With effect from 1 May 2015, there will be changes to the interests awarded for the OCBC 360 account.
Let's look at the changes:
Changes to previous requirements
1) 1.2% pa for crediting salary of at least $2,000 (up from 1%)
2) 0.5% pa for paying 3 bills online or through GIRO (down from 1%)
3) 0.5% pa for spending at least $500 on OCBC credit cards (down from 1% with spend of $400)
NEW
1) Bonus interests on the first $60,000 of your account balance. (Up from $50,000)
2) 1% pa for buying insurance of at least $8000 in annual premium OR investment products of at least $40,000.
3) 1% pa for any incremental account balances from previous month's balance
More information here.
Tags. OCBC 360 account updates, new requirement.
Thursday 30 April 2015
Monday 27 April 2015
NEW: UOB One Account
Great news!
UOB has launched a new account: One Account
With the terms and conditions changed for the OCBC 360 account come 1 May 2015, this new UOB One account may be the new place to park your S$50,000.00!
The fundamentals of the UOB One Account is similar to that of the OCBC 365 account.
Base interest: 0.05% (included in all the interest rates below)
Scenario 1:
Spend $500 on UOB One card:
First $10,000: 1%
Next $20,000: 1.5%
Next $20,000: 2%
Subsequent amount: 0.5%
Effective interest is 1.6% at $50,000!
OCBC 365 will only earn you 1.05% assuming you spend $500 on OCBC credit card and pay 3 bills online.
If you only had $10,000, OCBC 360 account will give you better rates at 1.05%.
Scenario 2:
Spend $500 on UOB One card + Credit salary of more than $2,000 OR 3 GIRO Debit transactions:
First $10,000: 1.5%
Next $20,000: 2%
Next $20,000: 3.33%
Subsequent amount: 0.5%
Effective interest is 2.43% at $50,000!
OCBC 365 will only earn you 2.05% assuming you credit $2,000 salary, spend $500 on OCBC credit card and pay 3 bills online.
But if you have less than $30,000, you are better off with OCBC 360 account as UOB One only gives you 1.5% while OCBC 360 gives you 2.05%
From the explanation above, if you have more than $30,000, the UOB One account will trump the OCBC 360 account with the same amount of effort. (OCBC has added 2 additional requirements for the additional 1% interest.
Especially for those who are already spending more than $500 on the UOB One card every month, this account is a godsend because you are already guaranteed additional 0.5% at least, depending on which tier your balance is at. And also for those who do not meet the salary crediting requirement. The UOB One account is for you.
Anyway, it is pretty easy to meet the 3 GIRO debit transactions requirement. Hence everyone should be looking at scenario 2 instead.
I'll do a clearer comparison once OCBC released details of the remaining 2 criteria.
Tags: UOB One account, OCBC 360 account
UOB has launched a new account: One Account
With the terms and conditions changed for the OCBC 360 account come 1 May 2015, this new UOB One account may be the new place to park your S$50,000.00!
The fundamentals of the UOB One Account is similar to that of the OCBC 365 account.
Base interest: 0.05% (included in all the interest rates below)
Scenario 1:
Spend $500 on UOB One card:
First $10,000: 1%
Next $20,000: 1.5%
Next $20,000: 2%
Subsequent amount: 0.5%
Effective interest is 1.6% at $50,000!
OCBC 365 will only earn you 1.05% assuming you spend $500 on OCBC credit card and pay 3 bills online.
If you only had $10,000, OCBC 360 account will give you better rates at 1.05%.
Scenario 2:
Spend $500 on UOB One card + Credit salary of more than $2,000 OR 3 GIRO Debit transactions:
First $10,000: 1.5%
Next $20,000: 2%
Next $20,000: 3.33%
Subsequent amount: 0.5%
Effective interest is 2.43% at $50,000!
OCBC 365 will only earn you 2.05% assuming you credit $2,000 salary, spend $500 on OCBC credit card and pay 3 bills online.
But if you have less than $30,000, you are better off with OCBC 360 account as UOB One only gives you 1.5% while OCBC 360 gives you 2.05%
From the explanation above, if you have more than $30,000, the UOB One account will trump the OCBC 360 account with the same amount of effort. (OCBC has added 2 additional requirements for the additional 1% interest.
Especially for those who are already spending more than $500 on the UOB One card every month, this account is a godsend because you are already guaranteed additional 0.5% at least, depending on which tier your balance is at. And also for those who do not meet the salary crediting requirement. The UOB One account is for you.
Anyway, it is pretty easy to meet the 3 GIRO debit transactions requirement. Hence everyone should be looking at scenario 2 instead.
I'll do a clearer comparison once OCBC released details of the remaining 2 criteria.
Tags: UOB One account, OCBC 360 account
Thursday 16 April 2015
HSBC: Every Visa payWave transaction earns you S$1 cash rebate!
Good news to all HSBC credit card (with payWave feature) holders!
From 15 April to 31 May 2015, you can earn up to S$20 in cash rebates with your HSBC Visa credit card. Get S$1 cash rebate with every Visa payWave transaction at over 330 merchants islandwide!
To earn cash rebates, be the first 10,000 cardholders to SMS:
HSPW<space>NAME<space>NRIC to 74722
Terms and Conditions apply.
Memory short-cut:
1) Be th first 10,000 cardholders to SMS HSPW<space>NAME<space>NRIC to 74722
2) Make at least 5 payWave transactions in the qualifying period to enjoy the promotion.
3) Cap at 20 payWave transactions as the cash rebate is capped at S$20.
Tags: HSBC, credit card, payWave, S$1 cash rebate
From 15 April to 31 May 2015, you can earn up to S$20 in cash rebates with your HSBC Visa credit card. Get S$1 cash rebate with every Visa payWave transaction at over 330 merchants islandwide!
 |
| Image credit: HSBC |
HSPW<space>NAME<space>NRIC to 74722
Terms and Conditions apply.
Memory short-cut:
1) Be th first 10,000 cardholders to SMS HSPW<space>NAME<space>NRIC to 74722
2) Make at least 5 payWave transactions in the qualifying period to enjoy the promotion.
3) Cap at 20 payWave transactions as the cash rebate is capped at S$20.
Tags: HSBC, credit card, payWave, S$1 cash rebate
Wednesday 15 April 2015
When is Cheryl's birthday? (Why Aug 17 is not the answer)
Ok, I have received a couple of emails telling me that the solution is wrong and Cheryl's birthday is not Jul 16. It should be Aug 17.
I pondered for some time and concluded that for this question, some people get a different answer because they were looking at it from a different perspective. And it is flawed if we ONLY try to find out the dates by calculating backwards.
We should be finding the answer from first parties' perspective as well!
Let's first eliminate the impossible answers from the 2 statements given by A and B.
So, in conclusion, the answer(s) can only, possibly be July 16, August 15 and August 17.
Let me show you how I obtained the answer from first parties' perspective.
A, B and C are classmates. A and B both were in love with C because C was extremely attractive.
So one day, A and B decided to ask C out for a date. C posted a question to them.
C: I will go out on a date with the person who can guess my birthday first. However, I will only tell A the "month" and B the "date".
C then wrote down 10 possibilities.
For answer JUL 16:
C tells A "July"
C tells B "16"
In A's mind:
In B's mind:
There was then an awkward silence.
However, with B's silence, A assumed that C had not been told B "18" or "19" because the two dates were unique and B would have sounded out the correct answer. So B should have either 14, 15, 16 or 17.
C: How is it? Any good guess?
A: I don't know when your birthday is, but I know that B does not know too.
On hearing this, B concluded that May and June were both out because A was very certain that he (B) was not given "18" or "19"! May 16 had been eliminated!
B: At first I don't know when C's birthday is, but I know now.
On hearing this statement, A then realised his mistake. He (A) had given B the clue that May and June were impossible and only July and August were possible months! Since B has a conclusion, the date cannot be 14 because B would not be able to conclude with 2 possibilities (July 14 and August 14).
C must have told B "16"!
A: Then I also know when Cheryl's birthday is.
If the answer was AUG 17:
C tells A "August"
C tells B "17"
In A's mind:
In B's mind:
There was then an awkward silence.
However, with B's silence, A assumed that C had not told B "18" or "19" because the two dates were unique and B would have sounded out the correct answer. So B should have either 14, 15, 16 or 17.
C: How is it? Any good guess?
A: I don't know when your birthday is, but I know that B does not know too.
On hearing this, B concluded that May and June were both out because A was very certain that he (B) was not given "18" or "19"! June 17 had been eliminated!
B: At first I don't know when C's birthday is, but I know now.
On hearing this statement, A then realised his mistake. He (A) had given B the clue that May and June were impossible and only July and August were possible months! The date cannot be 14 because B would not be able to conclude with 2 possibilities (July 14 and August 14). C must have told B either "15" or "17"! And A cannot conclude because he did not know if it was Aug 15 or Aug 17!
A CANNOT CONCLUDE AT ALL!
So now you see, if we re-enacted the situation then and from first parties' perspective, we realised that August 17 CANNOT BE THE ANSWER! Because A simply would not know if C's birthday falls on Aug 15 or Aug 17, based on B's statement!
Regardless, B scored a point and had the chance to date C. And they probably lived happily ever after.
Tags: when is cheryl's birthday, albert, bernard, cheryl, solution, clue, answer, why Aug 17 is not the answer, Jul 16
I pondered for some time and concluded that for this question, some people get a different answer because they were looking at it from a different perspective. And it is flawed if we ONLY try to find out the dates by calculating backwards.
We should be finding the answer from first parties' perspective as well!
Let's first eliminate the impossible answers from the 2 statements given by A and B.
May and June are definitely out because they contain unique date and A would not make the first statement.
"14" is definitely out because both July and August contain "14" and B would not be able to make his statement after A's.
So, in conclusion, the answer(s) can only, possibly be July 16, August 15 and August 17.
Let me show you how I obtained the answer from first parties' perspective.
A, B and C are classmates. A and B both were in love with C because C was extremely attractive.
So one day, A and B decided to ask C out for a date. C posted a question to them.
C: I will go out on a date with the person who can guess my birthday first. However, I will only tell A the "month" and B the "date".
C then wrote down 10 possibilities.
May 15
|
May 16
|
May 19
|
June 17
|
June 18
| |
July 14
|
July 16
| |
August 14
|
August 15
|
August 17
|
For answer JUL 16:
C tells A "July"
C tells B "16"
In A's mind:
July 14
|
July 16
| |
In B's mind:
May 16
| ||
July 16
| ||
There was then an awkward silence.
However, with B's silence, A assumed that C had not been told B "18" or "19" because the two dates were unique and B would have sounded out the correct answer. So B should have either 14, 15, 16 or 17.
C: How is it? Any good guess?
A: I don't know when your birthday is, but I know that B does not know too.
On hearing this, B concluded that May and June were both out because A was very certain that he (B) was not given "18" or "19"! May 16 had been eliminated!
B: At first I don't know when C's birthday is, but I know now.
On hearing this statement, A then realised his mistake. He (A) had given B the clue that May and June were impossible and only July and August were possible months! Since B has a conclusion, the date cannot be 14 because B would not be able to conclude with 2 possibilities (July 14 and August 14).
C must have told B "16"!
A: Then I also know when Cheryl's birthday is.
If the answer was AUG 17:
C tells A "August"
C tells B "17"
In A's mind:
August 14
|
August 15
|
August 17
|
In B's mind:
June 17
| ||
August 17
|
There was then an awkward silence.
However, with B's silence, A assumed that C had not told B "18" or "19" because the two dates were unique and B would have sounded out the correct answer. So B should have either 14, 15, 16 or 17.
C: How is it? Any good guess?
A: I don't know when your birthday is, but I know that B does not know too.
On hearing this, B concluded that May and June were both out because A was very certain that he (B) was not given "18" or "19"! June 17 had been eliminated!
B: At first I don't know when C's birthday is, but I know now.
On hearing this statement, A then realised his mistake. He (A) had given B the clue that May and June were impossible and only July and August were possible months! The date cannot be 14 because B would not be able to conclude with 2 possibilities (July 14 and August 14). C must have told B either "15" or "17"! And A cannot conclude because he did not know if it was Aug 15 or Aug 17!
A CANNOT CONCLUDE AT ALL!
So now you see, if we re-enacted the situation then and from first parties' perspective, we realised that August 17 CANNOT BE THE ANSWER! Because A simply would not know if C's birthday falls on Aug 15 or Aug 17, based on B's statement!
Regardless, B scored a point and had the chance to date C. And they probably lived happily ever after.
Tags: when is cheryl's birthday, albert, bernard, cheryl, solution, clue, answer, why Aug 17 is not the answer, Jul 16
PSA: Remember to file your income tax!
PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT!!!
15 April 2015 is the last day to file your income tax for YA 2014 if you are submitting paper tax form.
18 April 2015 is the last day to file your income tax for YA 2014 if you are doing e-filing.
Please remember to do so to avoid penalty.
How do I know if I need to file for income tax?
If you have received any letter, form or SMS informing you to file an Income Tax Return, you must file regardless of the amount of your annual income in the previous year or whether your employer is participating in the Auto-Inclusion Scheme (AIS) for Employment Income.
How do I know if I need to pay income tax?
If your chargeable income exceeded S$20,000.00 for YA 2014, you wil need to pay income tax.
Chargeable income = Gross income - All reliefs
You may find more information here.
Tags: Singapore, income, tax, IRAS, YA2014
15 April 2015 is the last day to file your income tax for YA 2014 if you are submitting paper tax form.
18 April 2015 is the last day to file your income tax for YA 2014 if you are doing e-filing.
Please remember to do so to avoid penalty.
How do I know if I need to file for income tax?
If you have received any letter, form or SMS informing you to file an Income Tax Return, you must file regardless of the amount of your annual income in the previous year or whether your employer is participating in the Auto-Inclusion Scheme (AIS) for Employment Income.
How do I know if I need to pay income tax?
If your chargeable income exceeded S$20,000.00 for YA 2014, you wil need to pay income tax.
Chargeable income = Gross income - All reliefs
You may find more information here.
Tags: Singapore, income, tax, IRAS, YA2014
Monday 13 April 2015
When is Cheryl's birthday? (ANSWER REVEALED)
There had been much buzz online about Cheryl's birthday.
No, Cheryl is neither your friend nor mine. She is just part of a Primary 5 Mathematics question that has been going round in social media.
This question is about logic and one should approach such question systematically.
Now let's tackle this question step by step.
According to the question, Albert knows the month while Bernard knows the date.
Step 1: Draw a table like this:
Dates provided by Cheryl:
Step 2: Eliminate the impossible answers.
Albert said, "I don't know when Cheryl's birthday is, but I know that Bernard does not know too."
CLUE 1: Albert was quick to make the first statement and he is very sure Bernard does not know too.
Conclusion: This means that he was told "July" or "August".
If Cheryl has told Albert "May" or "June", Albert would not be 100% sure that Bernard does not know the answer as Bernard could have been told "18" or "19" which would have been conclusive.
Hence we can eliminate the 2 months.
Now we are left with 5 possible dates.
CLUE 2: Bernard then said, "At first I don't know when Cheryl's birthday is, but I know now."
This statement eliminates 14 because if Bernard knew the date was 14, he cannot conclude Cheryl's birthday.
Hence the possible dates are now July 16, Aug 15, Aug 17.
CLUE 3: Albert said,"Then I also know when Cheryl's birthday is."
This statement concludes the whole puzzle.
If the month Albert got was August, he still would not know Cheryl's birthday. Only Bernard who has the date, knows.
Hence the month has to be July in order for both to know the birthday.
CONCLUSION: Cheryl's birthday is on July 16!
Tags: Primary 5, Mathematics, When is Cheryl's birthday, Albert, Bernard, July 16
No, Cheryl is neither your friend nor mine. She is just part of a Primary 5 Mathematics question that has been going round in social media.
 |
| When is Cheryl's birthday? |
Now let's tackle this question step by step.
According to the question, Albert knows the month while Bernard knows the date.
Step 1: Draw a table like this:
Dates provided by Cheryl:
May 15
|
May 16
|
May 19
|
June 17
|
June 18
|
|
July 14
|
July 16
|
|
August 14
|
August 15
|
August 17
|
Step 2: Eliminate the impossible answers.
Albert said, "I don't know when Cheryl's birthday is, but I know that Bernard does not know too."
CLUE 1: Albert was quick to make the first statement and he is very sure Bernard does not know too.
Conclusion: This means that he was told "July" or "August".
If Cheryl has told Albert "May" or "June", Albert would not be 100% sure that Bernard does not know the answer as Bernard could have been told "18" or "19" which would have been conclusive.
Hence we can eliminate the 2 months.
July 14
|
July 16
|
|
August 14
|
August 15
|
August 17
|
Now we are left with 5 possible dates.
CLUE 2: Bernard then said, "At first I don't know when Cheryl's birthday is, but I know now."
This statement eliminates 14 because if Bernard knew the date was 14, he cannot conclude Cheryl's birthday.
Hence the possible dates are now July 16, Aug 15, Aug 17.
July 16
|
||
August 15
|
August 17
|
CLUE 3: Albert said,"Then I also know when Cheryl's birthday is."
This statement concludes the whole puzzle.
If the month Albert got was August, he still would not know Cheryl's birthday. Only Bernard who has the date, knows.
Hence the month has to be July in order for both to know the birthday.
CONCLUSION: Cheryl's birthday is on July 16!
Tags: Primary 5, Mathematics, When is Cheryl's birthday, Albert, Bernard, July 16
Thursday 2 April 2015
Best credit card for miles (local spend)!
This post is long overdue.
I have actually done the research many moons ago but due to changes in credit cards rewards redemption, I postponed the publishing of this post.
So, which is the best credit card for miles if I were to spend locally?
The credit cards listed below are those that I have shortlisted based on the fact that the miles earning process is fuss-free without requirements to meet.
Let's compare the pros and cons of the top 2 cards on the list.
Comparing ANZ Travel Card (a) and UOB PRVI MC (b)
1a) ANZ allows me to redeem miles in blocks of 2,000 miles. The maximum miles wastage is 1,999.
1b) UOB allows me to redeem miles in blocks of 10,000 miles. The maximum miles wastage is 9,999
2a) ANZ awards miles for every dollar charged to card. Hence rate of 1.4miles/$ is consistent.
2b) UOB awards UNI$4 per $5 spent. Hence rate is inconsistent. Spent of multiples of $5 will net you miles rate of 1.6 miles/$. Anything above $30 charged to the card will net you closer to 1.6miles/$ spent.
3a) ANZ Travel$ earned expires when the card expires.
3b) UOB UNI$ expires two years from the quarterly period in which they were earned.
4a) Spend $2500 on ANZ Travel Card within 30 days and redeem a complimentary airport limousine transfer.
4b) Nil
5a) No monitoring of transactions via internet banking.
5b) Monitoring of transactions via internet banking.
Comparing the above cards, the ANZ is good if you can charge around $2500 within 30 days to the card because you can redeem the complimentary airport limousine transfer which in my opinion is a good deal!
Other than that, UOB wins with 1.6miles/$ spent, especially if you do not spend more than $2500 on this card. Moreover, you can monitor your expenses online and manage your spendings so there will not be any wastage of miles.
SO, you either choose 500 more miles using UOB PRVI or you get a free limousine airport transport from ANZ! It all depends on your spending behaviour!
For me, I choose the UOB PRVI based on my spending pattern. Sometimes I may go for the ANZ Travel Card. What about you?
In the meantime, the verdict:
Tags: UOB PRVI MasterCard, ANZ Travel Visa Signature, Citibank PremierMiles, AMEX, 1.6miles/$
I have actually done the research many moons ago but due to changes in credit cards rewards redemption, I postponed the publishing of this post.
So, which is the best credit card for miles if I were to spend locally?
The credit cards listed below are those that I have shortlisted based on the fact that the miles earning process is fuss-free without requirements to meet.
Credit Card
|
Miles rate
|
Redemption
|
Remarks
|
||||||
UOB PRVI Miles
World (AMEX / MasterCard)
|
8 miles/$5
marketed as 1.6miles/$
|
UNI$5000 for 10,000miles
(in blocks of 10,000miles)
|
UNI$4 /$5 spent
UNI$1 = 2 miles
All UNI$ will expire two
years from the quarterly period in which they were earned. Please refer to
the table:
|
||||||
ANZ Travel Visa Signature
|
1.4miles/$
|
2000 Travel$ for 2000miles
|
Travel$ expires when card expires
|
||||||
CITIBANK PremierMiles
(AMEX)
|
1.3miles/$
|
Min 500 miles per transfer per day
|
CitiMiles never expire!
|
||||||
CITIBANK PremierMiles
(VISA)
|
1.2miles/$
|
Min 500 miles per transfer per day
|
CitiMiles never expire!
|
Let's compare the pros and cons of the top 2 cards on the list.
Comparing ANZ Travel Card (a) and UOB PRVI MC (b)
1a) ANZ allows me to redeem miles in blocks of 2,000 miles. The maximum miles wastage is 1,999.
1b) UOB allows me to redeem miles in blocks of 10,000 miles. The maximum miles wastage is 9,999
2a) ANZ awards miles for every dollar charged to card. Hence rate of 1.4miles/$ is consistent.
2b) UOB awards UNI$4 per $5 spent. Hence rate is inconsistent. Spent of multiples of $5 will net you miles rate of 1.6 miles/$. Anything above $30 charged to the card will net you closer to 1.6miles/$ spent.
Spent $6 - $9
|
UNI$4 awarded
|
= 8 miles, 1.33
- 0.88miles/$
|
Spent $11 - $14
|
UNI$8 awarded
|
= 16 miles, 1.45 - 1.14miles/$
|
Spent $16 - $19
|
UNI$12 awarded
|
= 24 miles, 1.5 - 1.26miles/$
|
Spent $21 - $24
|
UNI$16 awarded
|
= 32 miles, 1.52 - 1.33miles/$
|
Spent $26 - $29
|
UNI$20 awarded
|
= 40 miles, 1.54 - 1.38miles/$
|
Spent $31 - $34
|
UNI$24 awarded
|
= 48 miles, 1.55 - 1.41miles/$
|
3a) ANZ Travel$ earned expires when the card expires.
3b) UOB UNI$ expires two years from the quarterly period in which they were earned.
4a) Spend $2500 on ANZ Travel Card within 30 days and redeem a complimentary airport limousine transfer.
4b) Nil
5a) No monitoring of transactions via internet banking.
5b) Monitoring of transactions via internet banking.
Comparing the above cards, the ANZ is good if you can charge around $2500 within 30 days to the card because you can redeem the complimentary airport limousine transfer which in my opinion is a good deal!
Other than that, UOB wins with 1.6miles/$ spent, especially if you do not spend more than $2500 on this card. Moreover, you can monitor your expenses online and manage your spendings so there will not be any wastage of miles.
SO, you either choose 500 more miles using UOB PRVI or you get a free limousine airport transport from ANZ! It all depends on your spending behaviour!
For me, I choose the UOB PRVI based on my spending pattern. Sometimes I may go for the ANZ Travel Card. What about you?
In the meantime, the verdict:
The best credit card for miles for local spend is
UOB PRVI MASTER CARD!
UOB PRVI MASTER CARD!
Tags: UOB PRVI MasterCard, ANZ Travel Visa Signature, Citibank PremierMiles, AMEX, 1.6miles/$
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