Retiring early in your 40s after living in Japan for a decade, Interview with Evan Koh (founder of StocksCafe + QuantsCafe)

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Here at Financial Horse, we like to share stories of inspirational people.

We had the honour to interview Evan Koh, a software engineer turned entrepreneur who turned retrenchment into FIRE through investments.

Evan shared candidly about his story and how he came to spend a decade living in Japan.  

“My name is Evan Koh. I grew up in an ordinary Singaporean family, living in HDB flats, and at one point, in a rented one-room HDB when my parents faced financial difficulties. Fortunately, thanks to Singapore’s strong educational support system, I was never denied the opportunity to pursue my studies despite our financial challenges. With the help of scholarships from the National University of Singapore, I was even able to complete a PhD in Computer Science (Bioinformatics).”

As part of his graduate studies, Evan went to the University of Tokyo, and stayed on after that, spending almost a decade in Japan.

What were the biggest lessons from living and working in Japan?

“Living, studying, and working in Japan for a decade taught me invaluable lessons, one of which is that there’s more than one way to live. While financial success is important, it’s far from the only measure of a fulfilling life.

I’ve seen many Japanese people take deep pride in their work and craft, finding meaning and purpose in fully dedicating themselves to what they do—whether it’s running a small shop, creating traditional art, or working in a company. This perspective has shown me the beauty of committing to a craft and finding fulfillment beyond financial gain. For them, discovering their ikigai (purpose in life) often holds far greater value than chasing the next million dollars.”

When you got retrenched, how did you take it? How did you pick yourself up from that?

“Retrenchment was very hard emotionally as it was very sudden and unexpected because it was a company that is still very profitable and has always been very employee-centric with great benefits. I loved the company and thought I would be there till retirement.

Fortunately, beyond the emotional setback, I wasn’t overly dependent on the paycheck. This gave me the freedom to take time to travel and relax, allowing myself space to “recover” from the initial shock.”

Was your original plan FIRE?

“Since I started working full-time after completing my PhD, I’ve been actively planning and working toward financial freedom. I’ve always lived below my means and continuously sought to learn and grow as an investor.”

“Growing up, my family’s financial struggles motivated me to ensure I would never face similar challenges as an adult. This drive led me to actively educate myself in financial literacy. Over time, investing became a passion. However, when I started investing, I couldn’t find a good tool especially for the Singapore market to manage and track my portfolio and its dividends. So I decided to build StocksCafe to help me efficiently manage and monitor my investments.”

What kind of investor are you?

“I strongly believe in diversification. I limit any single holding to a maximum of 5% of my portfolio, with most positions well below that threshold. This approach helps ensure that no single bad investment can significantly impact my portfolio.

Additionally, I diversify my investment styles by holding a mix of dividend stocks, value stocks, growth stocks, and using options to hedge and reduce overall portfolio risk.”

How old were you when you first started investing & why?

“According to my StocksCafe transaction records, my first investment was on January 23, 2015, when I bought the STI ETF (ES3). It marked the point when my income began to exceed my expenses, and I finally had a steady cash flow to invest.

Like many others, my goal has always been to achieve financial freedom one day.”

Has your investing ethos changed over the years?

“Initially, I was very risk-averse, focusing primarily on large-cap, dividend-paying stocks such as REITs and ETFs. As my portfolio grew, I began taking on more risk by investing in growth stocks. Today, I’m actively involved in trading options on a regular basis, further evolving my investment strategy.”

Do you have any investing “rules” or “principles” for yourself?

Yes, I have two investing principles I follow:

#1. The future is unpredictable.

I believe the future is probabilistic, not deterministic. We need to prepare our portfolio for as many potential outcomes as reasonably possible.

#2. There’s no such thing as a free lunch.

Every time I buy or sell, someone else is taking the opposite position—often because they’ve reached a different conclusion from me. Every decision I make in the market comes with its own risks.

What is the best investment advice you have received?

 I have read many books on finance and investing. If I have to choose one piece of advice, it would be:

“Time in the market is more important than timing the market”. Given the market’s volatility, almost every investor will eventually experience setbacks. If you let those moments stop you from investing or constantly waiting for the “perfect” opportunity, long-term success will be hard to achieve.”

What has been your biggest investment mistake?

“My biggest investment mistake was succumbing to the temptation of investing in crypto, specifically Terra Luna. While I limited my position size, the fact that it collapsed to zero almost overnight was a sobering lesson.

It taught me that trying to get rich quickly can just as easily lead to losing everything.”

How do you manage finances as a couple?

“As a couple, we’ve chosen to fully combine our finances and make decisions together when it comes to major purchases. We believe in transparency and shared responsibility.

p.s. I always joke with my wife that our money is really her money, since statistically, I’ll likely pass away first. Plus, my will is structured so that everything will go to her. 😊”

What is the biggest personal finance mistake you see other people making?

“In my opinion, one of the biggest personal finance mistakes people make is becoming over-leveraged in housing, particularly by purchasing private property that they cannot afford easily.

Borrowing money that will take 20 to 35 years to pay off creates financial pressure for decades, with mortgage payments hanging over you.

Many argue that housing is a safe asset in Singapore that will always appreciate. But there are a few key points to consider:

1) While property has historically appreciated in Singapore, look at Japan — its housing market grew for decades before the bubble burst in the 1990s. Markets can change unexpectedly.

2) Yes, a house is an asset, but it’s typically cash-flow negative until you sell it — which could be many years down the road.

3) Even if you sell your property at a profit, how much have you actually earned annually after accounting for all the commissions, taxes, and loan interest? Instead, buying more affordable housing (like an HDB or BTO) and investing the difference might yield better returns over time.”

Are you a competitive person? What motivates you?

“I thrive on setting challenging goals and working hard to achieve them—it’s what keeps me feeling alive and excited.

This mindset has driven me to earn a PhD, complete an Ironman, and achieve financial freedom. My current tough goal? Reclaiming the six-pack I haven’t seen in over 20 years. 🙂”

“What have been the biggest investing wins (most profitable or something that made you improve as an investor)?”

“The biggest investment win for me has been the time and money I invested in building StocksCafe.

Through StocksCafe, I’ve connected with many interesting people and gained insights from them, including the Financial Horse team.

It has also allowed me to track and analyze my portfolio effectively, leading to more informed and better investment decisions.

Today, it’s a stable product that generates a steady income, making it one of my most rewarding investments.”

What were the biggest challenges in building StocksCafe?

StocksCafe faced its biggest challenge early on, when I learned I’d need to pay tens of thousands of dollars for proper licensing, as we had initially been scraping data. At the time, StocksCafe wasn’t generating any revenue, and the news felt daunting.

However, this crisis ultimately led to the creation of our subscription model—and, incredibly, hundreds of users stepped in to support it. Many even paid more than the requested amount, making it a truly pivotal moment for us.

StocksCafe is a comprehensive portfolio tracker designed to simplify and enhance your investing experience. It provides valuable insights to help you make better decisions and stay on track with your financial goals.

QuantsCafe is your latest venture. How do you think it benefits investors?

QuantsCafe benefits investors by providing a data-driven platform that helps them make more informed investment decisions. We created QuantsCafe in response to users’ feedback to StocksCafe — while some wanted more advanced features to guide their investment choices, others preferred StocksCafe to remain simple and focused on portfolio management.

QuantsCafe –  We aim to help users make better investment decisions backed by solid data. Specifically, we want to answer the most important question in investing: “What should I buy and/or sell now?” By providing actionable insights, QuantsCafe will empower users to make smarter, more data-driven choices.

Check out QuantsCafe here. 

Use our Financial Horse link – get an additional one month free if you sign up for the yearly plan. 

Any advice for fresh graduates in computer science/ related fields? Is AI going to be a gamechanger?

“In my view, with software engineering and AI becoming increasingly accessible, simply excelling in these fields is no longer enough. To truly make an impact, one needs expertise in another domain as well, enabling the identification and resolution of meaningful problems in interdisciplinary areas like bioinformatics or fintech.”

Looking for a tool to track your dividend income? Check out our review of StocksCafe here.

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2 COMMENTS

  1. This is a lovely interview! Should have more of these and make your interviewees available for q n a in the comments section 🙂

    • I enjoyed this interview very much too – glad you liked it too! That’s a good idea – I’ll see if I can add this in.

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