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Unemployed. Bankrupt. Living in my parent’s HDB.
When I graduated from NUS with a degree in finance, I thought I had it made. I saw myself living the highlife with a landed property in Bukit Timah, a Ferrari and Porshe in the garage, a Patek Philippe on my wrist, and first-class travel around the world staying in the best hotels.
My first job paid me well, and I was soon investing my money in stocks, derivatives, and cryptocurrencies. My early investments paid off and I rented a nice apartment. While I could not yet afford a Patek Philippe, I rewarded myself with a Rolex Yacht-Master and bought myself a second-hand BMW M2. I was the envy of my friends and I felt on top of the world.
I considered myself a financial genius as I was making money hand over fist. I felt unstoppable and soon I decided to go all in. I leveraged myself to the max. I drew down on my personal line of credit, took advantage of cash advances from my credit cards, and borrowed money from friends and family to invest.
Suddenly, COVID hit, and everything tanked.
Overnight, my portfolio was worth less than half of what I had invested. I told myself it was a paper loss and, as long as I didn’t sell, I hadn’t lost. I decided to tough it out.
