The Chinese New Year (CNY) dates are much earlier this year and it is just a week away on 25 Jan. So many things to do and so soon after we started 2020 and the finalization of new year resolutions.
We usually have at least 3 reunion dinners to complete. The first 2 with the extended families before the actual date and the last one on the eve of CNY at my place, where I would usually prepare a steamboat dinner. I totally enjoy getting things ready for the last one as I go to CNY warehouse sales shopping for frozen seafood a few weeks before.
This year will be a bit rush for me as I would have to get on my monthly business trip to Yangon on Monday, then to Bangkok for the annual Microfinance conference till Thursday. I will fly back to S’pore on Friday early morning, in time to prepare the reunion dinner.
A number of catch up sessions happened this week with friends and 2 items to note. A good friend had informed me this week of her divorce. This makes it 2 divorces for 2019 from people I know. One was because of a 3rd party and this one is probably because the couple has drifted apart over the years. I guess it is better for them to move on as it is no longer viable to remain in the past. When one door closes, many other doors will open in front of us.
I had read of this increased divorce rate phenomenon for older people in Japan before. Couples that had crossed into middle age or after retirement have decided to go their separate ways, as kids have grown and they encountered an empty nest situation to experience different second halftime journeys. Both friends I know did not have any children though.
Next item was an update into my investment in a new asset class last year. With all the hype on ICO (Initial Coin Offer) in early 2019, I decided to invest in one. I was always sceptical of this type of investment, having done some homework and attended an ICO seminar. They are a derivative of cryptocurrencies that spawn new wannabe cryptos. Most are created via the ERC-20 Ethereum platform. Investors exchange fiat or bigger cryptos for these newly created ones by companies that propose a new business idea.
These firms promise to create a new ecosystem where the new crypto would be widely used as a means of exchange. The other big red flag will be that they promise that the price of the crypto will rise. Creating an ecosystem is not easy as many have failed. Little transparency about what the firm does with the funds it has collected is another. What if that is being used to artificially support the price in a pump and dump scheme? Finally, the investors do not have an equity stake in the company – they have no recourse to any assets if things go south.
I invested in this particular ICO because of a number of reasons. Firstly, it was being run by people I know (a cousin and a prominent/successful classmate) and I was curious about the business model of capturing the huge Chinese tourist wave. My belief in investments has always been “you never know until you try”. Well, my cousin informed me this week that the project is being canned. They ran out of funds in Q3 last year before they could launch the ICO. Starting the travel ecosystem was much tougher than they envisioned. It was lucky that I decided at the start to invest in a lesser amount than I had originally planned. Guess I have to write this investment down to zero now. Learn learned. Lots of hype for ICOs and little to no success stories at all.
And to my last topic of the week: Trump. It seems like he has finally dug a hole that is too deep for him to get out of now. The impeachment trial in the Senate has officially started. More evidence is flowing out like a burst dam every day. If the GOP does not abandon the sinking ship soon, then they will go down with it. Like for Nixon, it seems like the strong political supporters are sensing blood now and fear for their political survival. Then again, I may be wrong too, as I have been saying this for the last 3 years 🙁 …
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