{"id":442147,"date":"2026-05-23T21:59:07","date_gmt":"2026-05-23T21:59:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/442147\/"},"modified":"2026-05-23T21:59:07","modified_gmt":"2026-05-23T21:59:07","slug":"me-and-my-money-md-uses-everyday-purchases-to-teach-his-children-about-money","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/442147\/","title":{"rendered":"Me and My Money: MD uses everyday purchases to teach his children about money"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">SINGAPORE &#8211; For Mr Yaki Razmovich, the most important lessons about money began at home.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">The managing director of eToro Singapore and Asia, a financial services firm, credits his father with nurturing his interest in finance from a young age, after giving him $10,000 to invest as a student and filling his bookshelf with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.straitstimes.com\/business\/invest\/lunchwithsumiko-i-was-a-late-bloomer-says-rich-dad-poor-dad-author?ref=inline-article\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" class=\"gap-x-04 items-center inline text-primary-60 select-auto\" aria-label=\"link\" target=\"_blank\" data-testid=\"custom-link\">financial advice titles such as Rich Dad Poor Dad<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">Now a father of six-year-old twins, Mr Razmovich is trying to pass those lessons on to his daughter and son. He uses their hongbao money to teach them about saving, budgeting and diversification, guiding them to set aside part of the money while using the rest as a simple monthly allowance.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">\u201cFinancial education comes in many forms, but I truly believe one of the most important things parents can do is to start teaching their kids about money (from) a young age,\u201d said the 49-year-old Singapore permanent resident who came from Israel.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">\u201cI\u2019m already doing the same with my children. I teach them age-appropriate financial concepts, like how the ice cream shop in our neighbourhood makes a profit from the ice cream they bargain for every weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">Mr Razmovich holds a Master of Business Administration from INSEAD.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">A: My portfolio is quite diversified with a balanced mix of both Eastern and Western markets.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">A significant portion of my investments is in the Nasdaq and the S&amp;P 500, as well as various Asian exchanges that have higher exposure to AI and have shown strong performance over the past two years.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">Since retirement is still some years away, I\u2019m willing to take more calculated risks to maximise returns later down the track. Around 80 per cent of my portfolio is in stocks and crypto, and 20 per cent in fixed-income assets to balance volatility.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">A: My most valuable assets are my six-year-old twins. Over the past six years, I\u2019ve poured into them more resources than I ever imagined, and while the return on investment isn\u2019t quite there yet, I see some serious potential on the horizon.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">My second-most valuable asset is my home in Upper Bukit Timah. It\u2019s an old estate that underwent a massive transformation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">A: It\u2019s about knowing what your timeline for retirement is and how you will react when things get rough.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">I\u2019m all about growth since I don\u2019t rely on my investments for income. Diversification is a key strategy. A big chunk of my investing funds will go for some of the bigger, well-known names, but I also like to dabble with a smaller portion in more experimental ventures.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">A: I am a bit of an art collector. My favourite haunt is the Chatuchak Market in Thailand, specifically the art section. It\u2019s an incredible place where you can find huge paintings at ridiculously good prices.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">A: It was my dad who introduced investing to me when I was pretty young, and I think it\u2019s super important for parents to get their kids engaged in finance earlier on. My dad actually handed me my first $10,000 to go and invest when I was a student.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">A: I invested as part of a group in buying a small hotel in Greece. Admittedly, I jumped in without doing my homework, thinking it sounded like a great opportunity. It was not a big amount of money, but it turned out to be more complicated than I thought.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">We got it at a good price, but it turned out that small hotels do not have a lot of demand in Greece. It was a tough lesson for me, but it taught me the importance of doing my research before making big financial decisions.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">A: When the market tanked at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, I decided to make some bold investments. I\u2019ve been through market dips before, and I figured the downturn was just a temporary blip and that things would bounce back eventually.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">My hunch paid off, and by the end of the year, my portfolio had jumped by 40 to 50 per cent. It is a great reminder to stay cool and make smart moves when things look rough.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">A: I had the classic dream of moving to America, but life had other plans for me. Instead of America, my journey took me to Paris, London, Hong Kong and now Singapore, where I\u2019ve been living for the past 16 years.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">Each place shaped me as a person, my views on the world and my path in life, and for that I\u2019m incredibly grateful.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">A: My first job was as a waiter, and let\u2019s just say I didn\u2019t exactly shine. I thought I would be great at it, but I was fired after just two months.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">It was humbling, but also one of my earliest lessons in self-awareness and understanding what you\u2019re good at \u2013 and just as importantly, understanding what you\u2019re not good at.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">A: I would tell my younger self to play the long game. Not everything makes sense when you\u2019re in it. The dots will connect when you look back. Be patient, listen, learn, stay curious and don\u2019t be afraid to take more risks.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">A: I don\u2019t own a car as Singapore\u2019s public transport system is reliable, efficient, and it gets me everywhere I need to go.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">I love the freedom of not having to worry about parking or traffic.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">A: I\u2019m not really into luxury goods, but I\u2019ll always say yes to a great meal or a fun holiday. For me, the best splurges are all about creating memorable experiences.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">A: Work-life balance means being present for the moments that really count. I want my kids to remember me as a father who was there, so I make it a point to be home to put them to bed most nights of the week.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">I can always log back in later if needed. Laptops and flexible work arrangements now make that possible. But I\u2019ll never get those bedtime moments back, so that\u2019s what balance looks like for me.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">A: I grew up in a beach town, so for me, a perfect day is one that ends with sharing a sunset by the sea with my family and friends.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">There\u2019s something special about a pink sunset, and Singapore really has some stunning ones.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">Money Matters<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">A: I would put $90 on the next big stock. I would try to find the next Nvidia, the next Apple or the next Google. The last $10 would be for a big bowl of prawn hor fun.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"SINGAPORE &#8211; For Mr Yaki Razmovich, the most important lessons about money began at home. The managing director&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":442148,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[138,246,111,139,69,244,245],"class_list":["post-442147","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-personal-finance","tag-business","tag-finance","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-personal-finance","tag-personalfinance"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/442147","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=442147"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/442147\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/442148"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=442147"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=442147"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=442147"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}