Crazy Rich Asians' Henry Golding earned his own allowance as a teen

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18 hours ago

It is hard to see how Crazy Rich Asians actor Henry Golding could ever be broke but if it does happen, he has a plan - he will use what little he has to buy a pair of scissors.
"Have scissors, will survive" is a throwback to his teenage hair-cutting days which allowed him to stop receiving pocket money from his parents.
Those childhood days that shaped him and his views on finances were about taking just boiled eggs and salt on days out and shopping at cheaper supermarkets.
They represented the simple lifestyle and frugal mindset of an East Malaysian boy growing up in Britain, with one working parent and two siblings.
His father, who moved the family from Sarawak to Surrey, was a helicopter engineer in the British army, while his mother took care of the three children.
At age 14, Golding started working on Saturdays at a barber shop, earning £24 a day.
"I stopped receiving my pocket money, and I was like, I'm gonna look after myself. I was very independent. It was just one day a week, but it was still enough to give me an early perspective on finances," he says.
After he left school at 16, he worked as a hairstylist, with the goal of eventually opening his own hairdressing business.
It is a far cry from his current Hollywood lifestyle, starring alongside big names like Charlize Theron and Uma Thurman in Netflix's The Old Guard 2, attending premieres in fancy suits and walking the Met Gala carpet for the third time in 2025.
It has been quite a ride since his success in the 2018 global hit Crazy Rich Asians.
But Golding says the lessons he learnt from his simple childhood have stayed with him, as he keeps his feet firmly on the ground, and looks for stability instead of thrills in growing his hard-earned funds.
"I'm usually pretty safe with my money and I am conscious about wasting money. I think that's been drilled into me by my father, who worked so hard his entire life. I get that cautiousness from him," he says.
But he also wants to invest to grow his funds.
"I was brought up with a very old-fashioned dad who was like, you've got to save your money. You've got to put it in a bank and save it for a rainy day," he recalls.
"But as we now know, saving your money isn't necessarily the best option. Of course, it's great to have savings, but it might not work for you with inflation," he says.
"As I've gotten older, I've realised that you really have to be smart with your money."
Singapore is a familiar haunt for Golding, who lived in this Little Red Dot for several years till around 2019. He remembers the food well, saying he ate "amazing laksa and the best chicken rice I've ever had" here.
He adds: "We used to live near Golden Mile, so the Beach Road hawker centre was my favourite."
He is married to Taiwanese model and wellness entrepreneur Liv Lo, and they have two daughters.
Q: What do you invest in and why?
A: I've worked with Walter de Oude on a project before... And he told me he was starting this company called Chocolate Finance, which allows people to put whatever cash they have into this account and get a high return, but have easy access. It's not a locked-in product. So you can retrieve it whenever you want, but at the same time, the cash is working for you.
I've put money in the past in some sort of high-yield, savings accounts that you can't touch for a whole year. But I never came across something that gave yields pretty much per day. So for me, it was a really interesting company.
I've always been interested in finance, but it's only been later in life when I've been able to have the type of profile where I can speak to industry people, CEOs and brands that really resonate with me.
One of these companies is Nothing, a technology company which develops unique cellphones and audio equipment. I also have investments in a company called Brightwheel, an American firm that develops apps bridging teachers and parents at daycare centres, so you can get updates through the day about your child. Because I have children, I understand the importance of that.
Q: What has been your biggest financial mistake?
A: It was my investment in hobbies, like Magic: The Gathering cards as a child. They were so expensive back in the day and I kind of grew out of it.
If you look at the ratio of how much I was spending then, to how much I was earning, that was quite a lot. I was spending 30 per cent to 40 per cent of my income on the magic cards. Imagine spending that percentage of your income on your hobbies now!
Q: What has been your best financial decision?
A: Starting work young definitely laid the foundation for my attitude towards finances. But I think taking risks - researched risks - is the most important.
Chocolate Finance is something I'm proud of. Walter has built the company by offering something so simple, straightforward, but with high returns. It's something I wish I had when I was younger, to be able to grow my hard-earned £24.
Career-wise, it has of course been me being a part of Crazy Rich Asians. It was a conscious decision to go through the audition process for it. Sometimes you do have to take a leap of faith when it comes to things like that.
Doing things that aren't familiar to me is scary, for sure. But I just had to find my feet and get used to putting myself in those types of situations and adapt pretty fast. It has been crazy since then.
Q: Money-wise, what were your growing-up years like?
A: I learnt to adapt a lot, from growing up in Malaysia as a kid, and then moving to the UK when I was nine years old, and then leaving the UK and going back to Malaysia when I was 22. I have also lived in Singapore and the United States.
What I have learnt is: invest in yourself. I think that's the best, to bet on yourself, because at the end of the day, it's your ability and your choices that make your future. So make smart decisions, but also be brave.
Q: What was your childhood dream?
A: I wanted to be a firefighter and then at one stage, a chef. I also wanted to follow in my father's footsteps and join the army.
But I've also always gotten a deep-seated joy from movies and storytelling. There was a stage when I was like, I'd love to be an actor, but I always knew that it would just be at the right time in the right place. So the idea was seeded, but life surprises you too.
Q: What was your most memorable encounter with money?
A: It was when I wanted to do things that my parents wouldn't finance. I wanted to skateboard, and so I looked through this magazine and it was £100. My dad said he would buy it for me, but then I had to pay him back in instalments. And so I was able to have what I wanted, but he would instil in me that I had to pay for it in some way.
Q: Where's home for you?
A: We moved back to London to be close to the family, and to be closer to where the work is. Work seems to be happening in Europe a lot. And we're just much happier in London.
It's a metropolis - one of the oldest cities in the world - and has such a rich history and beautiful architecture.
Q: What do you drive?
A: If we're moving around London, we'll take the Tube. But if it's out of London, I drive a hybrid family vehicle for taking the kids along.
Q: What would your perfect day look like?
A: I would say, waking up with the kids, happy and joyful. It would also be having breakfast and a coffee in the park, spending time with family and friends and checking in on my investments, making sure that they're doing well - that's the best day.
Money Matters
Q: What would you do if you suddenly had a windfall of millions?
A: Invest it. Luckily, we do have a good daily routine where we're not spending too much money, so I can invest it.
Q: If you suddenly had only $100 to your name, what would you do with it?
A: I would buy a pair of scissors.