Wai Ken Wong is the Country Manager of StashAway (Malaysia). He first worked in investments in Khazanah Nasional Berhad, then became the Vice President of the Equity Capital Markets at Affin Hwang Capital, before entering the startup world. 

Want to learn what it's like working in the fintech startup world, all things investments & the intricacies of how StashAway is set up?

This is the episode for you!

Highlights:

• 2:38: Using ang pow money to invest in unit trusts
• 6:10: Why he moved to Australia at the age of 16
• 7:54: Enjoying business
• 9:24: Whether Wai Ken was ever tempted to drop out of college to launch a startup
• 10:41: What drove Wai Ken to start working while still studying
• 17:56: Working in Khazanah
• 21:33: Working with Dato Hisham
• 22:35: Working at Affin Hwang
• 26:07: Why Wai Ken decided to join StashAway - then a 2-year-old startup that began in Singapore
• 32:13: Whether he had any doubts about joining StashAway
• 33:34: His role as Country Manager from Day 1
• 35:36: How Wai Ken built a 5000 person waiting list before StashAway launched in Malaysia
• 41:42: The role of content creation in StashAway
• 44:27: What does “robo advisory” mean?
• 47:38: Robo Advisory v ETFs
• 49:51: StashAway’s investment framework - known as the Economic Regime Base Asset Allocation (ERAA)
• 52:40: How StashAway came up with its risk index
• 54:56: Guaranteeing a 1% chance of your portfolio dropping?
• 57:17: How StashAway categorises risk
• 1:01:58: Will customers get to determine their own assets with StashAway in the future?
• 1:04:44: StashAway Simple
• 1:06:51: Why StashAway Simple doesn’t have PIDM protection
• 1:09:01: What guarantees StashAway has for its customers
• 1:11:51: How StashAway came up with its projected rate of 2.4% for StashAway Simple
• 1:14:05: How StashAway compares to Wahed & MyTheo
• 1:15:47: Whether StashAway will ever invest in crypto
• 1:17:53: StashAway’s Series B & Series C fundraising rounds
• 1:22: What do the rich know, that the poor should know?

📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/42

💌 Sign up for the weekly STIMY newsletter: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/ebf231f605