To The Moon

@koolgal won the Top 10 for 2024 Most Popular Tigers! She’s is a Star Contributor in the Tiger community with nearly 50k followers, thanks to her valuable trading insights. In her trading journey, she secured a 90% gain on DBS through long-term holding. She maintains a conservative, diversified portfolio across Singapore, the US, Hong Kong, and Australia, focusing on dividend ETFs like JEPI and QYLD. She prioritized risk management and passive income. Outside stock investment, she emphasizes saving for her children’s education and fostering financial literacy.

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Briefly introduce yourself, share your personal investment growth experience, and how you made your first bucket of gold in the market?

I first started my investing journey after the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021. The world stock markets were adversely affected.  I remembered that even our Singapore bank stocks were also badly affected. DBS was trading below S$20.00 while OCBC was trading below S$10.00.  Fast forward to 2024, DBS has reached its all-time high of S$44.95 and OCBC just reached its all-time high on Monday's trading at S$17.00. Back then, the local banks cut interest rates to as low as 0.05%.  So, I felt I could do better with investing in the stock market. Being a newbie, I immerse myself with reading lots of books on investing, kept up to date with the latest investment news. I was also searching for a stockbroker, and I came across Tiger Brokers. It offers me one of the lowest brokerage fees then and still do. I started to read all the great articles posted by the Tiger Community and participate in the events.  What an amazing journey it has been!

I struck gold when I invested in DBS and held it till now as I am up 90%.  I have practiced Warren Buffett's strategy of buying and holding stocks for the long term and it has paid off handsomely for me especially when it comes to Singapore bank stocks.

Why do you name Koolgal as your tiger id?

I use koolgal as nickname to remind myself that it is important to stay kool and calm when it comes to making investment decisions.

What is your most impressive Investment Experience?

My most impressive investment experience is undoubtedly $DBS Group Holdings(D05.SI)$ and $ocbc bank(O39.SI)$ . DBS is my best performing Singapore stock as I am currently up 90%. It has rewarded me with regular steady dividends every 3 months as well as capital growth. I intend to hold this stock for the long term and keep it as a bequest for my children.

How to select stocks？

I select stocks of companies based on whether they have a competitive advantage and are selling below their intrinsic value. They should also have strong core fundamentals such as profitability, solid balance sheet and excellent management. The key phrase I would use when selecting stocks is "Research, Research, Research". I would do a deep dive into their financials, compare the company against its competitors and their growth trajectory. I would also research into news pertaining to the company too.  

How to control the maximum drawdown in trades？

To control the maximum drawdown in trades, it is important to diversify and spread the risk across markets and asset classes.  That is why my portfolio is spread across Singapore, US, Hong Kong and Australia. I also trade within my comfort zone and know my risk appetite. I prefer to buy index ETFs like SPLG, SPTM in the US, ES3 and G3B for Singapore.

What are your Strategies and Risk Management Technique During Downturns?

In the short term, markets tend to be volatile, especially during downturns.  It is important to remain calm and not get too emotional during downturns.  I would stay updated with the latest news and trends.  Downturns are a great time to go bargain hunting for quality stocks selling below their intrinsic value.  A good example is Google which dropped to below US$100 but since then it has recovered and has doubled to its all-time high at USD 202.88 recently.

Do you have any follow up trading plan?

It is important to review my portfolio on a periodic basis to see how the stocks and ETFs are tracking along.  I like to do this on a weekly basis. I would monitor the correlation between my trades and the market changes. I would check on rebalancing my portfolio to align with my investing goal which is FIRE - Financial Independence Retire Early.

What’s your Top holdings recently?

My Top holdings are mainly Singapore stocks - the 2 Singapore Banks. In the US I am more into index ETFs. SPLG is my biggest holding.

Share some advice and investment strategies for retired individuals.

In general, the older the person is, the more focused he should be on income preservation and being more conservative with his investments.  As for me personally, I would invest in dividend stocks and bonds that would generate passive income. 

My favorite ETFs are $JPMorgan Equity Premium Income ETF(JEPI)$, $Global X Nasdaq 100 Covered Call ETF(QYLD)$ which use a Covered Call Strategy to generate monthly income. I also like $SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend ETF(SPYD)$ and $Schwab US Dividend Equity ETF(SCHD)$.

As you mentioned, QYLD is a NASDAQ 100 ETF that utilizes Covered Call to generate income, have you ever traded any sort of option?

I choose my stocks based on fundamental rather than technical analysis. I have not ventured yet into Options Trading but in 2025, I may explore it further.

Have you done any investment or financial education for your children?

I set up a savings account for my kids when they were young and incubated the habit of spending money wisely and savings from young. I also bought insurance endowment policies for them to set up a fund for their higher education.

If you were to use one sentence as a slogan to get people to subscribe to your Trade Feed account, what would it be?

Follow me if you are keen to discover undervalued stocks or ETFs that would make a positive impact on your portfolio.

Lastly, I would not be what I am today if not for being part of the Tiger Community. I have learnt so much from all the experts who have shared their knowledge generously. The last 4 years that I have been with Tiger Brokers have been an amazing journey. Thank you to everyone for making my investing journey such a rewarding one. 

Thank @koolgal for the fantastic sharing! If you're eager to know about her latest live trading actions, make sure to subscribe to her real-time updates! (Click here to view>>)

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(Event Duration: Now - 25 Jan 2025)

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