Friday 23 March 2012

IPO and Arranged Marriage


In real life, most of us believe in the romantic notion of finding the love of our lives ourselves. Who wants to be caught in an arranged marriage in this day and age?

But when it comes to our investments, our actions may betray our hidden need to honour our traditional practices – even though we may speak out against it.

Just take participating in an IPO – what do we do? We swallowed the sweet promotional words of the “matchmaker” hook, line, and sinker!

Now there are 2 kinds of IPOs:

1)      I never heard of you kind

2)     Oh, I know you; you’re famous!


It does not matter. Once you have taken the bait, you will make yourself believe you know the company inside out. You are a believer now!

Like all marriages, once the mundane of everyday living has doused the rose-tinted flames of the honeymoon period, we begin to see the true nature of our partners breaking out.

To some lucky souls, it’s like the beautiful sight of the butterfly emerging from its pupa. Aw…

To others, it could be like the horror of the baby alien breaking out from its host’s stomach. Ah!!!


Dating

Savvy and sophisticated investors will approach IPO investing like they go about finding their dream partner. Go on a first date (invest a little), if the chemistry is right continue on a second date and more dating (scale in slowly).

Anytime during their dating relationship if something does not work out, both parties can walk away (cut-loss) with less emotional and financial baggage than had they got into marriage on the first date!  


One night stands

Some may prefer to have one meaningless relationship after another. The one night stand people. Thinking that since they will leave on the next morning (IPO staging), that should minimise the emotional damaged of being hurt.

That is of course until they got the medical report for that rash or sore…


It’s all about speculation 

Even if you have never gambled before, isn’t life all about speculation?
Like buying your favourite durians (you can substitute with your favourite fruit here). 

Some will taste heavenly, some will disappoint you. We take the good with the bad.


IPOs are no different. (And marriages)



17 comments:

  1. Once retail investors reached certain level, who care about IPOs. What is 1 or 2 lots? Can huat meh?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. CW8888,

      Your one needle prick see blood!

      There's only so many lots an retail investor will be allocated in IPO. I guess it will appeal more to those who use Standard Chartered Bank brokerage.

      IPOs for institutional and high net-worth investors are a different ball game altogether. Their allotments are probably secured during the bookmaking process by the under-writers.

      Delete
    2. i remember i read someone wrote this,

      if the IPO is good, you will get only the minimum lots if lucky. but if the IPO is bad, you will get all of it!

      it means win win a bit, lose lose a lot. who want?

      Delete
  2. IPO, what IPO? who cares about IPO? poi!

    arranged marriage is different thing. for those who are like stone, thats the best way to go. we had been doing it for thousands of years, look at us now.

    wake up!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "To others, it could be like the horror of the baby alien breaking out from its host’s stomach. Ah!!!"

      haha, no wonder.

      if its alien coming out, then it is you that is the alien. alien does not see their wife and children are aliens.

      Delete
    2. so, haha, hahaha, marriage or precisely, having babies is a creation every living thing are capable of. same as you eat and breath, the by products are your creation (which is food to others).

      say it as speculation is out of context. do you think you are speculating when you eat and breath?

      Delete
    3. last one last one, think marriage as though you are eating and breathing. yes you may choose what and where to eat (and breath?), but hey, just eat it man.

      Delete
    4. Now Coconut,

      I would like to loosen the other screws in my head now.

      Hope I can let my mind soar and fly across the galaxies like you!

      It's amazing to see how you think - without inhibitions; without boundaries. You say what you think!

      Give me time to catch up with your light speed.

      LOL!

      Delete
    5. ofcos, you need to be crazy enough to think differently.

      before i read about stephen hawkings universe, i figure it out there must be endless of universes becos numbers and structure are not applicable to nature. there is no big or small, inside or outside, there must be bigger structure than our own universe, in another words, universe within a universe within a universe...its endless, no boundary.

      oh where are we now haha.

      Delete
  3. Amazing analogy.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi SMOL,
      Just check what WB. got to say about IPO:-

      "Warren Buffett recommends avoiding IPOs, for the following reason: "It's almost a mathematical impossibility to imagine that, out of the thousands of things for sale on a given day, the most attractively priced is the one being sold by a knowledgeable seller (company insiders) to a less-knowledgeable buyer (investors)."

      Who am i to go against the "Sage of Omaha"

      Delete
    2. Temperament,

      I admire WB as a great investor of our times. I do share quite a few of his views.

      However, I have some opinions which I respectfully must differ from WB.

      For eg, gold.

      Let's take a Van Gogh. Like gold, it just sits there. If someone does not treat is as an asset just because it does not produce any cash flows, I'll be glad to take it off his hands for a dollar!

      Delete
    3. SMOL,
      Well that reminds me the Chinese treat jade as priceless commodity. And many Chinese artifacts also by the World and the Chinese themself. To me when most of us has too much money one has to show off one way or another.

      Nevertheless, coconut is right. if the IPO is a good buy, you can hardly get any. On the other hand, if it is a lousy one, you will be fully allotted. You will soon know why on the first day of trading. Not only that, subsequently for many months to years you will not make any money out of your IPOs. i am sure many of us have experienced it. Ha! Ha! So i tend to agree with WB.

      Delete
    4. Temperament,

      On the IPO part, I and WB share the same views.

      He from his investor perspective; me from my salesman perspective. Our paths are different ;)

      Delete
    5. haha temperament, not me who say it. i read it from somewhere. i never try to get IPO share before, in fact i hardly trade any stocks previously. only do it recently cos i can go short as easy as go long.

      now with an investment mindset, i'm still trying to incorporate trading into one whole package. i don't want to end up losing my investment or my trading skill. for investment skill, ha i got long way to go. just thinking of studying the company itself makes me er quite sick haha.

      Delete
    6. Hi coconut,
      To tell the truth i am really practising "Rojak" investment principles. i don't care as long as i makes some money. Because i am boh tak chek type, i can "Rojak"
      Ha! Ha!

      Delete

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