Our Company — Optimised News

Our Story

Started from a personal frustration with financial opacity.

Optimised News was founded in Singapore in 2017 by practitioners who noticed a consistent gap: many capable, thoughtful people had no real framework for understanding their personal finances. Not because they lacked intelligence or discipline, but because the available resources were either too shallow, too product-driven, or too disconnected from the actual Singapore context.

The response was a set of programmes built from the ground up — structured around clarity, application, and honest engagement with how money actually works for people living and working in Singapore. No sales agenda, no product recommendations. Just knowledge, applied carefully.

Since then, Optimised News has worked with hundreds of individuals across different life stages — from young adults navigating their first salary to couples approaching retirement. The programmes have evolved based on what participants actually needed, and that process of refinement continues.

Our Mission

To give individuals in Singapore a clear, practical education in personal finance — one that respects their intelligence, reflects their context, and builds lasting capability rather than dependency.

Our Approach

We teach through doing. Every programme combines structured concepts with hands-on exercises, real case studies, and time to apply what's been covered to participants' own situations. Learning that stays.

Independence

Optimised News does not sell financial products, accept referral fees, or have commercial relationships with any financial institution. Our only interest is in the quality of the education we provide.

The Team

People behind the programmes.

RL

Rachel Lim

Founder & Lead Educator

Over 15 years in personal finance education, with a background in financial planning and adult learning. Developed the core curriculum framework used across all Optimised News programmes.

MT

Marcus Tan

Senior Programme Facilitator

Specialises in investment education and portfolio thinking. Brings a decade of hands-on experience in regional equity markets to the Understanding Investments programme.

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Shanti Chandran

Financial Planning Facilitator

Leads the Comprehensive Financial Planning programme. Her background spans retirement modelling, CPF strategy, and estate planning for Singapore residents at various life stages.

Standards We Hold Ourselves To

How we approach education responsibly.

No Product Conflicts

All content is developed independently of any financial product or institution. Participants receive education, not a sales pitch dressed as education.

Current Content

Programme materials are reviewed regularly to reflect changes in Singapore's regulatory environment, CPF rules, and market conditions. What participants learn reflects today's reality.

Qualified Facilitators

Every programme is led by someone with direct, applied experience in the topic they teach. We do not outsource facilitation or use generic curriculum providers.

Privacy by Default

Personal financial information shared in private consultations is treated with strict confidentiality. We do not retain client data beyond what is operationally needed.

Small Group Sizes

We limit cohort sizes to ensure each participant receives meaningful attention and discussion time. Quality of learning takes precedence over throughput.

Regulatory Awareness

Our programmes are educational in nature and carefully positioned relative to regulated financial advice. We are transparent with participants about the distinction and what it means for them.

Our Perspective

Financial knowledge is a long-term asset.

Understanding how to manage and grow personal finances is one of the more consequential skills an individual can develop — and one that is rarely taught well. Most people learn through trial, through peers, or through professionals with a commercial interest in a particular outcome. None of these routes serve the learner particularly well.

At Optimised News, we believe that when people genuinely understand how personal finance works — the mechanics of cash flow, how different instruments behave, how CPF interacts with long-term planning — they make better decisions, feel less anxious about money, and develop a more constructive relationship with it over time.

Our work is grounded in Singapore's particular financial landscape: a CPF system with real planning implications, a liquid equity market, a stable currency, and a tax environment that rewards careful structuring. The education we offer reflects that context directly, rather than applying frameworks developed elsewhere.

We keep our programmes small, our content current, and our facilitators directly involved in the subject matter they teach. That is the model we have built, and the one we intend to maintain.

Curious about a programme?

We're happy to have a brief conversation about your situation and help identify whether one of our programmes is well-suited to where you are.

Get in Touch

A small team witha considered mission.