The psychology of financial clutter: why we accumulate bad investments

Everyone has that kitchen drawer full of dead batteries, spare keys and rubber bands that never gets thrown out. Most portfolios look the same way. A position bought on a hot tip, an ETF someone recommended at a dinner party, a stock still languishing from a theme that peaked years ago. The question worth asking is not what is in there, but why it never gets cleared out.

In this episode of Money Hacks, a podcast of The Business Times, Howie Lim speaks with Bryan Low, head of International Wealth Management at KGI Singapore and a professor at NTU, about the psychological habits that turn a portfolio into a collection rather than a strategy.

Why listen

• Why loss aversion keeps bad investments in your portfolio far longer than they should  Low explains why the financial industry is built to encourage buying, not selling, and why the pain of realising a loss feels far greater than the thrill of a gain.

• The two questions every position in your portfolio needs to answer Is it still relevant Low makes the case that this simple test is enough to sort through even the most cluttered financial life.

• Why 80 per cent of investors do not need more than 10 lines in their portfolio  Complexity is often mistaken for sophistication. Low explains why simplicity works for most people and where genuine complexity actually becomes necessary.

• How to actually clear out the clutter without paralysis  From consolidating similar holdings to benchmarking every position against the index, Low offers a practical framework for deciding what stays and what goes.

Clearing out your financial junk drawer might be the simplest wealth-building move available to you. This episode shows you how. Listen now.

Discover more episodes at bt.sg/podcasts. Got feedback? Email us at btpodcasts@sph.com.sg.

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Written and hosted by: Howie Lim (howielim@sph.com.sg)

With Bryan Low, head of International Wealth Management, KGI Singapore

Edited by: Howie Lim & Claressa Monteiro

Produced by: Howie Lim & Chai Pei Chieh

A podcast by BT Podcasts, The Business Times, SPH Media

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