A Convenient Way to Check Insurance Policy Cash Value

e-Connect is Great Eastern web-based service for policyholders. With e-Connect, you can:

• View and download your Life Insurance Premium Certificate(LAPC) 

• Check your policy details and values

• Download form for transactions

• View Investment Link Annual Report

Steps to sign up as user

Step 1: Go to Great Eastern e-Connect Portal and click Sign Up Now.

How to Evaluate Retirement Annuity Plan

Retirement planning is one of the often overlooked aspect in personal finance. By the time one realizes the significance of a retirement plan, he usually discovers that there are only a few years left to retirement age. The primary focus for the years which has passed by had been on children education fund and settlement of debts or mortgage.


In budget 2012, there is this new RM 3,000 tax relief (previously RM 1,000) on contributions to private retirement scheme and insurance annuity for 10 years. This tax relief shows that the government started to recognize the importance of insurance annuity as retirement income because lump sum retirement savings such as EPF, more often that not, gets exhausted too soon.

Of Credit Card Limits and Malaysian spending habits

Starting Jan 2012, Bank Negara will impose new rules to credit card usage. This is to manage the debt of credit cardholders earning RM36,000 and below per annum.

Below are the rules:

1. The maximum credit limit extended to a principal card holder in that category cannot exceed twice the holder's monthly income (RM3,000 x 2) per credit card issuer. 
2. They will only be allowed to be a principal card holder from a maximum of two credit card issuers. Combined credit limit will be capped at RM12,000.
3. They have 24 months to repay the outstanding balances on their cancelled credit cards, if they have more than 2 cards.

Insurance nominee or beneficiary?

As a general rule, all your assets will be frozen when you die. With or without a will, your assets will be used to pay off creditors' claim and outstanding taxes before the leftover is being distributed to your family.

I guess by now everyone knows that only insurance proceeds and EPF balance are the 2 types of funds which will be paid directly to your nominee or beneficiary upon one's demise. These are said to be protected from creditors' claim even though a person is declared bankrupt prior to his death.

One thing you notice is that the terms beneficiary and nominee are always being used interchangeably.

In the context of EPF, they are the same. Your nominee is your beneficiary.

In life and personal accident insurance context, however, they are NOT. The following info are quoted and simplified from Section 166 of the Insurance Act.

Top 10 Reasons I Invest in Capital Malls Malaysia Trust

The thing about Penang properties: the rentals are (relatively) cheap compared to their (speculative?heh) values. Absolutely absurd when it comes to the soaring properties price for the past 3 years. Bear in mind properties investment is illiquid, and huge upfront capital is required. And there's always hassle of managing your properties unless you are full time into properties investment. Another rule of thumb is a return of at least 6 percent per annum rental yield, else experts say it is just not worth the trouble.


So I recently started to invest in Real Estate Properties Trust (REIT). Capital Malls Malaysia Trust (CMMT) to be exact. Consider REITs as the unit trust in commercial/residential properties which trade on the stock exchange. Here are the top 10 reasons why I see potential in Malaysia's largest pure-play shopping mall REIT for long term holdings and dividend income. I thought it as a good way to balance the risk and return with regard to my US stocks portfolio.


1. Three iconic shopping malls
Its main portfolio includes Gurney Plaza, largest mall in the northern region. The other two are The Mines Seri Kembangan and Sungai Wang Plaza Kuala Lumpur.