For retired businessman and lifelong sailor, trust anchors the process of building wealth
Duke Ha applies the lessons he learned on boats to creating a retirement portfolio that can serve him across borders and seas
For Duke Ha, trust has factored into every aspect of his life, spanning professional and personal successes across borders. It is measured by actions rather than words, and reflected by steadfast reliance on a process.
The retired construction businessman and avid sailor hails from Vietnam, where he grew up with five siblings. Ha currently splits his time between Vietnam and Singapore, where he still maintains a side business in hospitality.
He is also spending a significant proportion of his time sailing. It is a passion that Ha first developed at age 16, when he bought his first small boat and quickly realised that navigating open waters requires much more than just a vessel.
“I love the sea. I love the smell of the sea, the sun and the wind,” Ha says. “But facing the vast ocean alone taught me a big lesson: stay humble.”
He adds: “I realised that to do something well, you have to learn and gain experience. If you want to be a sailor, you have to get in the sea. And when you travel across the ocean, you have to be very well prepared.”
Ha has applied this philosophy throughout his life, going on to build his own successful company and becoming a leader in Asia’s construction industry, working on projects ranging from golf resorts to consulates.
In retirement, financial stability is crucial, and for Ha that means building cross-border wealth with the support of a trusted professional. Five years ago, he was introduced to his relationship manager, Standard Chartered senior director of international clients Tom Dinh.
To be sure that Dinh was the right partner to help him build a retirement portfolio that could be accessed wherever he docks in the world, Ha assessed him in the same way he would a member of his boat crew: by observing how he takes action.
“When I started my wealth journey, Standard Chartered showed me the way. We built trust, and we are blessed to have Tom and his team,” Ha says, adding that the bank “treats our money like their own money. That’s the difference from a lot of banks I know.”
Ha believes achieving business and financial success all boils down to trust. “When you sail solo, you decide everything on your own, you take your own risks and have no responsibility for other people. It makes me think a lot about myself, my future. But when you’re sailing with a team, you have to work well together, like a gearbox. One hiccup, that’s it.”
Ha believes the concept of wealth is ultimately about being invested in life experiences. “So many people think wealth is money. To me, money comes last. Wealth is an appreciation of what people have done to help you get this far. I’ll never forget those people, and I will give it back,” he says. “That’s wealth without borders.”