Thanks for all the comments and encouragement. Everyone has a different experience and would love to hear other's fundraising experience.
I bootstrapped Love With Food 6 months before being accepted into 500 Startups. I'm a Rails developer and was able to build and market the product all by myself. At 500 Startups, I hired 2 more people to join the team. We've been very scrappy even after raising $650,000. Now we are a team of 8. The funding has definitely helped our business scale to a different level.
There are target funds that your friend can invest in. Basically you pick a retirement date, and the portfolio will auto adjust as your retirement approaches, e.g. it may invest more in stocks in the beginning and become more risk adverse over time. I'm not a financial advisor, just an engineer, but I do like Vangaurd funds because it's low cost.
I think, in time, Singapore will produce superstar startups. Singaporeans are highly educated and skilled, deadly combination. The only thing stopping Singaporeans from choosing a startup path vs a MNC career is choice.
I'm a Singaporean entrepreneur living in Silicon Valley. I was raised and educated in Singapore. Most Singaporeans want 3 things: a private condo, a car (super expensive in sg) and a maid/housekeeper. And these are the things that stop one from taking risks because a startup salary (or lack thereof) will never be able to fund the above 3 things. There's nothing wrong wanting the above, I think they are like badge of honor in Asia, but they are definitely show stoppers from being an entrepreneur.
I had a high salary before my startup but I chose to walk away to work on something I'm passionate about (http://lovewithfood.com). I'm in my 30s, coding day and night and earn $0 salary. Most of my friends in Singapore think I'm nuts for leaving a very 'cushiony' lifestyle and I only have one question for them "Do you work to live, or do you live to work?"
I bootstrapped Love With Food 6 months before being accepted into 500 Startups. I'm a Rails developer and was able to build and market the product all by myself. At 500 Startups, I hired 2 more people to join the team. We've been very scrappy even after raising $650,000. Now we are a team of 8. The funding has definitely helped our business scale to a different level.