Saturday, February 20, 2010

Talk at Pasir Ris Library - Financial Planning in Time of Crisis

I am giving the above talk at the Pasir Ris Library today (20 Feb 2010) 5 to 6 pm.
Please register at the NLB website or come early to the Library to register on the spot (subject to availability).

To register:
http://golibrary.nlb.gov.sg/Event.aspx?EventID=31770

Please note that the talk shows the previous title - which has now been changed.


Title - Financial Planning during Time of Crisis
Speaker - Tan Kin Lian, President, Financial Services Consumer Association
Place: Pasir Ris Public Library
Date: Saturday 20 February 2010
Time: 5 - 6 pm


9 comments:

sengbw said...

Hi Mr Tan,

I wonder if you will be giving any talks in the near future? I couldn't attend your talk today unfortunately.

Thanks! :)

Anonymous said...

I hope you will also promote your financial planning book there especailly autographed by you.

Anonymous said...

May I suggest another possible title for your talk:

Financial Planning for all seasons
OR
Financial Planning in Good and Bad Times

Reason being financial planning is a must, whether there is a crisis or not.

If there is a crisis, it's winter, so play defence. If there is no crisis, it's summer, so make hay while the sun shines.

The only reservation I have is the phrase "financial planning" itself. It seems to imply that we can control our finances and hence our risks and future. As a result, we let our guard down after we complete a financial planning exercise with a Financial Consultant.

I have a friend who did all the right stuff with financial planning and financial prudence. Was drawing more than $6,000 per month. What "fixed" him financially was;
a. Wife gave birth to a special needs child
b. Wife got diagnosed with cancer, stage 2.
c. His employer went bankrupt. So no retrenchment benefits after working there for nearly 20 years
d. His bankrupt company's car loan (10 years) was in his name, even though the company was making the loan payments as part of his perks. So now he is stuck with the car payments. Cannot sell car because car value is less than loan value.
e. Father passed away after 2 months in intensive care
f. Father left behind a small estate (HDB flat) which is in dispute because there was no will. Father was a widower who started a second family in Malaysia.

Items (a)-(f) are so called financially low probability events (Black Swans). Kind of like the events that affected the world in 2008.

For those of us who are instinctively suspicious of;
- deregulation of financial markets
- the theoretical foundations upon which financial advisors decide your asset allocation e.g. modern portfolio theory, efficient market hypothesis etc
- but are unable to argue our case because we have no theoretical or academic basis

Please consider reading this book (available from our library):

The (Mis)Behavior of Markets: A Fractal View of Risk, Ruin, and Reward, by BenoƮt Mandelbrot and Richard L. Hudson; Basic Books, 2004; ISBN 0-465-04355-0

This book was written for the layman in 2004. Warns of the shortcomings and dangers of modern financial theory. Which later came true in 2008.

Below is the hyperlink to the credentials of Benoit Mandelbrot. Mandelbrot co-authored book with Richard Hudson, a professional writer, to ensure book was easily readable and understood.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beno%C3%AEt_Mandelbrot

The book is 10 times easier to understand than the above wikipedia summary of Mandelbrot's credential and achievements.

bws said...

Hi Mr Tan,

Will you be planning to give financial-related talks in the near future?

I look forward to attend one, as I could not make it for today's session.

Thanks!

Anonymous said...

mr. tan, that place isquite far! Any more convenient place?

Anonymous said...

Do one at the town library.

Vincent said...

I would like to attend too, but just read your entry, so miss it out, although it's very near my home.. Look forward to the next one, and if possible, please post early :)..

Tan Kin Lian said...

I learn about the talk only one day before. It was supposed to be for another speaker, but the speaker asked me to take over the time slot. This explains the late publicity.

I intend to hold talks at the NLB Bras Basah regularly. I hope that it will be more convenient.

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