Money Matters with Hongbin Jeong and Chua Tian Tian

Nearly half of Bitcoin’s supply is now underwater, long-term holders are selling at multi-year losses, and market stress indicators are flashing red. Yet prices remain relatively stable, creating a growing disconnect between sentiment and price action. With investors increasingly hedging for downside risk and some calling for a move back to US$50,000, the question is whether this is a warning sign of deeper weakness or a setup for the next rally. On Wealth Tracker, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Zann Kwan, Managing Partner & CIO, Revo Digital Family Office, on whether this divergence between price and positioning can hold, how investors are managing downside risk, and what would trigger a deeper sell-off from here.

On What’s Trending, Hongbin Jeong and Alexandra Parada dive into the rising trend of pet luxury, as a woman in Shanghai spends around S$2,200 a month to send her dog to “kindergarten” with complete with training, social activities and even a school bus.Then, they unpack a bizarre heist in Europe involving over 413,000 stolen KitKat bars, exploring how such a massive shipment could vanish and what happens when crime turns into a logistical challenge.

Global sentiment saw some improvement as US futures turned positive, following reassuring comments from Donald Trump and Jerome Powell. Volatility remains a key theme, with the CBOE Volatility Index climbing above 30 and rising sharply this month. The move signals elevated fear and rapid risk repricing, raising questions on whether this spike is temporary or the start of more sustained market stress. On oil, talk of prices potentially reaching $200, while not a base case, highlights the risks ahead. Such a scenario would likely push inflation higher, pressure growth, and add further volatility across global markets. On Market View, Sean Cheong speaks to David Chow of Azure Capital to break down the latest market movements.

Donald Trump is pushing a controversial idea which is taking control of Iran’s Kharg Island, the country’s most critical oil export hub, as tensions between the US, Israel, and Iran continue to escalate. In the midst of this, Pakistan has stepped forward, offering to host “meaningful talks” between Washington and Tehran, a diplomatic opening that comes even as the threat of further escalation looms. On The Big Story, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Associate Professor Jessica Genauer, Academic Director of the Public Policy Institute at the University of New South Wales (UNSW), on why Kharg Island is central to Iran’s oil exports, whether the US could realistically seize and hold it, and how such a move could impact Iran’s war effort and global oil prices.

Bank of America’s move into art consulting signals a broader shift toward treating art as a financeable, allocatable asset within wealth portfolios. With banks like JPMorgan, UBS, and Citi scaling similar capabilities, art is becoming more embedded in discussions around liquidity, risk, and returns. On The Wealth Tracker, Hongbin Jeong speaks with Grace Lau, Founder and CEO of ArtWise, to break down how institutional involvement is reshaping art as an asset class and what that means for returns, risk, and allocation.

On What’s Trending, Hongbin Jeong and Alexandra Parada dive into how a US man in Japan used AI to solve a late-night hotel aircon problem, before unpacking the viral “office air theory” that claims your workplace can leave you looking tired and drained within hours. 

Singapore shares inched higher today amid a bruising day for Asian equities. The Straits Times Index nudged 0.14% higher at 4,905.20 points at 2.31pm Singapore time, with a value turnover of S$1.22B seen in the broader market. In terms of counters to watch, we have DBS, given how the group has entered India’s buoyant equity capital market, marking a push into one of the world’s busiest venues for share sales.  Elsewhere, from how Japan stepped up yen intervention threats and signalled that further falls in the currency could justify a near-term interest rate hike, to what to watch ahead of remarks from US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and the head of New York Fed John Williams, more international headlines remained in focus. On Market View, Money Matters’ finance presenter Chua Tian Tian unpacked the developments with David Kuo, Co-founder, The Smart Investor.

After seeing his football career curtailed by injury, Shannon Stephen found himself searching for purpose. On Sports Minutes, he opens up about rediscovering that identity through Hyrox, and how the finish line has become his new final whistle. Got a story to tell? Get in touch! raushan@sph.com.sg

Today we’re going to revisit a guest whose mission is to increase the GDP of not a country, but the internet.  If it rings a bell, yes, we are indeed talking about Stripe, the payments processing company whose aim is to build the economic infrastructure for the internet.  For starters, the San Francisco and Dublin headquartered firm assists customers from the world’s largest enterprises to budding startups in accepting payments, growing their revenue and tapping new business opportunities.  More specifically, its service offerings cut across functions such as pricing, billing, checkouts, payment links, revenue recognition to invoicing and marketplace solutions.  We are speaking to Stripe once again because a lot has happened since our last interview with the company in 2024.    Per the firm’s latest annual letter, Stripe reached a valuation of a whopping US$159 billion as of 2026, climbing up from US$106.7 billion achieved in September 2025. So what are the key drivers of growth bolstering the numbers? Also – how is the firm preparing for a world enabled by artificial intelligence, with technologies such as agentic commerce set to shake up the online shopping landscape? Meanwhile, Stripe is also big on stablecoins, having in February 2025 acquired stablecoin orchestration platform Bridge for US$1.1 billion. But how has the firm tapped on the speed and cost advantages of stablecoins in its business thus far? On Under the Radar, Money Matters’ finance presenter Chua Tian Tian posed these questions to Paul Harapin, Chief Revenue Officer, Asia Pacific & Japan, Stripe.

Airfares are rising across Asia as jet fuel prices surge amid the Middle East conflict, putting pressure on airlines already operating on thin margins. And with costs climbing and supply disruptions hitting the region harder, carriers are being forced to balance fare hikes, cost absorption, and potential flight cuts. On The Big Story, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Brendan Sobie, an independent aviation analyst at Sobie Aviation, to unpack how severe the impact could be and what it means for airlines and travellers if the crisis drags on.