BT longevity forum turns the spotlight on health and wealth 

[SINGAPORE] As Singaporeans live longer, the challenge is no longer simply adding years to life. The bigger question is whether health, finances and lifestyle choices can keep pace with those extra years.

That will be the focus of The Business Times Longevity Forum presented by HSBC Life, taking place on Saturday (Jul 25) at the SPH Media Auditorium. 

The event will bring together healthcare leaders, longevity specialists and a financial expert to examine what it takes to remain healthy, financially secure and independent through a potentially decades-long retirement.

Singapore population’s life expectancy rose in 2025 to 83.9 years.

This is higher than the pre-pandemic peak of 83.7 years, going by data from the Department of Statistics in June.

Singaporeans are also living about 10 years longer than the average person worldwide, but longevity comes with a new reality. 

While life expectancy has climbed, healthy life expectancy is estimated to be closer to 73 to 74 years.

This suggests that many people may spend close to a decade managing chronic conditions, mobility issues or other age-related health challenges. It is this gap between an individual’s lifespan and healthspan that the forum seeks to address.

From living longer to living better

The forum’s keynote address will be delivered by Minister for Health and Coordinating Minister for Social Policies Ong Ye Kung. 

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Following it will be the first panel discussion, Living Well, Ageing Smart: Planning Health and Wealth for the Years Ahead.

This will bring together four speakers from healthcare and financial services to explore how Singaporeans can take a more holistic approach to ageing.

Harpreet Bindra, CEO of HSBC Life Singapore, will address the financial dimension of longevity, including retirement income planning, insurance and wealth protection.

Professor Chin Jing Jih, deputy group CEO of clinical and academic development at NHG Health and a senior consultant in geriatric medicine at Tan Tock Seng Hospital, will offer perspectives on population ageing and integrated care.

Meanwhile, Dr Sue-Anne Toh, CEO and co-founder of Novi Health, is set to speak on the role of metabolic health and prevention of illnesses in extending healthspan.

Dr Naras Lapsys, chief clinical officer and senior dietitian at Chi Longevity, will examine how personalised health interventions can support healthy ageing.

The panel will be moderated by BT senior correspondent Dylan Tan.

Rather than viewing health and finances as separate concerns, the panel will examine how preventive healthcare, lifestyle choices and long-term financial planning increasingly influence one another.

Among the questions to be discussed are whether Singaporeans are underestimating the true cost of longevity, how preventive health can strengthen long-term financial security, and the way retirement income strategies need to evolve in an era of longer lifespans.

Empowering opportunities

A second panel, Living Fully: Real Stories of Health, Purpose and Reinvention, will shift the focus from planning to lived experience.

Actor-director Tay Ping Hui and content creator Vicsland Poh will share their perspectives on staying active, purposeful and engaged later in life. 

The session, which will be moderated by media personality Charmaine Yee, seeks to actively challenge conventional mindsets by reframing ageing not as an inevitable period of slowing down, but as an empowering opportunity to reset, rediscover and reimagine the years ahead.

Tay and Poh will both share candid, real-life stories centred on resilience, vitality and intentional living.

They will also share their first-hand experiences with navigating major life transitions, such as embarking on entirely new career paths later in life and successfully overcoming personal health challenges. 

The goal of the forum is not only to assist people in living longer, but to also help them do so with confidence, independence and dignity.

Attendees can expect to gain practical insights into managing healthcare costs, building sustainable retirement income, investing in preventive health and preparing for a future where living well may depend as much on decisions made in one’s 30s and 40s as on the resources available later in life.

Registration for The BT Longevity Forum is currently full.