Should you top up your CPF-SA (by transferring from CPF-OA)?

Should you top up your CPF-SA (CPF Special Account) by transferring from CPF-OA (CPF Ordinary Account)? 

I heard this many questions many times, and I know why: because I also read that there are quite many people advocating others to transfer their CPF-OA to CPF-SA.  So should you or should you not? 

Actually, the answer to this question really will differ from person to person.  However, I would take the contrarian view that in general: YOU SHOULD NOT TRANSFER CPF-OA to CPF-SA! 

WHY?  you may ask? 

In order to answer your question, you have to go back to review the "reasons" why would you want to transfer CPF-OA to CPF-SA? 

Reasons cited are mainly because: CPF-SA pays 4% interest while CPF-OA pays only 2.5% interest (so there is a gain of 1.5% interest)! 

So it is all about return isn't it? 

Now, looking at the return, 4% is still mediocre isn't it?  So why would you want to do so? 

Is the 4% interest rate guaranteed?  Would the 4% be changed or be lowered in future?  Would you get higher return than CPF-SA rate if you leave the money in CPF-OA and invest it in some other instruments? 

Well, my opinion is that once your money is in CPF-SA, there are so few investment options to invest the CPF-SA money that you are tied to at best CPF-SA rate of 4%! 

What if you leave your money in CPF-OA?  Well, you have many more investment options, and these investment options over the long-term would likely earn you return much more than 4% provided by CPF-SA!  Even putting these CPF-OA money to buy and invest in a property will reap you bigger profits over a long period (much better than putting these money in CPF-SA)!  Also, if you invest in S&P-500 index over the past 30 years, your annualized return is actually about 11%, much higher than 4%!   Oh, sad to say, unfortunately the hard truth is, you are barred from using your CPF-OA money to invest directly overseas-listed stocks and ETFs!  Well, you may say, doesn’t matter, you can invest via unit trusts (UT)!  Sorry, you will be dead wrong to do that!  The UT costs will eat up your returns to become mediocre!   

So, unless you have no interest and no time to learn how to invest your money, then, yes, you have no choice but to transfer your CPF-OA to CPF-SA! 

But, why you have no interest and/or no time to learn how to invest your money? 

If your answer is because you are busy with your work and your work earns you lots more money, then I would like to say "Good! Happy for you"!  In this case you don’t really have to care nor spend time to learn to invest your money, just leave it to professionals and many will die to serve you (for your management fees of course)! 

Other than that, I would suggest that you better start to free up time and cultivate interest to invest your money!  We people can only work till 65 years old and there about (some can’t even work much earlier due to poor health, illness etc), and thereafter, it is unlikely you would be of much use to a company that is profit-oriented (and they have lots more other younger people who can take over your job at a lower pay) unless you own the company or your job really is "do almost nothing to take salary type" and appointed due to connections!  This is regardless of government’s mandatory later retirement age or even enforced reemployment after 65 years old (if a company wants to get rid of you, no law can protect you!  If you work in private companies, you will know very well what I mean…)