-3.png?width=50&name=Square%20(2)-3.png)
"At that point in time, because I failed my business then — there wasn’t that safety net for me. So I left Singapore and found a good space to incubate."
— Reggie, Chief Financial Coconut
Reggie’s journey from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur wasn’t a calculated career move — it was survival.
The business he referred to was a mental health startup that proved to be ahead of its time - launching years before COVID-19 would make mental health a mainstream corporate concern. The failure was more than just financial; it was deeply personal and traumatic, pushing him to seek healing elsewhere.
The Push Factors: No Net, No Space
But the challenges weren't just emotional. At 27, Reggie faced practical realities that many young Singaporeans know all too well. Singapore’s soaring costs left few options. As Reggie bluntly puts it:
"Besides public housing, there was no affordable space to base myself. Family housing is so small. Right? Be frank about this, right? [...] Like, not everybody has a big house to go back to. You need to share space — enough is enough, right? So I think there was also a very big push factor, you know, for me to move out of Singapore at a point in time."
"I ended up in KL because it was an easy place for me to hermit, hide, and heal."
The Strategy: Earning SGD, Living in MYR
In KL, Reggie’s low-cost base (rent: ~RM1,450/month) became his lifeline. He arbitraged currencies quietly:
"When I first started, nobody knew I was based in KL. Eventually clients realised: ‘Hey, why are you based there? Quite cool. You make SGD but live in KL. Good strategy.’"
His SGD 1,000/month budget stretched far, even funding early podcast experiments from his living room.
"Rebasing" ≠ Rejecting Singapore
The currency arbitrage wasn't just about saving money - it was about buying time and mental space. For six months after arriving in KL, Reggie did nothing but cafe-hop, allowing himself to heal and explore the city. This period of apparent inactivity was actually a crucial incubation time.
Reggie clarifies this isn’t about resentment. Reggie is careful not to present his story as a universal blueprint.
"It’s not that I hate Singapore. We see it for what it is. It nourished us in some ways. But at certain phases, you need something different. [...] This rebasing lets you regroup, find fertile space to bounce back."
For him, the move to KL provided more than just financial breathing room. It gave Reggie the psychological freedom to innovate without the pressure of immediate financial success. By reducing his living expenses and achieving a form of financial independence through his investments, he could negotiate from a position of strength.
"I don't even know how to explain to people how mentally comforting it is," he says about achieving financial freedom by age 30. This position allowed him to walk away from deals that didn't align with his values and to build The Financial Coconut without compromising on integrity.
The Financial Coconut podcast, started during his birthday in July 2019 as a way to combat boredom and peer pressure, has since become Singapore's first major financial podcast. The timing was serendipitous - launching just before the pandemic would create massive demand for financial education content.
A Balanced Perspective
His advice to young Singaporeans considering a similar path is notably measured. Rather than encouraging everyone to quit and leave, he suggests first maximising the benefits of Singapore's system - accumulating savings and experience before making the leap.
"When you got 200k, 300,000 in your bank account right, your imagination will open up," he notes. The freedom to choose comes from financial security, not from dramatic gestures.
The Ongoing Journey
Today, Reggie operates The Financial Coconut from KL and Singapore, serving a 90% Singaporean audience while enjoying the lifestyle and cost advantages of his chosen base. His story illustrates that sometimes the path to success requires stepping back, finding the right environment, and giving yourself permission to heal and rebuild.
"This whole like rebasing, going somewhere else and finding a better space for a phase of life" isn't about running away - it's about strategic positioning for the next chapter. For Reggie, leaving Singapore wasn't just about escaping failure; it was about finding the fertile ground needed to plant the seeds of future success.
Let us know what you think about this topic, and what do you want to hear next.
You can now be our community contributor and make a pitch to have your favourite personality be on our show.
Join our community group and drop us your insights on this topic.
Let us know what you think of this post