Kiasunomics: Recent Episodes
NUS Business School
Picking off a U.S. study on a credit card promotional campaign where the bank offered 1% cashback, Professor Ang Swee Hoon looks at how it increased user spending by 32% and even incurred greater debt by not making prompt repayments. She also touches on the impact of the campaign on “revolver users” and inactive, no-debt cardholders.
Left to their own, consumers may not make the most sustainable choices. This is where regulations and policies may have to come in to manage usage. In this episode, Professor Sumit Agarwal looks at the reactiveness of water usage in response to pricing changes in Singapore, triggered by government policies implemented to encourage conservation, by examining 10 years’ worth of water consumption data. Also, he examines if these pricing policies and rebates work differently for people in different income segments.
As part of its Smart Nation vision, Singapore introduced the QR code in April 2017 as a mode of payment to merchants and vendors. Three months later, this was followed by PayNow.
In this episode, Marketing Professor and co-author of the Kiasunomics book series, Ang Swee Hoon, examines the impact of these new payment features on consumption and business creation, rate of ATM closures, and even credit card spending!
The detrimental short-term effects of haze on physical health and productivity are undisputed. But what about its long-term impact on academic performance even wages? Looking at local university admissions score data gathered during the Singapore haze crises of children that were born both during and after these episodes, Professor Sumit makes interesting observations that seem to suggest a definite impact on the cognitions of children whose mothers were exposed to haze particles.
The real estate market has long been a prime destination for individuals seeking to launder illicit wealth. It is one of the oldest-known ways.
In this episode, citing the infamous Panama Papers that took the world by storm in 2020, Professor Ang Swee Hoon dives into the mechanics behind money laundering and offshore secrecy. Based on transactions that took place in Singapore, she shares interesting findings about the types and locations of property that were purchased. More interestingly, she reveals insights about the profiles of those involved in these transactions.
In September 2020, a global investigation involving major dark data leakage revealed suspicious financial movements amounting to $2 trillion dollars across financial institutions and real estate industry. These leaked transactions have since become widely known as the Panama Papers.
In this podcast session, real estate Professor Sing Tien Foo interviews Professor Sumit Agarwal for a change, to zero in on Sumit’s research on financial transactions that took place in Singapore. Together, the inquisitive duo teases out surprising insights into the premiums paid for properties in these illicit transactions as compared to non-Panama linked transactions.
Distinction, merit and pass. Now just three ways to pass a course for postgraduate students at NUS Business School.
In this episode, Professor Sumit Agarwal engages the Dean of NUS Business School, Distinguished Professor Andrew Rose in this exclusive dialogue, to understand the rationale behind his bold changes to the School’s postgraduate grading system, to adopt a coarser scale, reducing the importance ascribed to academic grades in favour of co-curricular achievements.
As Housing Development Board (HDB) flats get on in their years, their cash value potentially drops more quickly. Does this create a negative downward spiral, and why?
In this episode, Professor Sumit chats to fellow colleague Professor Sing Tien Foo from NUS’ Department of Real Estate about this issue to better understand the mechanics behind the economics of this phenomenon.
In the spirit of fostering harmony and better social integration, Singapore’s Housing Development Board has intentionally implemented an ethnic household mix across all blocks and estates.
In this episode, Professor Sumit chats once again to Professor Sing Tien Foo about how this policy has inadvertently influenced public housing prices, and the reasons why. Analysing home sale transaction data, they also identify the ethnic buy-seller pairings that command a premium, and the pairings that command a discount!
Do discounts and good bargains really save us money, or do they instead trigger unnecessary purchases? By looking at the spending of people in Singapore, Professor Sumit Agarwal assesses if the favourable exchange rate drives Singaporeans up the causeway to shop there, particularly those who live closer to Johor Bahru.
The common yet unromantic Singaporean marriage proposal: Do you want to BTO with me?
In this episode, Professor Sumit Agarwal, with Professor Fan Yi continue to delve into the public housing policy schemes in Singapore, specifically for young couples planning for marriage, and for singles above 35 years.
Looking at both micro and longitudinal data sets, she examines the impact of policy shocks on young couples, and whether it has a positive or negative impact on the quality of marriages.
How do Singaporeans respond to “free money” aka tax rebates, in the main? Using bank account transaction data from a leading local bank during the time of a special government budget surplus payout, Professor Sumit identifies differences in the way different income groups respond, and questions if payouts should be available to everyone in order to effectively boost economic growth.
It is a known, evidence-based fact that the lifestyle choices of our peers have a strong bearing on our own. Does this hold true when it comes to bankruptcy? In this episode, Professor Sumit looks at the spending behaviours of people living in close proximity to individuals who have been declared bankrupts. Interestingly, he observed a reduction in the consumption of the neighbours of a bankrupt by 3%!
The world is seeing a widening income gap, where the rich enjoy more comfortable lives and flexibility. Income tax policies are designed to narrow this gap, but do these measures harm higher income earners more than they help lower income earners?
Regardless of where, inflation has corrosive implications on people’s lives.
In this episode, Professor Sumit chats to NTU’s Assistant Professor Chua Yeow Hwee about the “upgrading channel”, which tests if an individual’s inflation expectations are linked to the way they spend, i.e. the quality of products they buy.
Asst. Professor Yeow Hwee shares his findings from an interesting experiment based on the prices of Wall’s and Haagan Daz ice cream brands. He uses data from Nielsen’s Home Scan panel to corroborate the evidence that he found in his own survey data to tease out the quality versus price effect that could be on inflation itself.
In this episode, Professor Sumit and Finance Professor Ruan Tianyue analyse the Silver Support Scheme – one of Singapore’s policy measures, instituted in 2015, to provide better support to retired individuals in an increasingly aged society.
How have the elderly of Singapore used these payouts since, and would this be an effective means to manage the tension between longer life expectancy and rising healthcare costs?
Clearly the pandemic has exacerbated inequality throughout the world.
In Asia, three new billionaires are created every week now, and over 97% of the world’s wealth is concentrated among the top 5% of the population. Much research has gone into the analysis of this issue, to devise plausible solutions moving forward.
In this episode, Professor Sumit Agarwal chats to Professor Fan Yi about her research on inter-generational housing wealth mobility, and whether factors like policy and housing types (i.e. public or private) have a bearing on how the next generation fares, property wise.
In this episode, Professor Sumit Agarwal delves into the topic of aging in Singapore, and the use of its Central Provident Fund. From research done by finance Professor Allaudeen Hameed on the way funds are used by Singaporeans who reach 55 years of age and are eligible to withdraw a proportion of their retirement savings, Sumit shares interesting insights on how the money is spent, or not spent.
Are realtors in Singapore motivated to act in the best interest of their home buyers, given the current way properties are sold? Professor Sumit examines property transaction data with Professor Song Changcheng over the past 15 years to determine if the most attractive deals are indeed made by realtors because of their greater access to information. They also discuss the effectiveness of dual-agent negotiations verses a single-agent arrangement.
In Singapore, the raising of the Minimum Occupancy Period of Housing Development Board (HDB) flats from three to five years presented a game-changer for home owners. In this episode, Professor Sumit chats to finance professor Qian Wenlan about the effects this policy shock has had on the wealth management and consumption of Singaporeans.
Do humans naturally opt to take the train on weekdays to shorten their work commute instead of the bus, and do they tend to work longer if their travelling time is longer? In this episode, Professor Sumit shares insightful research observations from studying EZ link card data of over 150 million bus and train trips, to understand how time, money and urgency influences the Singapore commuter’s mode of public transportation.
Exploring never before studied data of private hire and taxi ride prices with Singapore Management University’s Associate Professor Cheng Shih-Fen, Professor Sumit examines the range of factors influencing passenger behaviour, and how pricing may not be the key determinant of which private hire option commuters choose during peak timings. With this insight, the duo hopes to inspire higher levels of savviness in commuters, particularly after work hours and on weekends.
In this episode, Professor Sumit examines one of the most stressful topics on the minds of parents of pre-schooling children in Singapore – the mainstream primary school registration system. He dives into the layers beneath this process, and how school branding has impacted housing prices.
Planning for a baby in the zodiac year of the dragon to secure your child’s future? Think again. In this episode, Professor Sumit discusses the research findings of Professor Qian Wenlan, and how this popular belief amongst the Chinese in Singapore may instead have the reverse effect on the success of children in that cohort.
In the interest of cost and time savings, business owners have begun to carve out work spaces within their homes, thereby creating home offices. In support of this, the Singapore Government launched a Home Office Scheme in a bid to encourage the birth of home-grown businesses in the country. Professor Sumit analyses the effectiveness of this incentive in stimulating a lasting increase in the number of Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Singapore.
How does something seemingly unscientific like cultural superstition impact housing purchase decisions in Singapore? In this episode, Professor Sumit invites Singapore Management University’s Associate Professor Song Changcheng for chat on how his research suggests that the numbers “4” and “8” may significantly influence the preferences of Singaporean Chinese.
The world tackles the real crises of consumerism depleting the world’s natural resources to a point of leaving little to the future generations. In this episode, Professor Sumit looks at the creative campaign ideas Singapore devised, particularly one that inspired children to educate their parents about sustainability.
Associate Professor Song Changcheng joins Professor Sumit once again to discuss the importance of Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to a country’s economic growth, and the effectiveness of Singapore’s policies in lowering the barriers to entry for budding entrepreneurs.
Singapore has on several occasions dealt with serious air pollution crises arising from the haze generated from widespread fires in neighboring countries. In this episode, Sumit shares his findings from the study of electricity and water usage in Singapore during these periods of severe air pollution, and about how this exerts additional strain on the state’s resources.
Water conservation has always been a priority in Singapore’s national resource management, having insufficient natural sources to sustain the country’s population. In this episode, Professor Sumit chats to Visiting Assistant Professor Fan Mingxuan from the NUS Department of Real Estate about the effectiveness of plumbing methods and public housing infrastructure upgrades in supporting this national cause.
In this episode, Professor Sumit and Visiting Assistant Professor Fan Mingxuan continue their discussion on Singapore’s water conservation policies. Specifically, they delve into a water policy that introduced a tariff on usage, and the impact of the announcement on different citizen profiles.
In this flag-off episode, the brains behind the Kiasunomics book series, Professor Sumit Agarwal and Associate Professor Ang Swee Hoon engage in hearty banter other about how the podcast series came about, and how they hope to bring research insights to the masses through bite-sized discussions.
In this episode, Professor Sumit properly defines what the gig economy is. He discusses the greater autonomy, flexibility and power it gives to employees, and how the inclusive nature of the gig economy may even allow Singapore to better tap on its manpower.
In this episode, Professor Sumit and Professor David Reeb discuss the possibility of how playing golf may give female executives a leg up in their career, and the reasons why.
Professor Sumit analyses the pros and cons of the gig economy, and whether it is sustainable.