Dividend Magic

Saving and Investing towards Financial Independence in Malaysia

Investing

Dividend Income Update 2024

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Filed Under: Dividends 0

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

Important Update: I’ve fixed my email subscription button and will be taking it seriously moving forward. You can find it on the homepage and on the right side bar as you’re reading this.

Feel free to sign up (you can unsubscribe and opt-out anytime). You’ll get updated on new articles, monthly updates and important reminders (such as to keep calm during turbulent times). I promise, no bullshit promos or sponsored ads or misinformation, ever. See you there!

Dividend Income Update – July 2024

Dividend Income (July) –  RM2,780
Dividend Income (2024) –  RM12,179.64
Dividend Yield – 3.24%

Received RM2,780 in dividends for July 2024.
One from Scientex, which gave me RM2,280 this year, compared to RM1,900 last year. It may not seem like it’s a lot but that’s a 20% increase. 5.06% yield for me.

Another was from Matrix – RM500. First year holding this stock so no comparison yet. 4.69% yield so far.

Previously, I’ve also moved most of the stocks from my Hong Leong trading account to moomoo (I took advantage of their promo and will be getting an Apple share for transferring in) and will be investing from Moomoo. You can find my latest review on moomoo MY hERE.

Moomoo referral link: http://j.moomoo.com/00KiPh

I’ll also be leaving my previous section on asset allocation here (down below) and updating it again towards the end of the year.

All my assets can be categorised into two main categories – Safe and Growth

Safe Assets (54%)
FD and savings – 13%
ASM, EPF & PRS – 24%
Bonds – 17%

Growth Assets (46%)
US stocks, MY stocks, crypto, P2P

For a little privacy and to avoid disclosing my exact numbers, I’ve lumped my growth assets into one. 😉
And so, the above is what my allocation looks like. It is very conservative considering my age. I’m still (relatively) young. Ideally, I would like to have about 60% in growing assets, maybe even 70%.

Financial Independence but not Retirement

Relating to FI/RE, I realise that I may be reaching my goal soon. And maybe it is time to update the FI/RE guide as well.
As this wasn’t an overnight achievement, there isn’t much excitement on my part. Perhaps more of a gradual anticipation.
I am, however, a little disillusioned. So I have a few questions for everyone:
1. What is your FI/RE number?
2. What do you plan to do with said amount?
I’m considering dumping into EPF (reaching the RM1M mark to enable withdrawals) and leaving the rest in stocks. OR leaving >50% in stocks and the rest in Safe Assets.
3. What jobs have you considered taking once you are financially independent?
I don’t like to be idle and I’m considering so many different jobs.
a. Work and travel
b. Working a simple job nearby with whoever is hiring
c. Becoming a personal trainer as I enjoy working out
d. Go into the financial planning field and utilise my CFP
e. Live off-grid and farm

For stock investing, I use Rakuten and moomoo MY. Don’t forget to use my referral link for extra rewards.

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

Dividend Income Update – May 2024

Dividend Income (May) –  RM984.87
Dividend Income (2024) –  RM9,399.64
Dividend Yield – 2.44%

Received RM984.87 in dividends for May 2024.
All of them are from IGB REIT, compared to RM930.99 same time last year. That’s a 5.7% increase.

We may be skipping June’s update as typically we don’t receive dividends in June. We will have an update on how the Freedom Fund is doing though.

Dividend Income Update – April 2024

Dividend Income (Apr) –  RM617.47
Dividend Income (2024) –  RM8,414.77
Dividend Yield – 2.18%

Received RM617.47 in dividends for April 2024.
RM500 from Matrix.
RM51.85 from Sunway.
RM65.62 from Sunway – Preference shares.

Relatively quiet month.
RM500 from Matrix, bought it last year so nothing to compare it to for the time being. The rest were from Sunway. Company is at an all-time high right now (finally).

I’ve also been contemplating moving more money out from my safe assets for awhile now. Will probably go all in on one stock soon – Maybank? =)

Dividend Income Update – March 2024

Dividend Income (Mar) –  RM2,620.22
Dividend Income (2024) –  RM7,797.30
Dividend Yield – 2.02%

Received RM2,620.22 in dividends for the third month of 2024.
RM700 from Public Bank.
RM1,801.72 from Maybank.
RM118.50 from QL Resources.

Both Public Bank and Maybank have increased their dividend amount compared to last year.
QL’s remained the same. And as the price has increased this month, I’ve subsequently sold all of my QL shares in line with my consolidation plans. Will be moving it to moomoo account to reinvest in either Matrix, Maybank or Scientex.

Dividend Income Update – February 2024

Dividend Income (Feb) –  RM2,777.08
Dividend Income (2024) –  RM5,177.08
Dividend Yield – 1.26%

Received RM2,777.08 in dividends for the second month of 2024. RM898.52 from IGB REIT and RM1,878.56 from SunREIT. My only two REIT holdings at the moment.
SunREIT and IGB REIT are both doing good and both had an increase in dividend payout this year compared to 2023.

Dividend Income Update – January 2024

Dividend Income (Jan) –  RM2,400
Dividend Income (2024) –  RM2,400
Dividend Yield – 0.59%

Had RM2,400 in dividends for the first month of 2024. RM1,900 from Scientex and RM500 from Matrix. My two darlings.
Scientex maintained the same dividend payout as 2023. Matrix is a new one for me and RM500 will be the first I receive from them.

Tiger Brokers Review

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Filed Under: Dividends, FI/RE, Financial Independence, Investment, Investment Portfolio, Sponsored, US Stocks 2

I have had an account with Tiger Brokers since 2020 but have yet to utilise it apart from trying out their interface and depositing a small amount in there.

If you are looking to trade international stocks and have yet to open an account with Tiger Brokers, you will be glad to know that there are huge perks to opening an account now.

Tiger Brokers Account Opening Referral and Promotion

Account Opening Rewards

  • 1 unit of Grab share
  • Unlimited commission-free trades for HK, SG, and China A-Shares for 365 days.
  • Unlimited commission-free trades for US stocks for 180 days. 

Account Funding Reward (Initial Deposit of SGD1,000 or more + execute 5 BUY trades)

  • SGD88 cash

The full T&C can be viewed hERE. The promotion lasts till 12 October 2022.

Why Tiger Brokers?

Fees

First off, as always, fees. Tiger Brokers’ zero-commission trading is huge and beats many other international brokers.

Now, zero commissions do not mean that trading of US shares is totally free because there is, of course, a platform fee of USD0.005 per share or a minimum of USD1 per trade. It is a fee, but it is cheaper in comparison to many other brokers. So, keep that in mind.

As I’ve mentioned many times, fees are important because they eat their way into your investment and you’ll find yourself paying a lot more than 1% at the end of day, say, 20 years.

You may think a 0.1% or a 1% fee is of no significance but with the compounding nature of long-term investing, we, as average investors, are looking at hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars in our investments at the end of the day.

Regulation and Protection

Tiger Brokers (Singapore) Pte Ltd is regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

Elsewhere, they’re also regulated by the SEC in the US, ASIC in Australia and HKSFC in Hong Kong. They’re compliant in all the countries they operate in so they’re safe. Apart from that, customer funds are held in a segregated trust account with DBS Bank Ltd. Custodian of investors’ shares is with the Central Depository (CDP) as well as overseas brokers.

Another important safety factor is that Tiger Brokers is listed on NASDAQ and under the ticker TIGR. This, in my book, adds credibility to Tiger Brokers as a brokerage platform. Their books and reports are easily accessible should you feel the need to refer to them as well.

Rewards

There’s a built-in rewards system for users of Tiger Brokers – Tiger Coins. By completing certain tasks (which aren’t all that hard) you’ll be credited with Tiger Coins which can be used to redeem rewards such as commission-free trades.

Account Opening and Registration

So, you’ve decided to open an account. Two types of accounts are available at Tiger Brokers – Margin and Cash Upfront. I’ll always recommend a cash upfront account to start with. If you’ve been trading and investing for a long time and are confident in your abilities, you can always move up and open a margin account.

Link to register hERE.

Funding Your Tiger Brokers Account

The are many ways to move your funds to Tiger brokers but the best I’ve found and that’ll save you fees in the future is this: You’ll have to open a bank account in Singapore. Basically, you transfer your monies to an SG bank account (you can use services like Transferwise etc to save on fees) and then from there into your Tiger Broker’s account.

Another transfer method to note is to use Wise which is integrated directly into the Tiger Trade APP, as part of a collaboration with Tiger Brokers. This method is fast and easy once it is set up. More info can be found here: https://www.tigerbrokers.com.sg/help/detail/87168024.

What I’ll be Using

Because of Tiger Broker’s low fee structure, I’ll be looking to add a ton of long-term international stocks here. Especially US shares.

Love the rewards I get from trading as well in the form of Tiger Coins.

End.

Account opening rewards are looking good and you get rewards as you trade and invest.

If you’ve yet to sign up and want to, use the registration link hERE. Check out the full details of the promotion hERE.

Disclaimer

This post is sponsored by Tiger Brokers.

T&Cs apply. Please visit our website for other applicable fees: https://www.tigerbrokers.com.sg/commissions/fees.

This advertisement has not been reviewed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

MIDF Invest Review

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Filed Under: Dividends 10

This review of MIDF Invest will cover Malaysia’s first brokerage that gives us access to international stocks at a cheap and competitive rate.

I’ve long been advocating against using local brokerages for international stocks. But with MIDF Invest, I can finally change my stance. No longer will we be charged once locally, and then again internationally, and vice versa when we sell said stock.

I digress, back to our new favorite local broker – MIDF Invest.

MIDF Invest – Registration & Account Opening

To get started, you’ll first have to download the app here:
https://link-to.app/LeighLee

The registration process can be completed in 10 minutes to 24h in most cases according to MIDF.

Mine took less than 24 hours as I did it at night.

You have to:

  1. Submit front and back pictures of your IC;
  2. Record a 20 seconds video;
  3. Receive and submit SMS verification;
  4. Receive and submit email verification;
  5. Create your PW; and
  6. Answer questions.
THIS IS AN IMPORTANT OPTION
Done!

MIDF Invest – Brokerage Fees & Rates

MIDF’s rates are as above, which are pretty self-explanatory. You get 16 free trades if the trade value is <$1,000 per trade for the first 30 days. Thereafter, you move on to the Investor or Trader category depending on how often you trade.

The other fees you’ll need to pay attention to are the Stamp Duty and SEC Clearing Fees.

Stamp Duty is RM1 for every RM1,000 and capped at RM200.
Clearing Fee is 0.00051% of the total sale value, rounded up to the nearest cent.

The rates are pretty competitive when compared to our local brokers. It might be beneficial to make full use of your Explorer status during the first month.

From the calculator from MIDF above, a $1,932 trade will incur a $12.64 total fee. That’s about 0.65% in total fees per trade.

As for dividends, there are no extra charges there. Thank god. There will only be the standard withholding tax based on the country you bought the shares from.

Forex Rate

As I have yet to use MIDF’s platform at the time of this article, I cannot confirm the forex rates. However, the MIDF team has assured me that it is competitive and pretty standard. There are no forex fees charged by MIDF, just a straight-through conversion based on the day’s forex rates.

Interest on Cash Balances

Investors will also be given a small return in the form of interest for unutilized cash held in MYR in your MIDF Invest account. None for balances held in other currencies.

Another feature I confirmed with MIDF was that once your shares are sold, it will not be automatically converted back to MYR. For example, after selling a US stock, the cash will be held in USD. This is a good thing as we won’t be subject to unnecessary forex conversion.

Safety & Legitimacy

As far as I’m concerned, going through a local brokerage is as safe as it gets for us Malaysians. They’re of course regulated by the Securities Commission. MIDF is also wholly owned by our very own Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB).

If you didn’t already know, Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) is one of the largest fund management companies in Malaysia with assets under management (AUM) of RM322.6 billion (as of 31 December 2020).

And the ASNB mutual funds we love so much are handled by PNB.

MIDF Invest – Comparisons

Right now, as a local broker offering access to international stocks, MIDF is in the lead in terms of fees (which matters a lot). Other local brokers ie Maybank, CIMB, Public Bank, HL Bank etc do offer us Malaysians access, however, the fees are way too high for retail investors like us. I cite a previous example where I received a net dividend of ZERO dollars after all the fee deductions for my investment in Vanguard ETF through Hong Leong.

So, vs local brokers, MIDF is top. If we look at online international brokers like eToro, Tiger Brokers TD, and Interactive Brokers, MIDF losses out in terms of fees.

The trade-off? You get a regulated broker and peace of mind as a Malaysian with a local broker. This is especially important if you’re planning a huge investment in international stocks.

Another advantage of using a local brokerage is the ease of transfer of funds. You can easily inject more capital within minutes.

Moving Forward

I have opened an account with MIDF but I have yet to deposit any money. I do plan to hold long-term ETFs and dividend stocks through MIDF.

With MIDF being the first (AFAIK) relatively cheap brokerage, we have with access to international stocks, it will be interesting to see if our other brokers step up their game in offering better rates.

End.

I’ll be giving MIDF a trial run soon. My plan is to purchase and hold ETFs through the platform for now. Vanguard’s S&P 500 ETF will be my first buy. Might even be building up a big portfolio of ETFs and some long-term dividend stocks.

I’ll also be updating and inserting MIDF Invest into my previous comparison post soon. So keep an eye out for that.

Once more, you can download the app here:
https://link-to.app/LeighLee

Investing in US Stocks via eToro in Malaysia

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Filed Under: Investment, US Stocks 193

eToro being one of the biggest (as well as controversial) names in the world, it’s no surprise that one of the most common search terms related to eToro on Google is: ”Is eToro legit?”

I have been talking to them on and off for months leading up to this post. Getting my questions about their legitimacy answered.

And to answer your question right off the bat, yes! I am going with eToro.

My experience so far has been great. From account opening, depositing, and trading. You can open an account with eToro hERE. Thereafter, you can view my profile on eToro and copy all my trades if you choose to. More on this later.

Investing in US Stocks as a Malaysian

Why eToro?

First off, I was looking for an easy to register and easy to use international broker. I started off looking for one where I can invest in the US stock market.

I currently use Hong Leong Bank to invest and I invest in two different counters – Berkshire Hathaway and Vanguard’s S&P 500. Both of which I’ve sold off and moved the cash to eToro.

I’ve looked around and I think the next best thing people would recommend is registering with someone like TD Ameritrade or Interactive Brokers. I’m not sure about the procedure now but back then they required a US residential address for an account.

By this time, I’ve heard of eToro and like others, was really skeptical. Mainly due to their cheesy Alec Baldwin ad.

But I decided to really look into it some time in March this year.

So, in my opinion, if you as a Malaysian wants to invest in the US, you have 3 viable options – eToro, TD Ameritrade and Interactive Brokers.

I personally am going with eToro because I think it would be the place to invest with for the younger generation and I hope to see more innovation from them as we go along.

Conversing with representatives of eToro, I’ve gotten confirmation that commission-free trading is coming to Malaysia very very soon! It is limited to US stocks only though.

Fees

Update 20 May 2020:

eToro has just announced ZERO commissions for non-leveraged positions on US stocks.

Which is exactly what and how I am trading in.
This is really huge considering how much I have been charged in the past by my local broker.

I’ve created added a video towards the end of this post to show how one can purchase the underlying assets instead of CFD.

You do not get higher spread than usual and you are not paying any fees. Provided you trade WITHOUT leverage and you trade in US stocks. The only fees you’ll actually be paying is a slightly higher currency exchange rate and a withdrawal fee when you eventually withdraw your money from eToro.

For non-US stocks, you are charged based on a spread. The difference between these two prices is known as the spread. The spread is how “no commission” brokers make their money. Instead of charging a separate fee for making a trade, the cost is built into the buy and sell price of the currency pair you want to trade.

Min of 0.18% and a maximum of around 0.25% per trade.

In contrast, this is the fee charged by Hong Leong for the sale of my USD counters. Standard $25 per trade, and on top of that, another %, and stamping. As seen below.

Another one of my concerns with my previous brokers was the handling fees charged by my previous broker on dividends received.

As you can tell from the below statement, my dividends received are charged taxed, heavily. I pay a ridiculously huge amount in fees and in the end, I receive next to nothing.

Withholding Tax for Malaysians

I’ve received confirmation from eToro that they do not charge handling fees on dividends received. The only cost to my dividends will be the different withholding taxes different countries charge.

As a Malaysian investing in the US, we are charged a 30% withholding tax on our dividends. Which is why my attitude towards investing in US stocks is more for capital gains. My portfolio and investing philosophy in the US can be found hERE.

Registration

Registration is easy compared to many other international brokers. I managed to register in 5 mins. Verified using my details including my passport in a day.

I’ve sold my US stock holdings in Hong Leong Bank and deposited my entire capital and then some into eToro.

Huge Array of Assets to Invest In

Although I plan to invest primarily in stocks, the huge variety of assets offered on eToro brought me there.

I’m looking at commodities such as gold, silver, oil. Cryptocurrencies – Bitcoin, Ethereum and the likes. And many others.

ETFs

You also have access to a wide array of ETFs around the world with eToro. One thing to note is that all ETFs are traded under CFD and the minimum amount is $500.

Starting Out

After selling off my holdings of VOO and BRK:B shares, I deposited the proceeds in eToro.

The first share I bought is Disney! The interface of eToro was extremely easy to use.

So right now, I’ll be figuring out the ins and outs of eToro and will have updates of my US stocks for everyone.

Also, for you credit cardholders chasing them points and miles. eToro allows top-up via credit cards! I am assuming that depositing to eToro via my cards would constitute online spending. Imagine $50,000 worth of points.

How to Deposit Funds as a Malaysian

https://youtu.be/36lRkcMxILE

Is eToro Safe?

eToro’s Regulation

I’ve had people compare eToro to Malaysia’s illegal investment schemes and all sorts of scams and shams.

Now, I know eToro isn’t regulated by our SC in Malaysia. As a matter of fact, eToro isn’t regulated by every country’s financial authority. Like every other offshore broker, they are only licensed with a few major ones. In eToro’s case – CySec (Cyprus), FCA (UK) and ASIC (Australia).

eToro in the Asia Pacific region (which includes Malaysia) is regulated under ASIC – Australia’s SC for CFD trading. I’ve confirmed with ASIC that eToro is actually regulated there.

ASIC is a top tier financial authority. They are at the top level. I know many MANY of you are worried about eToro as being not safe. But eToro is one of the few offshore brokers that belong to a Tier 1 financial authority.

In this case – ASIC. Which Malaysian accounts belong to.

As for not being licensed under SC, I know many of you are concerned by the recent article. All off shore brokers like TD and IB are not licensed under SC. It’ll be tough for an international platform to get licenses from every country whose citizens choose to invest with them. And unfortunately Malaysia isn’t that big of a market so I don’t think anyone would go through the trouble to get a license from SC for us.

I think I’m comfortable with eToro being regulated by ASIC. Even more so than SC actually.

Not Understanding the Platform

I fear that many new investors to eToro should take some time to understand the platform. First, sign up for a virtual account, give it a week or so at least and then go for the real thing.

Another potential issue is when you use leverage, so if you’re not a seasoned investor, please steer clear of leverage.

Take the time also to look at the video I’ve posted later in the article on how to purchase without leverage etc.

Stocks held under?

Investing via eToro Malaysia, your investments will be held ”in street name”.

A security is held in “street name” when a brokerage holds it on behalf of a client. The name that appears on the stock certificate is that of the broker, but the person who paid for the securities retains ownership rights.

It’s similar to a nominees account here in Malaysia.

Best Way to Deposit and Withdraw from eToro for Malaysians

I’ve had readers asking about issues with deposits and withdrawal. Ie. Taking your money out from eToro.

The first thing you have to make sure to do is to get yourself 100% verified. Submit all the necessary documents. Then you deposit.

Also, there are a few methods to deposit. I used to use BigPay and credit cards to deposit but now I stick to the good old bank transfer. I use Maybank and it is easy as hell to do.

Be advised that whatever method you use to deposit your funds, eToro will reuse the same method when you make withdrawals. Which is why I moved to bank transfers.

If you happen to encounter problems withdrawing your money, you can easily submit a help ticket and eToro will get back to you.

I myself have not had any issues with withdrawal.

Important Note.

By default, Malaysians using eToro will be under ASIC. And eToro has just recently announced the following:

eToro is excited to announce that 0% commission trading of NYSE and NASDAQ stocks on the eToro platform is now available in your region.

Please note that leveraged positions, short positions, and positions on stocks traded on exchanges other than NASDAQ and NYSE will be executed as CFDs, and incur commission and relevant fees.

I am currently investing only in US stocks, non-leveraged, and under ASIC regulation. You can find my profile on eToro hERE.

Video Tutorial

I’ve created a video on how to trade on eToro without leverage. This allows eToro users in Malaysia to buy the underlying assets instead of CFD.

As such, there is no need to change to CySec regulation if you’re only buying US stocks. If you are looking to buy stocks other than US ones without CFD, you’ll have to change to CySec – which I have also included in the video.

As mentioned previously, ASIC is a Tier 1 regulator.

I DO NOT recommend people changing it to CySec. Stay with ASIC, I’d suggest just buying without leverage, and only buying US stocks. Zero fees boys and girls.

And if you want to buy stocks of other countries, just go with CFDs, I’m sure the majority of your holdings would be US stocks.

Start Investing

eToro Malaysia Review

Signing Up

You can sign up hERE. The registration process is the seamless and easy. Next would be verification of your account and depositing funds.

Update Feb 2021 – Long Verification Process

With the huge number of sign-ups in recent months, verification of new accounts is taking longer than expected – more than a week.

A way to circumvent and bypass this is to first deposit your funds, and then verify. You’ll be verified within 48 hours.

Practice Account

If you’re unsure about investing with your own money just yet, you can sign up for a practice account first, trade with a virtual $100,000 and when you’ve familiarized yourself, continue with real money.

You can open an eToro practice account hERE.

Copying and Mirroring My Portfolio

TO ALL MY VALUED COPIERS.

I am on eToro as a popular investor. Copying is an interesting feature on eToro where everyone is free to copy someone’s portfolio and future trades.

If you choose to copy me, here are a few things to know.

I am on eToro as dividendmagic.

When you copy, you instantly trade whatever I choose to trade in. Whether it is a buy / sell position, you instantly mirror and copy it. So you don’t have to worry about any lag in between.

On eToro, I will be focusing on long term growth investing. Dividends will not be a focus because we are subject to withholding taxes. You won’t be able to see my actual portfolio value, only in % terms but I have the bulk of my investment portfolio in US stocks.

I will apply both fundamental and technical analyses. I will not be using leverage and I have a CAGR target of at least 10%.

If you are copying, do copy all open trades. If you are new to investing and/or want to be hands-off, you can copy 100%. I will do all the work.

Most people choose to place 50% or more in copying me. I’d also recommend a minimum copy amount of at least $500. And remember that you’re copying for the long term (>2 years).

As always, onwards and upwards and I will continue to procure long-term gains for everyone onboard. And most of all, thank you for trusting me and let’s look forward to the next 20 years of gains together.

End.

Now, I must make it clear that I am using eToro to invest for the long term. I do not plan to trade in CFDs (except maybe for a few China and HK stocks) now that we can purchase the underlying stock instead. And I do not plan to use leverage.

If you are still unsure how to do the above, please take a moment to go through the video I’ve posted above.

I’d like to emphasize that I am not here to represent or defend eToro. I am just sharing what I am using to invest in the US markets. Of course I’d be more than happy to help with any questions you may have.

Finally taking the Freedom Fund international, seriously. Let’s see where global stock investing and eToro will take the portfolio!

You can also check out my US holdings and portfolio hERE.

Rakuten Trade – Review and FAQ

By
Filed Under: Dividends, Investment 57

Updated August 2023

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.

Latest News: Fractional Share Trading on NYSE

Rakuten just released fractional share trading!

My New Investing Strategy Starting 2022

Starting Match 2022, I’ll be using Rakuten Trade to invest in Vanguard’s S&P 500 ETF (US: VOO) every month. I’ll be putting in about RM1-2K a month depending on my income.

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: Foreign Trading

As of 27 January 2022, Rakuten Trade will have its foreign trading account go live. It is finally here!

After attending their live briefing, it seems that their fees will be one of the lowest among our local brokerages that offer foreign trading.

As of now, Rakuten Trade only offers US share trading, which includes over 900 1,100 tickers of popular stocks and ETFs. This will slowly increase as we go on and will eventually cover stocks from other countries.

Dividends. Dividends from the US will be subjected to a 30% withholding tax as I’ve mentioned several times. No extra nonsense charges, so you’ll be seeing money come in.

I’ll be updating this article as I continue to test the platform and maybe even write a longer stand-alone review.

I’ve been using it for the last six months and you can find my update(s) on my US Portfolio for 2023 hERE.

Rakuten Trade All Brokerage Fees

A few key highlights of their fee structure:

For a retail investor like me, it’ll be safe to say that Rakuten Trade offers the cheapest option right now.
With their new foreign trading fees, and the ability to trade in different currencies, I’ve done a bit of research with the Rakuten Trade team.

So, in short, if you’re planning to buy US stocks, assuming no currency exchange fluctuations of course

< Below RM700 trading value – trading in MYR wins

> Above RM700 trading value – trading in USD wins

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 Brokerage

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 that 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 payments 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 their website and social media accounts.

7. Clean User Interface
Rakuten Trade recently revamped their platform and it is now, even more, user-friendly. After using other brokerages for so long, Rakuten Trade’s feel 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, keep up to date.

What to Do During a Bear Market in Malaysia

By
Filed Under: Dividends, Financial Independence, Investment 8

What is a Bear Market?

In general, bear markets are markets in which the prices of securities fall by more than 20% amid widespread negative investor sentiment and fear. It can last from weeks to decades.

So, don’t be so quick to call a market a BEAR.

Things You Should Do During a Bear Market

Always Stay Invested

I’ve said this countless times, and it stays true time and time again. In the long term, you’re always better off staying invested.

And if you’ve been a reader of the site, I would like to assume – like me, you’re a long term investor.

”Wouldn’t it be better to sell off my stocks now and buy when the market bottoms out?”

This is the most frequent question I got during the last few weeks of turbulence. I even came up with a standard reply to copy and paste.

The above theory is sound, but I for one will never know when a market ‘bottoms’ out. And neither would you.

Instead of chasing that bottom, I’d suggest averaging down your stock positions regularly. And when a market rebounds, and trust me it will, you’ll be in prime position for the biggest upside of your life.

Remember the Fundamentals

Don’t panic. Don’t sell. Don’t panic sell.

Remember the reasons you bought into the stock and your portfolio in the first place. During a bear market, the company’s fundamentals will not have changed.

Do not just sell because the stock price is dropping. That goes against conventional wisdom.

What I am Doing

The Freedom Fund isn’t spared the current market downturn. In fact, my return right now is at a measly 0.91%. Since inception.

However, I’ve received and will continue to receive dividends every month. Which is why there’s no panic selling from my side.

Of course, there will always be regrets in hindsight where I wished I had sold stocks earlier so I’d have more money to spend now. But I’m happy where I am – receiving dividends while the market goes crazy.

So this is what I’m actually doing – I’m purchasing stocks and averaging down on my positions. And to continue doing this for the next few months or even years, I’d need cashflow. AND Dividends = Cashflow.

The money I’ve actually saved up in Fixed Deposits and in my savings account will be utilized and used to make more buys.

It is the Best Time to Start Investing

If you’re ever on the fence and wondering if you should start investing, the time is now.

You can read up on how to start investing hERE.

If you’ve yet to open a brokerage account, I’d recommend Rakuten Trade. They offer one of the best rates and you can do everything online right now.

And if you don’t want to invest on your own, I’d suggest a robo-advisor like StashAway.

End.

Now, this isn’t a call for everyone to take up arms and buy, buy, buy.

Instead, I am telling you to keep a calm mind and purchase more stocks if you are able to. Do not go over your risk threshold.

It is also a reminder to always, always stay invested.
Onwards and upwards my friends.

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