Conversations with a Cabby II - Never underestimate the cabby
Since we are on the topic of cabbies, perhaps I should record another incident, while it is still fresh on my mind. This incident occured on yet another late night, at approximately 1:00am, while I was taking a cab on my way home.
"Holland Village. Take the AYE and exit at Clementi Road."
"Ok."
I laid back and stretched my arms. Then I closed my eyes.
"Wah, how come you have to work so late?" asked the cabby. I wonder if there is some kind of Cabby Code that dictates that a cabby should always enquire about a customer's well being, even though it is quite apparent that all the customer wants to do is to get some sleep? Perhaps this is a new form of customer service -- if the customer's eyes are drooping, it is a sign that he is bored; keep him entertained.
"Yeah, I have a lot of work to do," was my generic reply.
"Yeah lor. Now different already. Last time was so much better."
"True, true," I mumbled sleepily.
"Last time when I was young, I also did not have to work for so long. I was working as a xxxxx (I cannot remember what xxxxx was, but it's not really important) then."
"Uh huh," I replied.
"After that, I did not want to work for people, so I started my own business. I was still quite young at that time."
"Oh? What business did you start?"
"I lend people money. It was in the 1960s."
"Really? So you were in the money lending business? How did it work?" At this point, my interested was perked.
"After working for many years, I had saved about $14,000. Whenever I lend people $1000, everyday they must pay me back $40, and that is only in interest."
"Wah! So it is 4% interest a day? That means your money will double in 18 days!" This was getting interesting. I knew that this was no ordinary, frustrated cabby that I was talking to. My tired mind was working furiously. Theoretically, if he was able to lend all his money (including money he has earned from interest) without any interruption, it would have become a million times the original value by the end of the year!
"Yeah. In those times, it was so easy. Everyday you knock at people's doors, they will immediately come out and pay you the money already. Not like nowadays, they always go and hide or give a lot of excuses. It's very hard to run this kind of business today."
"I see. I suppose you would encounter some legal problems running this kind of business."
"Oh no, it is legal. You can lend money if you have a license. However, in the 60s and 70s, it is not difficult to get a license to be a money lender. A lot of those money lenders in Golden Mile received their licenses during those times. Nowadays, the laws have changed, very different already." He sighed wistfully, as his mind wandered back to his youth.
"I see. That's interesting." I had wanted to press further to see if an interest of 4% a day could indeed be considered legal, even in those days, but decided not to push my luck.
"Yeah, in the good times, I earned about $300,000 in a very short time from doing just that. At that time, I had 5 people working under me, helping me to collect money." Incidentally, $300,000 may not seem like that much today, but it meant a lot more in the 70s.
"Wah!! Then how is it that you're driving a cab today? You should be driving a mercedes!" I said.
"I lost it by gambling it away."
"Gambled it away? What a pity!"
"Yeah lor. Some of my runners got angry with my gambling habits, so they took their share and left. After that things became worse, and in the end I had no more money."
He was remarkably honest in how he revealed the details of his somewhat unsavoury past to a stranger like myself. It was quite difficult to envisage the old gentleman at the driver's seat having such a past. This was one of the rare occasions where talking to a cabby can be quite an entertaining experience. When we finally reached the destination, I was almost sorry that our conversation had to end.
P.S. If you are inspired by my article to start a money-lending business, you should study the Moneylenders Act first before starting your venture. Suffice to say, even if an interest of 4% a day was legal 30-40 years ago, it is quite unlikely to be legal in today's context, so do your research first. If you are from one of the law enforcement agencies, sorry, this incident happened quite a while back, and I really have no idea who the taxi driver was. :P
Since we are on the topic of cabbies, perhaps I should record another incident, while it is still fresh on my mind. This incident occured on yet another late night, at approximately 1:00am, while I was taking a cab on my way home.
"Holland Village. Take the AYE and exit at Clementi Road."
"Ok."
I laid back and stretched my arms. Then I closed my eyes.
"Wah, how come you have to work so late?" asked the cabby. I wonder if there is some kind of Cabby Code that dictates that a cabby should always enquire about a customer's well being, even though it is quite apparent that all the customer wants to do is to get some sleep? Perhaps this is a new form of customer service -- if the customer's eyes are drooping, it is a sign that he is bored; keep him entertained.
"Yeah, I have a lot of work to do," was my generic reply.
"Yeah lor. Now different already. Last time was so much better."
"True, true," I mumbled sleepily.
"Last time when I was young, I also did not have to work for so long. I was working as a xxxxx (I cannot remember what xxxxx was, but it's not really important) then."
"Uh huh," I replied.
"After that, I did not want to work for people, so I started my own business. I was still quite young at that time."
"Oh? What business did you start?"
"I lend people money. It was in the 1960s."
"Really? So you were in the money lending business? How did it work?" At this point, my interested was perked.
"After working for many years, I had saved about $14,000. Whenever I lend people $1000, everyday they must pay me back $40, and that is only in interest."
"Wah! So it is 4% interest a day? That means your money will double in 18 days!" This was getting interesting. I knew that this was no ordinary, frustrated cabby that I was talking to. My tired mind was working furiously. Theoretically, if he was able to lend all his money (including money he has earned from interest) without any interruption, it would have become a million times the original value by the end of the year!
"Yeah. In those times, it was so easy. Everyday you knock at people's doors, they will immediately come out and pay you the money already. Not like nowadays, they always go and hide or give a lot of excuses. It's very hard to run this kind of business today."
"I see. I suppose you would encounter some legal problems running this kind of business."
"Oh no, it is legal. You can lend money if you have a license. However, in the 60s and 70s, it is not difficult to get a license to be a money lender. A lot of those money lenders in Golden Mile received their licenses during those times. Nowadays, the laws have changed, very different already." He sighed wistfully, as his mind wandered back to his youth.
"I see. That's interesting." I had wanted to press further to see if an interest of 4% a day could indeed be considered legal, even in those days, but decided not to push my luck.
"Yeah, in the good times, I earned about $300,000 in a very short time from doing just that. At that time, I had 5 people working under me, helping me to collect money." Incidentally, $300,000 may not seem like that much today, but it meant a lot more in the 70s.
"Wah!! Then how is it that you're driving a cab today? You should be driving a mercedes!" I said.
"I lost it by gambling it away."
"Gambled it away? What a pity!"
"Yeah lor. Some of my runners got angry with my gambling habits, so they took their share and left. After that things became worse, and in the end I had no more money."
He was remarkably honest in how he revealed the details of his somewhat unsavoury past to a stranger like myself. It was quite difficult to envisage the old gentleman at the driver's seat having such a past. This was one of the rare occasions where talking to a cabby can be quite an entertaining experience. When we finally reached the destination, I was almost sorry that our conversation had to end.
P.S. If you are inspired by my article to start a money-lending business, you should study the Moneylenders Act first before starting your venture. Suffice to say, even if an interest of 4% a day was legal 30-40 years ago, it is quite unlikely to be legal in today's context, so do your research first. If you are from one of the law enforcement agencies, sorry, this incident happened quite a while back, and I really have no idea who the taxi driver was. :P
