I am a physician, currently practicing as an Anesthesiologist. My other passions are finance and investments. As of 2013, I have passed all three levels of the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) exams, all in my first attempts. I received my Masters of Business Administration degree in 2008. I received my certification as a securities specialist from the Philippine Stock Exchange in 2009.
Kung Hei Fat Choi! Today, February 19 is the start of the Year of the Wooden Goat / Sheep / Ram according to the Chinese Lunar Calendar. In this post, I will list some investment and money tips from experts in Feng Shui and Chinese Astrology.
Goats and sheep are totally different creatures, but that’s not important, right? Image from fengshuiben.blogspot
Capes as worn by men, had been around for a long time and had been in and out of fashion every now and then. Are they due for a comeback any time soon? Will you invest in one?
Women have always been able to wear capes in a normal setting. But if you’re a man; unless you’re Batman, Superman or going to any type of cosplay gathering, a cape will probably make you look silly.
In Taylor Swift’s “Blank Space” video, we actually see a man in a cape. The video is set in present time. However, I doubt if anybody actually walks their dogs dressed like that.
You have Taylor Swift, Sean O’Pry in a tux, three Dobermans, a palatial mansion, and yet the wind-blown cape steals the show. Image by mtv.com from the Blank Space music video
Nobody has identified what brand the cape is (but many have posted that Taylor is wearing an Elie Saab gown, see related post about Elie Saab here). I checked some shopping websites (ok just one – lyst.com) to see if a cape similar to the one above is available.
Since the focus of this blog is investments, I’ll post about what fashionistas call as “investment pieces”. From a perspective of an investor and not a fashionista, do these things really exist?
Fashion pundits throw the term “investment pieces” as if they were Jordan Belfort – played by Leo DiCaprio in TheWolf of Wall Street – throwing money off a yacht.
Because “luxury” confetti is so much more expensive. Image by popsugar.com from scenes of the movie The Wolf of Wall Street.
This post is part of a series that is related to the ongoing Australian Open 2015 tournament.
Sharapova and Sugarpova initially seemed to be a mismatch, but the combination actually makes sense.
Health and sugar don’t match. In fact, in recent years, sugar has probably earned the unhealthy reputation of bacon. Look at what has happened to Krispy Kreme.
A sport star is a bastion of fitness and if ever one will associate himself with a sugary product, the terms used will be “fuel”, “power” or “energy boost” rather than “sweet, “sugar” or “candy”.
In 2012, when Maria Sharapova, a five time grand slam tennis champion, launched Sugarpova, a line of premium candies, many were perplexed with the move.
Sharapova is the world’s highest paid female athlete, and she makes most of that money off the court by hawking products from Tag Heuer, Nike, Porsche, Cole Haan and other brands. What makes Sugarpova different from all those other brands is that it is actually Sharapova’s own business. She’s selling the candies on behalf of herself.
Sugarpova is “premium” candy; in other words, more expensive than usual candies. A 5 oz bag of Sugarpovas costs around USD 5.99, many times more than usual candy brands. Not that these candies have something to be premium about. Most premium products boast using the finest ingredients, the finest manufacturing technique (finest being either ultra modern or handmade, but never the in-between), posh packaging, or luxurious buying experience. None of these are present in or claimed by Sugarpova. Sugarpovas are expensive because of Maria Sharapova.
There have always been premium chocolates, but never premium candies. Who would have thought of coming up with premium sour balls or gummy bears? Apparently no one has, which is why Sugarpova occupies its own niche. There must be candy that’s worthy of selfies, instagrams and facebook posts. Sugarpova fills that void.
In its first three months of release, Sugarpova had sold around 250,000 bags. It has probably sold more than a million bags by now. That’s major, considering that these candies have limited availability. In fact, here in the Philippines, there’s only one store chain that carries it.
I was lucky to get a bag here in Manila. The store I went to had only two bags. One is “Quirky Sour, the other is “Quirky”. Obviously, I didn’t have to ask what the difference between the two is… Actually I did. The sales lady said one was sweet, the other was sour. I went with the non-sour one.
Cheaper in the Philippines. Just PHP 199.75 or USD 4.52 in Manila. Do I see an arbitrage opportunity? Image by thefinancemd.com
In this post, I’ll show a job listing for an equity analyst position from a Philippine based stockbrokerage firm, and let’s see what traits the company is looking for.
Because I’ve passed all three levels of the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) exams, I would normally get emails regarding job opportunities in investment.
Here is a job listing for an equity analyst position at the stockbrokerage unit of a Philippines based bank. This is what they’re looking for in an applicant:
Do you have what it takes? Requirements for an equity analyst job at a stock brokerage firm Philippines. Image captured from job listing email.
I think I have what they are looking for. I enjoy working as a doctor though. What caught my eye in the list is the requirement for being “persuasive”.
I always thought that if you’re an equity analyst, your work should speak for itself. I didn’t know that part of the job is to also “convince” people.
Here is an interesting excerpt from the book How to Get an Equity Research Analyst Job: A Guide to Starting a Career in Asset Management by Gillian D. Elcock – available at Amazon
“Conviction is very important when you are an analyst. You can’t be lukewarm about your stock. You can’t give up on your idea the moment someone presents you with a different opinion about the company…
In fact, as an analyst, you often have to persuade your fund managers to buy your stocks, to convince them that this is the right thing to do… Why should they risk their client’s money and their careers if you don’t even have the conviction to stand behind your own stock recommendation?”
Ok, I am convinced. The author really knows how to persuade.
Stella Marquez Araneta is currently making headlines in the Philippines and not in a good way. See related post here.
From Filipino designers to Twitter users, it seems that many are expressing their disappointment – ok anger – with her. Will the angry netizens speak with their wallets though? Stella had married into one of the Philippines’ wealthiest families. The Aranetas are involved in many businesses in the country.
She didn’t end up as a trophy wife. She is actually now the second most famous Araneta. The most famous being the inanimate Araneta Coliseum. Stella during her wedding to Jorge Araneta. Image from Alo Magazine
A view of the Araneta Center’s most famous landmark, the Araneta Coliseum. The coliseum hosted the Thrilla in Manila, the 1975 boxing match between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier. Image from Ramon FVelasquez
Aside from the Araneta Coliseum, which is part of the 35 hectare Araneta Center complex, what are the other business holdings of the Aranetas? Continue reading The Araneta Wealth
In 1996, Donald Trump acquired the Miss Universe Organization. At that time, the acquisition seemed to make a lot of sense.
The Miss Universe pageant was being seen as outdated and cheesy and Mr. Trump’s expertise in branding – after all, he has made his name in turning around real estate properties – was seen as something that would revive the pageant. “Trump puts his hand in things that are very profitable and glamorous”, said one pageant expert at that time.
Despite its dwindling audiences in developed countries, Miss Universe was still very popular in Latin America and Asia. Though already known in the United States at that time, Mr. Trump was relatively unrecognizable in the rest of the world. The pageant was supposed to endear Mr. Trump to the countries he planned to expand his businesses in.
The partnership seemed to go in the right direction. The already popular Miss Universe pageant also became known as “Donald Trump’s beauty contest” around the world. Mr. Trump’s expertise in marketing luxury projects found its way in Miss Universe. In 2001, supermodels Elle Macpherson and Naomi Campbell, hosted the Miss Universe contest, in an effort to give the pageant a more upmarket vibe.
Finance, M.D. thefinancemd.com 