. Either way, she’s sure to appreciate the gesture. If you’re wondering what flowers you should include in the bouquet, here are 5 flowers that will tell your Mum that you love her .   1. Roses Classic, timeless and perfect as the centre piece of any bouquet. Credit: Unsplash / Brigitte Tohm Roses are certainly associated with love, and they come in a variety of colours, each with their own meaning. Pick red, pink and yellow roses to add into your Mum’s bouquet. Red roses are associated with love, pink roses suggest sweetness and elegance, while yellow roses sign...

Real Estate Investment Trusts or REITs in short were established as an asset class in the US in the 1960s to provide investors a platform to invest in income producing real estate without directly owning the real estate. The asset class was introduced in Singapore in 2002 with the listing of CapitaLand Mall Trust. Since then, many more REITs were listed both in Singapore and the region and the asset class is widely accepted as a staple for investors looking for income. REITs offer income investors a few benefits to other income producing assets. REITs are generally  granted tax benefits where the distribution is tax exempt if the REIT pays out the bulk of their income, typically 90%, to unitholders. REITs also offer more liquidity to directly buying into real estate, where you can easily liquidate your holdings in the capital markets. In this article, I highlight 3 reasons why REITs deserve a place in your financial portfolio. Photo by  Swapnil Bapat  on  Unsplash ...

  We should definitely celebrate and show our love for our mothers all year round, but she deserves extra-special pampering on Mother’s Day. This year, Mother’s Day falls on 8 May – which is coming up really soon! Credit: Unsplash / Sixteen Miles Out Time to show your mother just how much she means to you. Treat her to a lovely meal, bring her out shopping, enjoy a fun crafts workshop together or spoil her with a relaxing spa – the possibilities are endless, really. Here are 5 ideas for you to pamper your mother on 8 May 2022! 1. Relax with a massage Taking care of the family and keeping the household ticking along like a clockwork is a tiring job, and our mothers do it 24/7, 365 days a year. Now’s the time for her to relieve those aching muscles – and what better way than to treat her to a relaxing massage? If she’s on her feet most of the day, try a foot massage for mummy dearest. The gentle pressure will help to ease her tension, and hitting the reflexology point...