Dividend Magic

Saving and Investing towards Financial Independence in Malaysia

Blog

Earning Passive Income in Malaysia

By
Filed Under: FI/RE, Passive Income 2

Readers of the blog will be familiar with the term passive income. And to once and for all give my point of view on what is actually passive income as well as my own passive revenue streams.

What is Passive Income?

The notion of having your money work for you, to have it generate additional income while you sleep is a wonderful one.

Right off the bat, let me dispel the notion that passive income is only for the wealthier individual. In fact, passive income is for anyone and everyone. Regardless of the amount, passive income is passive income. RM10 a month is a passive income if your assets are generating it for you. Everyone starts small. In fact, I think my first dividend received was in the region of RM50 for the first year. That’s like RM4 per month. Work on it continuously and trust me, it’ll grow.

More popular forms of passive income in Malaysia include rentals from real estate, interest from bank deposits and P2P lending, and dividends from stocks and businesses.

Real Passive Income

The term Passive Income has been thrown around and mentioned a lot recently as Malaysians become more financially literate. In general, passive income is defined as income earned with little or no effort. So not all ”passive income” is truly passive.

For example, almost everyone would list their rental income as passive. I beg to differ. In my experience, taking care of your rental property takes time and effort. You may have a real estate agent working with you at the start but most of the time, you’ll be doing the work yourself. Personally, I put up ads on my own as I feel my agent’s ads were too generic. I even attend the viewings to make sure the said agent is doing his/her job right.

Now all that is just to get your unit rented, what happens when a pipe bursts or your air conditioner malfunctions? Your agent isn’t going to help you with it as there’s nothing in it for them. So no, I’ll not list my rent collection as a passive income.

However, your rental income will be classified as passive once you hire a proper property manager where he/she is hired on a full-time basis to take care of your real estate portfolio. Of course, you’ll have to have a large mix of properties before that is viable.

My Passive Income

passive income malaysia

I like to only call a source of income passive when it truly requires zero to minimal effort on my part.

This is why, out of all my income streams, I only actually consider my dividends from stocks and interest earned from P2P lending passive income. 

A good benchmark to know if your passive income returns are up to par would be your fixed deposits with banks. Historically, it has been at the 3% mark. Recently, a 2% return is the norm. So if you’ve already got investments generating passive returns for you, check if it’s higher than your FD rates. I’d even go so far as to say that FDs are like the kings of passive income. Easiest to obtain, all you need is capital.

My income right now comes from the following:

  1. Salary
  2. Stakes in businesses
  3. Rental
  4. Dividends
  5. Interest

Earned income from working a job is the total opposite of passive income. My businesses, although can run by themselves, I still consider them not to be truly passive because they still require constant monitoring and checking in.

As mentioned earlier, rental income from my properties does not fall under the passive category for me. My properties require attention from time to time in the form of rent collection, having to look for tenants, fixing stuff etc. So, not passive. For me at least. Until I hire a property manager.

Dividends from my stocks I totally consider passive because the valuation of a company is done once before I purchase the stock. Thereafter, I only check in with the same company either quarterly, half-yearly or sometimes even once a year. 

Lastly, my income in the form of interest comes mostly from fixed deposits and lending money via P2P lending platforms. FDs are a no-brainer, you can even make placements online nowadays. As for my P2P lending, although small in comparison to my other income, this one is passive for me as well. I just read the prospectus and information on the company/business I’m lending money to, and then sit back and receive my money in the form of capital plus interest.

My main source of passive income comes from dividends generated by my Freedom Fund. To achieve financial independence, I’ve calculated that I’d need roughly RM3,000 a month in passive income.

Updated 2025 – Last year’s dividends came up to RM20,735.99. I’m more than halfway to my goal of RM36,000 in dividends per annum. My dividends so far for the year 2024 can be viewed hERE.

Updated 2021 -Last year’s dividends came up to RM16,322.27. I’m almost halfway to my goal of RM36,000 in dividends per annum. My dividends so far for the year 2020 can be viewed hERE.

How to Generate Passive Income

Earning any form of income boils down to two factors – the effort and time and/or the amount of capital you put in. In essence, either you invest and put up your time or you put up your money.

So if you’re young, you’re able and you’ve got time to spare, you will want to consider putting in your time and effort towards building a steady stream of passive income. A good example of this would be someone in their 20s working their ass off in a business with the eventual goal of automating it and generating returns without their involvement.

Or, that same 20-year-old person could work at their career, save their salary, and then invest that money to then eventually earn passive returns. This means – time and effort first, and then putting up the capital after.

Unless you’re fortunate to be inheriting wealth, you’ll always have to put something up for return. Your effort, your time, your money.

Getting to where I’m at hasn’t been an easy ride. My portfolio is mainly built on frugality. In my experience, passive income does not come easy. It’ll take a huge initial investment on your part. In the case of my dividend income from stocks, to earn that RM16K per annum, I had to have about RM400K in capital which comes up to about a 4% return for me.

Why is Passive Income Important

If like me, you’re on a quest for financial independence, passive income will cover your expenses. Financial freedom and security have always been my ultimate goal.

When I invest, I invest to first increase my passive income. And when I’ve eventually reached my passive income goal, I’ll focus on growth. Because that is when I’m set and I can afford to take bigger risks with my investments. Also, I’d rather not liquidate and sell my stocks for income.

With a steady, reliable source of passive income generating for you every month, trust me, you’ll be in a very happy place. Investment decisions can be so much more logical and less emotional. You worry less about losing the shirt off your back if your investments don’t work out. Of course, being a rational investor you’ll still exercise caution, you just won’t be hindered by thoughts of bankruptcy and worst-case scenarios.

Passive Income Ideas

If you’re like most readers of the blog, you probably are in your 20s or 30s, and you’re working for a salary. You might want to first consider putting in FDs, and then maybe stocks for dividends.

Another way to go is properties, it may not be passive for now. But once you’ve built up a substantial real estate portfolio where hiring a property manager is viable, it most definitely will be passive then.

One more potentially lucrative endeavour is to venture into business. You may have a hobby right now which can be turned into a side hustle and eventually into a full-fledged business. Or if you’ve got the dough, look into franchises that do not require your full attention.

I’m always trying to find other ways to generate passive income for myself. Some good ones come to mind like royalties from book publishing, music, or any kind of intellectual property.

The blog itself is earning a little from ad revenue and affiliate marketing. This however isn’t passive YET. I don’t want to bombard you guys with too many ads on the site. Affiliate marketing only happens when I actually like and/or use the products. Right now I’m just really enjoying writing and having a community built on investing and FI/RE.

Now, as you can probably tell, not everything may qualify as passive at first because it requires a tremendous amount of effort. But at the end of the day, say 10 years down the road when you’re able to be hands-off and collect your cash, it’s most definitely passive.

A Few Closing Thoughts

Passive income for me is tied closely to my goal of financial independence and freedom. And I’ve decided on dividends to be my main stream of income. You may have other ideas for passive income and your goals might differ. At the end of the day, we can all agree that passive income is a good supplement to your portfolio whatever your financial goals might be.

Ever since I graduated and started my first job, I’ve worked towards a goal – having a stock portfolio whose dividends I can live off for the rest of my life. So, if you haven’t already, set yourself a target and work towards it. Don’t just work that 9 to 5 job aimlessly. Your goal could be like mine, financial independence. Or maybe you truly find happiness in living a lavish life. There isn’t anything wrong with either one. A goal is a goal, as long as you have one and you’re happy, by all means!

For the next article of the FI/RE and Savings Series, check out article 004 – Emergency Funds & Fixed Deposit Laddering.

As always, Facebook and Instagram. Keep up to date and help support the blog by following and sharing. Thank you!

Duopharma Biotech Berhad (DPHARMA 7148)

By
Filed Under: Investment, Guest Posts 3

Update 4 December 2020

We’ve published a new video following the recent Covid-19 vaccine announcement by our Prime Minister.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkow70YzE8Q&feature=youtu.be

The following article is written by a close friend – Wilson Wong.
He is an investor and works in the pharmaceutical industry.

I’ve found his analyses of companies to be really good and asked him to write this piece on Duopharma. It was his introduction and recommendation that put the company on my radar and eventually into my portfolio – the Freedom Fund.

As always, this is his take on things and you as a reader should always do your own due diligence before investing.

Also, both the investment and pharmaceutical terms used here might be a little advanced for some, if you have questions, please do leave a comment at the bottom of the article.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this and I hope you do as well.

DUOPHARMA

History

Duopharma Biotech Berhad, previously a subsidiary under CCM Berhad underwent a demerger in 2018 as part of a restructuring exercise for companies under PNB’s portfolio. A main reason for Duopharma’s demerger is to focus on building a strong pharmaceutical business.

Over the years, Duopharma has grown into Malaysia’s leading pharmaceutical company in terms of sales volume and no.2 in sales value (behind Apex Healthcare). 

Duopharma’s portfolio consists of 367 generic drugs covering some of the very common therapeutic classes such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease and many more. 

On the consumer end, Duopharma boasts a portfolio of 70 different supplements. Its products include a few household brands such as Champs, Flavettes, and EyeGlo.

For readers who are not clear about the pharmaceutical business, every drug that is discovered or developed by a company has a 20-year patent.

During the patent period, the drug will be termed as a branded drug which only the original manufacturer is allowed to market and sell. Branded drugs usually command a higher price as the original manufacturer aims to recoup its R&D costs as well as to maximise profits within said 20-year period.

Think of this as your most advanced cancer drug which can cost you up to 6 digits annually. After the patent expires, other companies are then allowed to manufacture these drugs. As competition comes into play, the price will of course be lower. The same drug will be sold under different brand names at a more affordable price.

A good example would be Panadol. The next time you’re at a pharmacy, try asking for generic paracetamol. Then compare the price difference.

Duopharma, Pharmaniaga to Undertake Fill and Finish Process for Covid-19 Vaccine

14 July 2020 – our current Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin announced that the Prime Minister had agreed to this proposal and it will be executed once a vaccine is available. Investors immediately flocked towards these 2 stocks, causing a brief limit up on 15th July before an eventual price retrace.

A few days later, our health DG briefly mentioned that the vaccine might be available as soon as the end of this year. Both Duopharma and Pharmaniaga stock prices again immediately rallied with extremely strong buying sentiment. They both closed at RM2.85 and RM4.03 respectively (up by close to 100% before all announcements).

Duopharma – The Pros

Higher margins

Compared to pharmaceutical companies such as Pharmaniaga, Duopharma in general, has a higher overall margin. This is understandable as both companies essentially have a very different business model although general investors tend to lump them together.

Duopharma primarily focuses on manufacturing generic drugs and selling them to hospitals/government while Pharmaniaga focuses on logistics and distribution services for drugs. 

Even though Pharmaniaga essentially monopolizes logistic and distribution services in Malaysia with their sheer amount and reach of distribution centres in Malaysia (that’s how our drugs can reach even the most rural hospitals), we cannot ignore that this also comes with a very high operational cost. It acts as a double-edged sword for Pharmaniaga.

Strategy to venture into niche drugs

Among all other pharmaceutical companies in Malaysia, Duopharma clearly outlined that they wanted to focus and develop a basket of niche drugs to meet the market gap. This is an interesting strategy and could pay off should they succeed in their venture.

Moat in Insulin production

I first encountered Duopharma when I was studying the price of insulin in Malaysia and realized that Duopharma offers the cheapest insulin to our public hospitals.

For those with a brief understanding of diabetes, you will know that all diabetic patients will eventually end up relying on insulin. As it turns out, Malaysia has one of the highest diabetic populations in the region.

Duopharma’s insulin contract was extended by the Malaysian government at the end of 2019 and is estimated at a value of around RM91.06 million. Looking back at their financial report in 2019, as much as RM283mil of revenue is derived from the public sector. By combining both numbers, insulin contributes a huge chunk to Duopharma’s bottom line.

Duopharma – Future Prospects

Acquisitions in Korea

In line with Duopharma’s strategy to foray into the development of niche drugs, the company acquired stakes in both Pangen Biotech (8.9%) and SCM Lifescience (5.8%). By partnering with both firms, Duopharma has access to the development process of biotherapies.

As of FY2019, PanGen had obtained product registration approval for Panpoetin, the EPO biosimilar co-developed with Duopharma Biotech, from the Korean Food and Drug Administration (KFDA) on 28 November 2019 and is in discussion to set up a joint biological manufacturing plant in Klang.

As for SCM Lifescience, they are on track with Phase II clinical studies for chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) and Phase I clinical study for acute pancreatitis. Also, the company will embark on Phase 1 clinical trials for stem cell treatment for atopic dermatitis.

Launch of new bio-similar

This is again a bit technical and might be difficult for readers without pharmaceutical knowledge to understand. For certain breast cancer patients, they can be treated with a targeted treatment called Herceptin (trastuzumab). Duopharma had managed to manufacture a biosimilar of trastuzumab with Zuhera as the brand name. Again a biosimilar will be cheaper than the original biologic drug (almost similar to generic drug vs branded drug). This will again help Duopharma gain more sales and provide an affordable option to patients who cannot afford branded drugs.

Other expansion plans

Aside from developing revenue streams from niche drugs, Duopharma is also aggressively expanding its facilities. Over the last financial year, Duopharma completed its Highly Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients plant, upgraded its soft gel and liquid manufacturing line and is set to upgrade another Oral Solid Packing line in 2021. With the higher manufacturing capability, we should see a growth in revenues. 

Duopharma – Risks

Losing out in government contract

Traditionally, Duopharma is relying a little too much on government contracts and will see it’s earning affected if they lose out in tenders. The management has acknowledged this issue and has since been working on improving sales in the private sector as well.

Clinical trial results

Clinical trials are always hit or miss. Should SCM Lifescience fail any of its clinical trials, it might affect potential new revenue streams for Duopharma.

Is it still worth buying Duopharma?

With the current price, the short answer is “NO”. Even with a government contract to manufacture Covid-19 vaccine pre-filled syringe, it will not propel Duopharma earnings by 2X and I doubt the growth will even be anywhere close to 50% yoy.

We need to remember that Duopharma does not develop the vaccine, they are just getting the vaccine and packaging it into syringes. Of course, if you are a speculative trader who spotted a nice chart pattern or indicator and can stomach the risk, Duopharma and Pharmaniaga will definitely be one of the few active stocks in the next few trading days. However, for long term investors looking for a good company, Duopharma is definitely worth keeping in the watchlist. 

by Wilson Wong

For more analyses on companies, I have a list hERE.

Lastly, keep up to date by following my Facebook and Instagram.

How Personal Finance and Frugality Built My Portfolio

By
Filed Under: Financial Independence, Frugal, Portfolio - Freedom Fund 23

The Freedom Fund – A Product of Good Offense and Defense

I’ve often been asked how I built an RM400K (almost RM500K) portfolio by the age of 30—the answer is simple: frugality. This post isn’t about boasting; it’s about sharing the disciplined, frugal habits that made it all possible.

I can narrow it down to two basic parts – Offense and Defense.

The first and most obvious is your ability to generate income and returns – your offence. With a high income, be it from your day job, side hustles, business, or investments, a good offence is directly proportional to your increase in wealth.

However, based on my experience, a good and solid defence is perhaps much more important than your income. A solid defence is equivalent to having a high savings rate and being frugal.

Let me start off by saying that playing good defence and being frugal isn’t for everyone. I am not telling you to follow and copy what I do to the letter, but this is how I was brought up and how I built my Freedom Fund.

My Childhood / Youth

I’d like to think that my childhood and good early parenting helped make me the person I am today.

I am from a middle-class family. We’ve had our fair share of ups and downs. We’ve never gone hungry or without a meal but food was never EVER wasted.

I got RM10 per week from my mum during primary school. Thus, the first lesson in budgeting was born. If I spent all RM10 on Monday on nasi lemak and french fries, I’d starve for the week during recess. Even at that young age, I managed to save some money every week. That money was then used to buy stuff like erasers for that eraser-flipping game.

Fast forward a few years, high school was pretty much the same. I had a bump in allowance of course but I was still saving money every week. I recall looking enviously at my friends who all had iPods. I had to save money for a year before getting my own. That feeling of achievement at the end though, was worth it.

University – One of the biggest regrets I have to this day is that I didn’t take the time to apply for scholarships after my SPM. I surprisingly got really good results but no one taught me about scholarships.

I had the opportunity to study abroad as well with my parents offering to fund my studies in Australia. Instead, I completed my education locally to save my family money.

Back then, I was fortunate enough that my parents were able to pay for my education. However, I took out a PTPTN loan anyway as the interests were lower than FD rates. It was a no-brainer for me. I took my parent’s money for my education and placed them in FDs. And after 3 years of education, guess what? PTPTN was giving out a 20% discount for those who settled their loans early. At the age of 21, I had made a 20%+ return. This was to be my seed money.

Another thing that helped fund my portfolio initially was that I took a part-time job when I was studying. The money was one thing but it helped build character and a sense of gratefulness when I eventually entered the workforce full time. So parents, even if your teenage child doesn’t need to get that part-time job, I think you should make them work anyway.

Entering the Workforce

In the first week of entering the workforce, I followed my seniors and colleagues around. We mainly ate in the mall costing me RM15 – RM25 per meal. This was when I was on an RM2,800 salary. Thankfully, I smartened up pretty quickly and my staple food was economy rice – chap fan.

I had breakfast at a nearby kopitiam – eggs, toast and coffee for around RM5. Lunch was economy rice which cost me around RM10 or if I’m feeling rich, RM13. I had my dinners at home. This was my life for 4 years. Of course, there were times when I splurged occasionally. Birthday meals, dates, the usual.

During this time, if memory serves, I had a savings rate of around 50%. This was when I started buying stocks. I spent the day at work and in my free time, I analyzed stocks. Sunway, Nestle and Scientex were my very first stocks and I still hold them to this day.

Being Frugal Today – A Penny Saved is a Penny Earned

Today, as you can tell from some of my posts on social media, I do splurge a little on food and travel. But let me assure you, every other day I am still in essence a frugal person.

I still play good defense and it is in my nature to be frugal. I still go for that economy rice (now RM15) when my friends and colleagues go for lunch at the nearby bistro.

I still turn off the lights and appliances when I leave the room. I even do it when I’m not in my own house/property.

I still do not turn on the tap to the maximum when washing the dishes.

I make sure to have a fan in my room and office so I don’t have to turn on the air conditioning. And at times when I am hot and I have to, I set it to 24°C. That’s the lowest I’ll ever go.

I practice most hacks on frugality like waiting a week before making a big purchase. I pay myself first when I get my salary. I buy in bulk whenever I can. And I love credit cards for their cashback and points.

All these might seem a little extreme to you, but this is how I live. It isn’t tiresome for me (it might be for the people around me), but I believe these are good habits to have. And all these, in a huge way have helped me immensely in wealth creation.

Because a penny saved is a penny earned, a penny earned is a penny invested and compounded.

A few of the stuff I use to save, earn points etc can be found hERE.

Despite everything I’ve laid out, remember to treat yourself to that occasional good meal, to travel and experience the world once you’ve built up your portfolio. Use your dividends and passive income for some leisure. Just remember to flip that light switch off before heading for that holiday.

End.

Both defence and offence are equally important on the road to financial independence. With my savings and frugality, I wouldn’t have much of a portfolio if I did not invest my money. So remember to always invest. And invest for the long term.

I apologize if you came here looking for tips on how to invest and how to pick stocks and build wealth. But the truth is, with me at least, it was discipline and a good solid defence.

It’s a boring route and definitely not for everyone. So please do not feel bad about yourself if you are a big spender. Your huge income capabilities could very well outweigh your bad defence.

It is however my intention and wish that perhaps after reading this, you just might turn off that switch when you leave the room.

Do not confuse frugality with being cheap.

Onwards and upwards!

For the next article of the FI/RE and Savings Series, check out article 003 – Passive Income in Malaysia.

As always, follow my Facebook and Instagram to keep up to date!

Dividend Income Update 2020

By
Filed Under: Dividends, Investment 19

A list of my past dividend income and updates can be found below:

December

Freedom Fund as of December 2020
Dividend Income (Dec) –  RM351.47
Dividend Income (2020) –  RM15,415.64
Dividend Yield – 3.54%

You’ll notice a drop in dividend yield compared to November as I added and sold stocks.

As always, Facebook, Instagram, and now ! Follow, keep up to date.

Acquisition and Disposals

Added more QL Resources, TGUAN. Sold BURSA and some DSONIC.

Axis REIT

December 2020 Dividends – RM211.47
December 2019 Dividends – RM221.82
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM726.01
Dividend Yield – 4.18%

Nestle (M) Berhad

December 2020 Dividends – RM140
December 2019 Dividends – RM140
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM560
Dividend Yield – 4.19%

November

Freedom Fund as of November 2020
Dividend Income (Nov) –  RM960.04
Dividend Income (2020) –  RM15,064.17
Dividend Yield – 3.53%

Received RM960.04 for November from a total of 2 companies.

Acquisition and Disposals

Bought 1,000 units of TENAGA, lowering my average buy price to RM11.7950 per share.

Also bought a little more TGUAN as it went way down during November.

Bought MYEG for RM1.54 per share.

Bought and sold BURSA for some quick gain as it went above my valuation.

Sold off some MAYBANK and PBBANK shares, taking a little profit along the way.

Thoughts

As can be seen from my buy and sell transactions above, I’m still actively purchasing shares as they fall below my valuations. I’m also freeing up some money as I am building up and maintaining my cash position of about 10-15% of my portfolio right now.

IGB REIT

November 2020 Dividends – RM701.47
November 2019 Dividends – RM622.82
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM2,144.76
Dividend Yield – 4.14%

Sunway REIT

November 2020 Dividends – RM258.57
November 2019 Dividends – RM312.26
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM1,081.05
Dividend Yield – 2.32%

October

Freedom Fund as of October 2020
Dividend Income (Oct) –  RM1,530.48
Dividend Income (2020) –  RM14,104.13
Dividend Yield – 3.30%

As always, Facebook, Instagram, and now ! Follow, keep up to date.

Received RM1,530.48 for October from a total of 7 companies!

Acquisition and Disposals

Bought both Thong Guan (TGUAN) and Tenaga in October. The price and amount will be updated when I do the year end review.

I sold some Scientex AGAIN in October to lock in profit. Hoping to buy back if and when prices dip in the future.

Also sold off Aeon Credit to free up some cash. Including dividends received, a small gain of 2.78% was recorded.

Thoughts

Just like current market conditions, my portfolio and dividends have taken a hit in 2020. Looking to at least get close to last year’s RM16,322.27 in dividends. We’re only at RM14,104.13 today.

That being said, I am still grateful to be able to continue getting dividends this year. And also thankful that the portfolio is still in the green as of this moment. It’s a race towards the end of 2020!

Nestle Malaysia Berhad

October 2020 Dividends – RM140
October 2019 Dividends – RM140
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM420
Dividend Yield – 3.14%

Axis REIT

October 2020 Dividends – RM203.28
October 2019 Dividends – RM221.82
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM514.54
Dividend Yield – 2.96%

Datasonic Group Berhad

October 2020 Dividends – RM78.50
October 2019 Dividends – RM –
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM78.50
Dividend Yield – 0.40%

QL Resources Berhad

October 2020 Dividends – RM67.50
October 2019 Dividends – RM –
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM67.50
Dividend Yield – 0.46%

Tenaga Nasional Berhad

October 2020 Dividends – RM660
October 2019 Dividends – RM600
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM2,060
Dividend Yield – 5.50%

CB Industrial Product Holding Berhad

October 2020 Dividends – RM280
October 2019 Dividends – RM280
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM560
Dividend Yield – 2.51%

Aeon Credit (M) Berhad (SOLD)

October 2020 Dividends – RM101.20

September

Freedom Fund as of September 2020
Dividend Income (Sept) –  RM459.50
Dividend Income (2020) –  RM12,573.65
Dividend Yield – 2.84%

As always, Facebook and Instagram. Follow, keep up to date.

Received a total of RM459.50 in dividend income for September. A drop compared to 2019’s RM1,336.98. We missed out on PBB, Homeriz and Scicom’s dividends.

Note: Amended dividends and yield a little as I forgot to take into account dividend from stocks I sold. Also amended the Freedom Fund’s latest update.

I know many of you have been asking for my list of purchases and disposals. I’ll try my best to list them all down here as well as the reasons for said transactions.

Disposals

Duopharma

I sold 7,000 units of Duopharma stocks, taking an estimated 200% profit. Will be looking closely at this company in the coming weeks/months to maybe purchase more or dispose of all my holdings.

Homeriz

I’ve also disposed of all my Homeriz stocks with a 37% gain. I’ve been holding this one since 2014 and its been a pretty good ride with decent dividends. Reason for the disposal is that I want to free up some cash and cut my portfolio down a little.

Scicom

This one hurts. Holding Scicom since 2016, sold all for a 43% loss. I though I understood the company well and the industry but lesson learnt. Will not be looking at them any time soon.

Scientex

Scientex has always been my diamond in the rough. A true gem and I’ve recently disposed of some 2,000 units. Took a profit of around 125%. I still hold 9,800 units of Scientex and will continue to hold for the long term. Will of course be on the look out for when the price drops to add more to my portfolio.

Purchases

Bursa

Purchased 1,500 units of our very own bourse. Looking to hold this one for the long term and I’m hoping that the participation of retail investors will continue long after the pandemic is over.

Dsonic

Bought this one in anticipation of some projects. Dipping my toe in this new industry and learning a lot from my peers and members from our FB group.

QL Resources

I’ve been looking at QL for the longest time, if I recall I did actually own some shares of QL previously but sold it off. Would’ve made a handsome profit if I continued to hold the shares. Shoulda, woulda, coulda.

I like the management, they’re in a very steady industry and you know – Family Mart.

Thoughts

So those are my disposals and my purchases from March to September 2020. I’ll be looking to start discussions on individual stocks on my YouTube channel very soon. If you haven’t already, please do subscribe and I’ll see all of you there.

Now on to September’s dividend income!

Genting Malaysia Berhad

September 2020 Dividends – RM228
September 2019 Dividends – RM288
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM760
Dividend Yield – 4.40%

Sunway Construction Berhad

September 2020 Dividends – RM4.50
September 2019 Dividends – RM12.60
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM4.50
Dividend Yield – 0.77%

IGB Berhad

September 2020 Dividends – RM227
September 2019 Dividends – RM227
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM454
Dividend Yield – 4.30%

August

Freedom Fund as at August 2020
Dividend Income (Aug) –  RM872.67
Dividend Income (2020) –  RM12,114.15
Dividend Yield – 2.71%

As always, Facebook and Instagram. Follow, keep up to date.

Received a total of RM872.67 in dividend income for August. A slight increase compared to 2019’s RM832.21. A 5% increase.

Thoughts

With Q4 closing in fast, I’m keen to see my investment portfolio reach the 3% mark in dividend yield. Pretty sure we won’t be able to surpass 2019’s yield of 4.16%, but you never know!

I think markets will continue to be volatile and stock prices do not accurately reflect the Malaysian economy right now. This is the first time I’m seeing such market enthusiasm during a pandemic and when businesses all around us are closing down.

I’ll continue to hold on to more cash as I sell off some positions. I’m looking to purchase more Real Estate Investment Trust (REITs) stocks and a few good companies I’m currently holding right when the price is right.

As I’ve mentioned a few times, my Malaysian portfolio will be built and centered around dividends right now. While my US stock portfolio will be more focused on growth and capital gains.

Duopharma Biotech Berhad

August 2020 Dividends – RM500.00
August 2019 Dividends – N/A
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM500.00
Dividend Yield – 3.55%

I’ve been selling off this stock and taking profit over the past few weeks/months. All in all, I’ve probably made close to 200% profit on average from the aforementioned sell off.

IGB REIT

August 2020 Dividends – RM207.01
August 2019 Dividends – RM609.37
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM1,443.29
Dividend Yield – 2.78%

Sunway REIT

August 2020 Dividends – RM515.66
August 2019 Dividends – RM298.38
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM822.48
Dividend Yield – 1.77%

July

Freedom Fund as at July 2020
Dividend Income (July) –  RM1,722.67
Dividend Income (2020) –  RM11,241.48
Dividend Yield – 2.62%

As always, Facebook and Instagram. Follow, keep up to date.

Received a total of RM1,722.67 in dividends for July this year. Comparatively, in 2019, I received RM1,409.95. That’s a 22% increase.

To compare against last year’s performance, I’ve compiled and combined all 2019’s dividend income update hERE.

With the interest rates in Malaysia at an all-time low right now, conventional FD’s are no longer attractive. It is times like these that strong, stable companies with their consistent dividend payments shine. We are only in July and my yield is already above the board rate.

Aeon Credit Service (M) Berhad

July 2020 Dividends – RM154.00
July 2019 Dividends – RM379.95
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM154.00
Dividend Yield – 1.22%

Aeon Credit has been hit hard in Q2. Will be looking to maybe trim down a little to pounce on future buying opportunities.

Scientex Berhad

July 2020 Dividends – RM1,180
July 2019 Dividends – RM1,030
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM2,210
Dividend Yield – 4.05%

Dividends increased a little as I added more units of Scientex to my portfolio during the MCO period.

The company has managed to keep their dividend payments unchanged amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.

Axis REIT

July 2020 Dividends – RM198.67
July 2019 Dividends – RM221.71
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM311.26
Dividend Yield – 1.79%

Genting Malaysia Berhad

July 2020 Dividends – RM190.00
July 2019 Dividends – RM –
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM532
Dividend Yield – 4.73%

June

Freedom Fund as at June 2020
Dividend Income (June) –  RM112
Dividend Income (2020) –  RM9,518.81
Dividend Yield – 2.27%

Dividend for 2020 has also gone a little haywire I guess. May’s dividend income was exceptionally high and now in June, as expected, I’m experiencing an unprecedented low.

However, cumulatively, dividends for 2020 are still higher compared to 2019.

Scicom (MSC) Berhad

June 2020 Dividends – RM112
June 2019 Dividends – RM112
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM280
Dividend Yield – 1.25%

May

Freedom Fund as at May 2020
Dividend Income (May) –  RM5,155.98
Dividend Income (2020) –  RM9,406.81
Dividend Yield – 2.24%

As investing sentiment improves together with the gradual lifting of Malaysia’s MCO, my portfolio has seen some improvements as well.

I received a total of RM5,155.98 in dividend income for the month of May, a huge increase compared to last year. In fact, The Freedom Fund is at 2.24% in dividend yield right now. Companies that contributed were Maybank, TNB, Nestle and IGB REIT.

Malayan Banking Berhad

May 2020 Dividends – RM2,830.23
May 2019 Dividends – RM1,052.16
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM2,830.23
Dividend Yield – 4.77%

The increase in dividends was due to my additional purchase of Maybank shares. However, the amount and yield has definitely increased, the total yield for the whole of 2019 was 4.49%. We’ve already surpassed it with the first dividend of 2020.

Tenaga Nasional Berhad

May 2020 Dividends – RM1,400.00
May 2019 Dividends – RM230.00
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM1,400.00
Dividend Yield – 5.38%

TNB paid out more this time around as this round’s dividend includes a special dividend.

Nestle (M) Berhad

May 2020 Dividends – RM280.00
May 2019 Dividends – RM280.00
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM280.00
Dividend Yield – 2.09%

IGB REIT

May 2020 Dividends – RM645.75
May 2019 Dividends – RM647.04
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM1,236.28
Dividend Yield – 2.38%

April

Freedom Fund as at April 2020
Dividend Income (Apr) –  RM1,686.39
Dividend Income (2020) –  RM4,250.83
Dividend Yield – 0.97%

The Freedom Fund has taken a hit due to recent events. Capital wise, we’ve moved into the positive range as of 30 April and no longer in the red.

If you’ve been following my Facebook and Instagram, you would’ve been able to pick up on some buys I have made during the MCO.

The most recent being DPHARMA and additional units of MAYBANK and SUNREIT.

However, if you’ve missed it, I will be updating my portfolio in June as per usual. So fret not.

Scicom (Msc) Bhd

April 2020 Dividends – RM168
April 2019 Dividends – RM168
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM168
Dividend Yield – 0.75%

Same amount in dividends received as last year. Same amount of disappointment. Awaiting some good news from Scicom.

IGB Berhad

April 2020 Dividends – RM227
April 2019 Dividends – RM227
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM227
Dividend Yield – 2.15%

The same amount will be expected from IGB’s preference share every year. No surprises here.

Public Bank Berhad

April 2020 Dividends – RM560
April 2019 Dividends – RM222
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM560
Dividend Yield – 2.23%

The huge increase is due to my recent addition of 800 units of Public Bank shares.

Genting Malaysia Berhad

April 2020 Dividends – RM342
April 2019 Dividends – N/A
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM342
Dividend Yield – 3.04%

I bought the shares after April 2019 so there’s nothing to compare to.

Sunway Berhad

April 2020 Dividends – RM389.39
April 2019 Dividends – RM309.12
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM389.39
Dividend Yield – 3.34%

A 25% jump in dividends received . =D

March

Freedom Fund as at March 2020
Dividend Income (Mar) –  RM663.91
Dividend Income (2020) –  RM2,564.44
Dividend Yield – 0.61%

I received a total of RM663.91 in dividends for the month of March from the companies – Homeritz, Axis REIT and Sunway REIT.

The dividend schedule of companies are all messed up again thanks to the Covid-19 virus.

Homeritz Corporation Bhd

March 2020 Dividends – RM244.50
March 2019 Dividends – RM366.75
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM244.50
Dividend Yield – 1.73%

Axis REIT

March 2020 Dividends – RM112.59
March 2019 Dividends – RM243.74
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM112.59
Dividend Yield – 0.65%

Sunway REIT

March 2020 Dividends – RM306.82
March 2019 Dividends – RM281.52
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM306.82
Dividend Yield – 1.55%

All Aboard the Dividend Train

On a side note, our friends at Rakuten has been working on a page that provides information on companies and their dividend payment date. It can be found hERE. I’m also told the page will be updated monthly.

Please note that there is no merit to chasing dividends blindly. Especially yields. A company can show high yields because dividend yield is calculated based on their previous declared dividend.

Make sure you’ve done your research and the yields are backed by equally strong underlying assets.

Also, if you’re signing up for a new Rakuten Account, please do give the blog your support and use my referral link – hERE.

You’ll receive RT points signing up with my link and it’ll go a long way in helping keep Dividend Magic running.

February

Freedom Fund as at February 2020
Dividend Income (Feb) –  RM590.53
Dividend Income (2020) –  RM1,900.53
Dividend Yield – 0.46%

As always, Facebook and Instagram. Follow, keep up to date.

IGB REIT

February 2020 Dividends – RM590.53
February 2019 Dividends – RM487.48
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM590.53
Dividend Yield – 1.45%

January

Freedom Fund as at January 2020
Dividend Income (Jan) –  RM1,310.00
Dividend Income (2020) –  RM1,310.00
Dividend Yield – 0.33%

As always, Facebook and Instagram. Follow, keep up to date.

Scientex Berhad

January 2020 Dividends – RM1,030
January 2020 Dividends – RM1,030
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM1,030
Dividend Yield – 2.32%

Received the same amount from Scientex last year. Expecting a >4% yield again for 2020.

CB Industrial Product Holding Berhad

January 2020 Dividends – RM280
January 2020 Dividends – RM280
Total 2020 Dividends –  RM280
Dividend Yield – 1.26%

Same amount was paid out last year.

Luno Malaysia Review (highest RM75 Promo Code) and Portfolio Update

By
Filed Under: Cryptocurrencies, Investment, Other Investments 29

2025 Luno Giveaway!

LUNO Malaysia has very kindly given us some goodies to give away again this year!

We’ll be giving out TEN sets of Luno items this time around, and the details are as follows:

Answer the following: How is your portfolio doing? And what would you like to see next on Luno?
Duration: 3 weeks (ends on 5 October 2025)
Platform: Comments on blog article, Instagram or Facebook (like and comment)
T&C: New and existing Luno users (use code HFCCY)
One gift per user.

We’ll select the 10 best answers and will be in touch to send the gifts out!
Be creative and standout, we hope to hear your answers and honest feedback!

Luno Referral Code: HFCCY

This is a full-on Luno Malaysia Review. If you’re here looking for a Luno referral and promo code to use for your sign-up, you can use my code HFCCY, you will get RM75 worth of Bitcoin when you buy RM250 or more. That’s an instant 30% return on your investment. This is valid forever as of now so don’t worry. I will update this if and when it is no longer available. Sign up hERE.

Luno Malaysia Review

ETH Staking is finally here!

If you do not understand ETH’s staking, which takes the form of PoS – proof of stake, you can find out more hERE. You can understand the basics here and of course, there are more technical ways to get your ETH to work for you out there ie. Liquid staking. Some exchanges even provide you with a pegged token once you’ve staked and you can then use said pegged tokens for other uses. But for Luno’s case, it is a straightforward proof of stake.

What is ARP? Annual Rewards Percentage

ARP (Annual Rewards Percentage) – This is your net returns per annum, fees will have already been calculated and what you see is what you get on Luno.

For more information on staking and rewards on Luno, try this link hERE.

I will be clawing back and moving the ETH I have around the crypto-verse and hard wallets and moving them to Luno. Staking is a huge step for our local exchange. Why Luno? I’ve got the protection of our SC and personally, I know how hard it was for Luno to get staking set up on our shores.

I’ll also continue to share the staking returns monthly or bi-monthly here.

How to Stake on Luno

  1. Go to your wallet then select STAKE
  2. Create an Ethereum Staking wallet
  3. Enter the amount of Ethereum you’d like to stake then select NEXT
  4. Confirm the amount of Ethereum to be staked and click STAKE NOW
  5. Earn Ethereum rewards every week.

If you’re new to Luno and have been waiting for staking to come to us, please feel free to sign up using my link hERE.

My Luno promo code: HFCCY

You get RM75 when you purchase RM250 worth of crypto. I’ve included more information on this below.

My Crypto Portfolio on Luno

My latest Luno portfolio, which makes up the bulk of my crypto assets will be updated here. Previous updates can be found at the end of this article.

Moving forward, I’ll be updating my crypto portfolio on a monthly/bi-monthly basis here.

2025 Crypto Update

November crypto update 🚀
Gross investment: RM46,000
Market value: RM125,645
Realised profit: RM114,386
Capital gain: +171%
BTC: 0.23058 (RM 89,254)
ETH: 2.86369 (RM 36,376)

Crypto in general went way down over the past few months and then climbed back up a little. I’ve always said – crypto isn’t for the faint-hearted and is always a roller coaster. When it goes down, it is time to buy.

I actually took the opportunity and used up most of the cash I had in hand on Luno to buy BTC. We’re at 0.23058 now!

If you’ve been missing out and think crypto’s future looks good, it may be time to go ahead and sign up with Luno. Don’t forget to use my referral code! Make sure to do your own due diligence though.

As always, volatility is almost synonymous with crypto. I’ve documented my returns all here on this page itself.

Luno has also upped its sign-up rewards. It is now RM75 for new registration and you only have to spend RM250 on an instant buy transaction when you use my code: HFCCY. That’s 30% guys!

We were at RM50 for RM500 previously. Please take advantage of this if you haven’t signed up.

You can find my previous portfolio updates at the bottom of the page.
My stock investment portfolio can be found hERE.

My Take – Luno Malaysia Review

Who Is Luno Malaysia?

If you’re into cryptocurrencies and you live in Malaysia, chances are you’ve heard of Luno Malaysia. They’re the largest cryptocurrency exchange in Malaysia.

As of May 2021, Luno Malaysia offers the following cryptocurrencies:

  • Bitcoin (BTC)
  • Ethereum (ETH)
  • Ripple (XRP)
  • Litecoin (LTC)
  • Bitcoin Cash (BCH)

Is Luno Safe? Is Luno Legit?

Safety-wise, Luno is the first regulated cryptocurrency exchange in Malaysia. And that’s saying something.

They’re regulated by SC so there’s really nothing for us to worry about fraud from Luno as an exchange.

A cyber attack however is something entirely different. Attacks and hacks on an exchange can happen and has happened in the past. But then again, there’s really nothing we can do about it.

As of now, if you’re a Malaysian and looking for a crypto exchange, I’d say Luno is your safest bet. I have the majority of my coins stored with Luno.

Moving your Crypto to Luno

I have recently moved all my coins – Bitcoin, Ethereum and Bitcoin Cash to Luno’s platform.

The process was surprisingly simple and easy. Bear in mind that this is my first time sending / receiving coins.

It took around an hour for all my cryptocurrencies to arrive as they require confirmations on the blockchain.

As of today, my total crypto portfolio stands at RM3,808. For a roughly 1.5 year period, my return is about 200%.

I’ll be using Luno as a wallet to stash all my cryptocurrencies from this point on as well as an exchange to buy/sell.

The user interface is spot on and the support I’ve received from them with my inquiries has been outstanding.

Luno’s Wallet

Keeping your hard-earned bitcoins and other cryptos on Luno Malaysia itself is something all users can do. I myself do that but as my holdings grow in size, I will be thinking of moving them to a standalone wallet, maybe even an offline one.

Luno’s wallet is what is known as a custodial wallet. This means that your private keys are stored by a third party, in this case – Luno. Placing your coins in a custodial wallet is similar to the principles of placing your cash in a bank. The money remains yours, but you do not fully control your money when it is in their hands.

Advantages

  • Interest generating. Some exchanges/custodians are giving you money to store your coins with them. Think of your coins as being used as a sort of money market fund. Hoping to see this come to Luno in the near future.
  • Convenience. You’re able to manage all your funds in one place and at any time.
  • You won’t lose or forget your private key and access to your coins.

Disadvantages

  • The custodian has control over your money.
  • Your coins can be seized by a court decision.
  • If the wallet gets hacked, you may lose your coins.

Before you cry foul and move all your coins to your own private wallet, Luno actually has three layers of security for their wallets and your coins. The first layer is the industry standard where an external custodian secures the keys. This is for practical reasons otherwise moving funds would take too long.

The second and third layer is where the security intensifies and where the bulk of the coins are stored. Luno actually practices what they term ”deep freeze storage”. Essentially, the private key is broken up and stored in different places around the world.

For the reasons above, you may want to have a percentage of your coins with Luno and another in your own private wallet. If you plan to just hold for a very long time, keeping it on your own wallet would make more sense. Just don’t forget your keys.

However, if and when Luno announces the interest bearing feature, I think a lot of bitcoin holders will see value in keeping their coins with Luno.

As for security on your own side, please, please set up 2-Factor Authentication for your accounts. Better safe than sorry especially if you’ve got a significant percentage in cryptocurrencies.

Luno Malaysia’s Fees – Post Order Only

First off, sending and receiving your cryptocurrencies. When you receive, Luno doesn’t charge a fee. When you send, you’re charged a fee.

When actually buying and selling on Luno’s exchange, to save on fees, forget instant buy/sell and instead, do a post order. Tick the ”post-only order” and you’ll see the difference in your fees.

Right at the bottom, tick that. You won’t instantly get your coins if you’re buying, instead, set a price close to the market price. Creating a post-only order ensures that you won’t have to pay a taker fee. An order will only be added to the order book if it does not match with a pre-existing order. If it does, it will be canceled.

Besides that, to get a full picture of other fees, you can visit Luno’s page on it hERE.

Why Bitcoin?

As always, prior research and due diligence on your part is required before making investments. For any asset class.

I’ve been monitoring cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin on and off for a few years now and I have my reasons for investing in it.

My first venture into cryptocurrency was back in December 2018. I invested USD 288 (or approximately RM1,256) back then.

Back in August 2020, my portfolio stood at RM3,808.

Cryptocurrency investment has been one of my biggest regrets. I regret not having put more money here. Of course, hindsight is always 20-20 but nonetheless, it is one of many regrets for me.

BITCOIN AS A STORE OF VALUE

Firstly, I see bitcoin as digital gold. As we transition to a digital economy, bitcoin will eventually challenge gold as a global store of value.

Like gold, bitcoin is limited in its supply. Bitcoin is limited to only 21 million. Forever. Not only is bitcoin scarce and durable like gold, but bitcoin also improves upon many of physical gold’s characteristics. Bitcoin is divisible, verifiable, portable, and transferable.

If bitcoin were to take just a 10% share of the physical gold market, we could see its value increase 5X to $1 trillion.

With the continuous printing of money, bitcoin has been viewed as an asset similar to gold in the modern world as a hedge against inflation. A good article on this can be read hERE.

BITCOIN’S POTENTIAL

My next reason for investing in bitcoin is its sheer potential upside. There are many theories and thoughts on bitcoin’s adoption as a currency. Or even as a global settlement network for banks as businesses.

We’ve already seen PayPal recently move in that direction. Payment systems like Square Inc have bought into bitcoin. The potential is there. Unlike gold, gold has already plateaued whereas bitcoin’s potential is still vast.

I’ll be looking closely at Bitcoin and Ethereum especially moving forward. Although volatile in nature, with bigger upside potential, I’ll prefer buying Bitcoin to Gold when it comes to hedging.

Luno Malaysia Best Referral Code (RM75)

Luno Logo Dividend Magic

As part of a collaboration with Luno Malaysia, we’ve come up with the perfect promotion for new users wanting to invest in Bitcoin.

Using the following referral code – HFCCY, you will get RM75 worth of Bitcoin when you buy RM250 or more. That’s an instant 30% return on your investment. Sign up hERE.

If you’ve been wanting to own some Bitcoins, now is really the time to start.

Unfortunately, this Luno promo and referral code is for new users only. Also, make sure you use Luno’s instant buy (instead of a post-order) function to be eligible for this code.

After signing up, you enter the promo code as follows:

For mobile users, head to the Rewards tab at the bottom and enter the code: HFCCY

For desktop users, the Rewards tab is on the top right, enter the Luno promo code: HFCCY

In short, to be eligible for the RM75 promo and referral code, you have to:
1. Register as a new Luno Malaysia customer;
2. Enter my Luno promo code: HFCCY (BEFORE you make a deposit into your Luno account);
3. Make a purchase of at least RM250; and
4. Make sure the purchase is through Luno’s Instant Buy feature.

The full promo rules can be accessed hERE.
Please go through them carefully to meet the criteria for that RM75.

My Verdict – Luno Malaysia Review

I’ll be moving more of my cash into Luno and increasing the size of my crypto portfolio in the future when the price is right. At least that’s the plan right now.

Just as how I prefer to purchase a mother share over warrants and how I prefer to buy shares of the main company over its subsidiaries, I’ll be focusing more on Bitcoins compared to other coins.

As always, Facebook, Instagram, and now ! Follow, keep up to date.

Previous Updates

2025 Crypto Update

July crypto update 🚀
Gross investment: RM46,000
Market value: RM160,386
Realised profit: RM114,386
Capital gain: +248.56%
BTC: 0.20562
ETH: 2.84462

Crypto is back up again. I added a little more Bitcoin via DCA. We’re at RM160K and I’ve also got the previous RM34K stashed in KDI save. Amazing run, especially for ETH. It has finally come.

ETH staking is about 6% for August btw. Don’t forget to stake if you have ETH lying around.

March/April crypto update 🚀
Gross investment: RM46,000
Market value: RM125,338
Realised profit: RM84,000 (+RM34,000 withdrew cash as profit)
Capital gain: +355.08%

Crypto is back up again. I added a little during the last dip, but alas, it was a small amount.

Withdrew RM34,000 cash, which was sitting there and placed it in KDI save for that sweet 4.0%. Happy with the returns for now. Recalculated a little as I realised I didn’t do it right and did not capture realised profit in my capital gain.

ETH staking is about 4.7% for May btw. Don’t forget to stake if you have ETH lying around.

February crypto update 🚀
Gross investment: RM46,000 (moved RM30K ETH to Luno)
Market value: RM138,568
Capital gain: +201.23%
Previous realized profit: RM50,000 (approximately)

We got a pretty big 20% drop over the past 1+ month. Still holding onto the cash, BTC and ETH, keeping it all in the crypto portfolio.

I think we’re looking at a significant positive change for crypto in the coming years, with the US being very crypto-friendly. I’ll be looking to use my RM39K in cash to buy into more crypto when the price is right.

January update 🚀
Gross investment: RM46,000 (moved RM30K ETH to Luno)
Market value: RM150,415
Capital gain: +226.98%
Previous profit: RM50,000 (approximately)

Not much change in total value since the end of last year. However, I’ve sold another RM10K worth of bitcoin and currently holding only 0.18 BTC.

I think we’re looking at a significant positive change for crypto in the coming years, with the US being very crypto-friendly. I’ll be looking to use my RM39K in cash to buy into more crypto when the price is right.

Really bummed that ETH isn’t performing as it should be as a significant portion of my crypto portfolio is in ETH. I’m sure it’ll catch up though.

2024 Crypto Update

November/December update 🚀
Gross investment: RM46,000 (moved RM30K ETH to Luno)
Market value: RM151,212
Capital gain: +228.72%
Previous profit: RM50,000 (approximately)

One month in after Trump’s win and we’re up by another RM40,000. Looks like I wasn’t so smart to sell about RM30K worth of BTC earlier. I will however continue and sell a little as BTC just hit USD100,000.

Really bummed that ETH isn’t performing as it should be as a significant portion of my crypto portfolio is in ETH. I’m sure it’ll catch up though.

Consolidated my other crypto holdings and switched them out for ETH and staked them on Luno for now.

2023 Crypto Update

December update 🚀
Gross investment: RM14,441
Market value: RM38,372
Capital gain: +165.171%
Previous profit: RM50,000 (approximately)

End of the year update to my crypto. As mentioned in November, I sold about half of my BTC holdings.
Whatever remains now is pure profit and I will continue to add bit by bit every month when (I think) the price is right.

We’re sitting on a nice 165% in profit right now for the crypto portfolio. We’ll see where the ETFs and halving events bring us in the next few months!

2022 Crypto Update

October update 🚀
Gross investment: RM22,379
Market value: RM35,827
Capital gain: +60.1%

Alright! As you may or may not have noticed, added about 2k worth of BTC in October. Didn’t pan out so well as BTC dipped again. But I’ll be continuously adding in monthly or bi-monthly for now.

I do believe we are almost at the bottom already and that crypto has established itself as an asset class over the years.

2021 Crypto Update

December update 🚀
Gross investment: RM10,273
Market value: RM67,004
Capital gain: +552.23%

Let’s see where the next wave will take us.

2020 Crypto Update

RM111,907 per Bitcoin. I actually made a short term trade, selling at RM79K and buying again at RM77K. A little profit there to add to my crypto portfolio.

Gross Investment: RM13,808
Market Value: RM34,424
Capital Gain/Loss: +149.30%

Of course, a little remorse and regret at not having put a little more money in. But, seeing as it is within my target of 1-10% of my investment portfolio, I’m grateful.

First Started – September 2020

I’ll calculate my gross investment as RM3,808. It’s a rough estimate as this includes mining and unfortunately, I did not keep track of those properly back when I started in 2019.

Gross Investment: RM3,808
Market Value: RM5,528
Capital Gain/Loss: 45%

Bitcoin’s price today is at RM44,876 per bitcoin.

My total crypto portfolio stands at RM5,528.

It comprises of:

  1. 0.083395 BTC – RM3,742
  2. 1.200000 ETH – RM1,781
  3. 0.003866 BCH – RM4

Update 30 April 2020

As of 30 April 2020, my crypto portfolio worth RM3,808 consists of the following.

  1. Bitcoin – RM2,763
  2. Ethereum – RM1,039
  3. Bitcoin Cash – RM4

Crypto Mining in the Past

Older readers of mine may also remember my crypto mining days.

My most recent update of cryptocurrencies was back in December 2018 when had about USD 288 (or approximately RM1,256). I have not made any additional investments since then.

Rakuten Trade – Review and FAQ

By
Filed Under: Investment, Dividends 59

Welcome to our Rakuten Trade review and FAQ guide. In this article, we dive into Malaysia’s popular online trading platform—examining its key features, fee structure, and overall performance. Whether you’re new to investing or a seasoned trader, you’ll find the insights you need to determine if Rakuten Trade fits your needs as an investor.

Rakuten Trade Referral Code

First off, if you’re thinking of registering for a Rakuten Trade account, and looking for a referral code, please consider supporting me and the blog by using my referral link hERE or with the code: DIVMAGIC

Just make sure that this section is filled this way:

You will earn 1,000RT (RM10 equivalent) points upon successful activation of your account.

Thank you in advance for supporting me and the blog.

Personal Finance and Investing

Personal finance and investing form the core of your financial journey. You should view personal finance—savings, protection, and insurance—as your defence, and investing as your offence.

I have articles on these that you can check out, too many to list them all here but let me start you off with a few:

Personal Finance

Investing

Latest News: Rakuten Trade’s lowest of the low brokerage fee

Rakuten Trade has revamped its fee structure, both locally and for international markets.

Rakuten Trade is currently the lowest against local brokers’ non-promotional rates for a trading value below RM9,999.99 for MY, US & HK Market (trading in MYR) and below USD990 trading value for US market (trading in USD).

More info officially from Rakuten Trade here.

The visuals below will speak for themselves. They’re one of the cheapest and most competitive brokers now in Malaysia.

Rakuten Trade 2025 Latest MYR brokerage comparison Old Vs New
Rakuten Trade 2025 Latest USD brokerage comparison Old Vs New

My New Investing Strategy for 2025

Starting Match 2022, I invested RM1-2K per month in Vanguard’s S&P 500 ETF (US: VOO) via Rakuten Trade.

For my Malaysia stock portfolio, The Freedom Fund, you can check it out here. I update this quarterly.
I also update my dividends received monthly via my Dividend Income Update 2025 page.

If markets do drop and if a big dip happens, I might be investing a larger amount that month. This will be a very passive investing strategy and I’d like to invite you guys to try and do the same. Instead of picking your stocks and timing the market, buy the whole US market. I think in 10-20 years, you’ll be thanking me.

I won’t go into details about the benefits of long-term passive investing, if this is unheard of to you, I’ll leave you with this write-up on Warren Buffet’s $1 million bet on passive investing vs hedge funds.

May 2023 Portfolio Update

Rakuten Trade – Latest Brokerage Fees

Rakuten Trade MYR Brokerage fee 2025
Rakuten Trade MYR Brokerage fee 2025
Rakuten Trade USD Brokerage fee 2025
Rakuten Trade USD Brokerage fee 2025

For a retail investor like me, with their new foreign trading fees, and the ability to trade in different currencies, it’ll be safe to say that Rakuten Trade offers one of the cheapest and more flexible options right now here in Malaysia.
So, in short, if you’re planning to buy US stocks, you can try Rakuten Trade. Assuming no currency exchange fluctuations of course

Forex Rate

Conversion rates will be competitive as per the briefing I attended. This will have to be tried and tested when they eventually go live.

Registration and Activating Foreign Trading

With the fees out of the way, I urge you guys to go ahead and open and activate your Rakuten Trade Foreign account right now. It can be done 100% online. Go register, activate and test the platform out together with me.

Step 1: Open your Rakuten Trade Cash Upfront Account

If you’re new to Rakuten Trade, you’ll need to first open a basic Rakuten Trade Cash Upfront account. Please consider supporting me and the blog by using my referral link hERE with the code: DIVMAGIC. You’ll also receive 1,000 free RT points (updated for 2023) which can be used to offset your brokerage fees!

Step 2: Activate Foreign Trading

Then, you’ll have to log in to your Rakuten Trade account and activate Foreign Trading. This can be done via the website or through their app. If you’re already an existing Rakuten Trade user, skip Step 1 and just proceed with Step 2.

Rakuten Trade – One of Malaysia’s Best Brokerages

Moving on, this is not a Sponsored Post.

With the Covid-19 pandemic, Rakuten Trade has reported an unprecedented number of sign-ups and activations.

In part, due to clients being allowed to register for and activate their accounts online.

Rakuten Trade activates 11,000 new accounts in March, amid MCO period

As reported by The Edge Markets

How I Use Rakuten Trade

For all Malaysian retail brokers like myself, I think Rakuten Trade is the best brokerage we have available here. I’m a long-term investor and typically make about 10-20 trades a year, depending on the market’s performance.

Low Brokerage

Rakuten Trade is perfect for me due to its competitive and low brokerage fees. As of 2021, most brokerages have lowered their fees to similar levels. Rakuten Trade is among the lowest.

And you know me, I always go for low fees. Fees add up. In my few years of stock investing, my fees add up to RM3.6K. And that is me being a long-term, slow investor. Remember to always keep your fees low.

RT Points

Apart from its low and competitive brokerage fees, Rakuten Trade is the only Malaysian brokerage that offers a form of cashback/reward for every trade made. You get RT points for trades and they have regular events that earn you even more points throughout your stock investing journey. And these points can add up. I usually cash in for AirAsia BIG points. You can also cash in your RT points for Bonuslink and Boost.

100% Online Registration

Another huge advantage of Rakuten Trade is its fully online registration. This has been a big hit, especially among younger retail investors. It can be a hindrance for the older generation but if you find it tough to sign up online, you can always walk into their premises and get help there.

FAQ

With this huge amount of sign-ups, I’ve also received plenty of questions from first-time investors as well as veteran ones. With a fully online brokerage being something totally new in Malaysia.

I’ve taken the time to compile a list of frequently asked questions below and sent them to Rakuten Trade for their official answers (highlighted in blue).

1.            Is it safe to trade with Rakuten Trade?

Yes, Rakuten Trade is licensed by Securities Commission Malaysia and holds a restricted Capital Markets Services License (“CMSL”) to deal in listed securities and to provide investment advice.

I get asked this question the most! And the answer is 100% yes. The SC does not willy-nilly hand out brokerage licenses.

2.            How long does it take for me to withdraw my money?

If you perform a withdrawal before the cut-off time (3pm on working days), the withdrawal will be reflected in your account the same day. After 3PM, we will process your withdrawal in the next working day.

So, for those who have asked me if there are problems with withdrawal, the answer is no. In fact, Rakuten Trade is one of the fastest in processing your withdrawal requests.

3.            I hear the shares held won’t be under my name.

Rakuten Trade accounts are nominee accounts and you will be the beneficiary of the account.

A nominee account is a securities account opened by an authorised nominee in accordance with Bursa Rules. With Rakuten Trade, your CDS account is held under a company’s name KENANGA NOMINEES (TEMPATAN/ASING) SDN BHD RAKUTEN TRADE SDN BHD FOR [CLIENT NAME]

4.            When do I receive my dividend payments?

As a Nominees CDS account holder, it may take an additional 3-5 trading days from the dividends payment date before it gets credited into your RT trading account

5.            Will Rakuten Trade charge for corporate actions in the future?

Rakuten Trade currently doesn’t charge a fee for corporate action-related activities and has yet to have plans to change this.

6.            I’m already trading with another broker, how can I transfer my existing shares to Rakuten Trade?

You just need to inform your current broker of your intention to switch. A physical share transfer form with a transfer fee of RM10.00 per counter will be submitted. Upon successful transfer, you will receive 1000 RT Points.  

My Full Review of Rakuten Trade

With their, rewards program, low fees, and no handling fees for corporate actions, Rakuten Trade is the top broker currently in Malaysia.

Rakuten Trade Advantages

1. You earn RT points whenever you trade.
As mentioned earlier, Rakuten Trade points or RT Points are what you earn when you trade or execute any trading exercise via their platform. The points can then be redeemed.

No other broker offers this!

2. Low brokerage fees starting from RM1 up to RM100.
Of all the brokers in Malaysia, Rakuten Trade offers the lowest commission rate at RM1 per trade for transactions below RM700. This is why Rakuten Trade is one of the best brokerages to start with when you’re a beginner.

3. No handling fees on corporate actions.
You open a Nominee CDS Account instead of a Direct CDS account with Rakuten Trade. This means no more manual paperwork to be done on your end for corporate actions.

Instead, these requests are handled by Rakuten Trade based on customers’ instructions from the website (online). They even absorb that revenue stamp guys and girls!

Now, this is a huge one, you no longer have to queue up at the post office to hand in your DRP forms for example.

4. Simple and fast account application. 100% online
Unlike all other brokers in Malaysia, you can apply for and activate your Rakuten Trade account online.

5. Online dividend tax vouchers
You receive your dividend vouchers in your inbox instead of in the mail. Save the trees!

6. High digital engagement with users
Rakuten Trade regularly posts updates and research on its website and social media accounts.

7. Clean User Interface
Rakuten Trade recently revamped its platform and it is now, even more, user-friendly. After using other brokerages for so long, Rakuten Trade feels much more modern. Try it!

Rakuten Trade Disadvantages

Most of these are due to Rakuten Trade being a nominee account instead of a direct CDS account. First off, let me assure you that your money will be safe albeit not directly under your name. Rakuten Trade is regulated by SC and your money is placed with a Trustee. In the unlikely case that Rakuten Trade goes bust, your money is held by a third-party trustee. Your money is safe.

The pros of a nominee account are that they will handle all the corporate actions on your behalf for free as mentioned above. No more long queues and RM10 setem hasils at post offices. This is a huge win for me as it saves time. The small disadvantages are listed below.

1. Late dividend tax vouchers.
You may receive your dividend vouchers a little late as the dividends will first need to be processed.

I do feel obliged to mention this as I get messages from readers asking me why they have yet to receive their dividends when their friends have. Your dividend will take around 3-5 trading days to process given your RT account is a nominee CDS account.

2. You cannot apply for an IPO.
Being a nominee account, you’re unable to apply for a company’s initial public offering.

This isn’t a big deal for me. To date, I’ve never subscribed to an IPO. If you, however, are big on IPOs, Rakuten Trade might not be for you.

3. Additional steps for attending AGM/EGMs
Due to it being a nominee account, to attend AGM/EGMs, you’ll have to email your request to Customer Service ten (10) working days before the AGM/EGM.

Register Now

As mentioned above, if you’re thinking of registering for a Rakuten Trade account, please consider supporting me and the blog by using my referral link hERE with the code: DIVMAGIC

Just make sure that this section is filled this way:

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is rakuten-registration.png


You will earn 1000RT points upon successful activation of your account.

Thank you in advance for the support!

End.

If you’re new to investing, you can start reading my Guide to Stock Investment.

To end this, I’d like to emphasize that this is not a Sponsored Post.

I am 100% backing one of Malaysia’s modern brokerages and recommend it to all new investors.

As always, I am on Facebook and Instagram. Follow, and keep up to date.