Cover The founder of TRIN International School, Daisy Ng, draws on her background in finance to promote educational excellence shaped by real-world skills (Photo: Fady Younis)
The founder of TRIN International School, Daisy Ng, draws on her background in finance to promote educational excellence shaped by real-world skills (Photo: Fady Younis)
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The founder of TRIN International School draws on her background in finance to promote educational excellence shaped by real-world skills
The parallels between a financial portfolio and a child's potential would not occur to most people. But Daisy Ng draws them with the precision of someone who spent years managing alternative investments through the 2008 crisis.
“I started my career in investment banking, working with traditional financial instruments such as bonds and repos, before moving into alternative investments,” she explains. “Having worked through turbulent periods—from the Iraq War to the Global Financial Crisis—and later managing schools through Covid-19, I’ve learned that the same principles of diversification and currency that apply in finance are equally relevant in education.”
Diversification here has less to do with investment and more on branching out one’s skills in multiple disciplines—a crucial ability for a young person facing an increasingly demanding work environment today. “At TRIN, diversification means building strong foundations—in languages, mathematics, science, coding, future skills and financial literacy—so that every student is primed to specialise and thrive in their chosen field later in life,” adds Ng, who holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Applied Neuroscience from King’s College London, an Economics degree from University College London and a Diploma in Montessori Early Years Education.
Above TRIN International School founder Daisy Ng started her career in investment banking
TRIN International School founder Daisy Ng started her career in investment banking
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Students learn that who they are matters just as much as what they achieve.
Far from the language of contemporary education speak, Ng’s sentiments are resonant of someone who has lived through market volatility and institutional pressure, emerged with a philosophy that refuses the false choice between rigour and joy, between academic excellence and human development.
“To teach a child to take examinations well is easy,” Ng says. “However, to educate a child intellectually and values wise holistically, it takes an immersive environment. There’s so much to learn from the world around us—but even more to harness from our own heritage. TRIN’s multilingual and values-based philosophy comes from my desire to raise grounded, capable children who grow with wisdom and purpose.”
Ng's journey from investment banking to founding Malaysia's pioneering multilingual school reveals a vision born not from ideology but from necessity. After her first child was born, she thought carefully about what it meant to optimise a child’s true potential, realising that talent is not simply born but nurtured through deep practice, grit and mentorship.
“At TRIN, when we speak of values-centred education, we are really talking about the kind of person we hope each child will become. In a world where technology evolves faster than ever, children must grow with empathy, integrity and self-awareness alongside intellect. Values like respect, resilience and kindness cannot simply be taught—they are lived. Our team of teachers and leadership model them every day, and our classrooms are guided by them,” she says.
What began as Trinity Kids in 2011—Malaysia's first playschool—has evolved into TRIN International School, a 14-year institutional philosophy refined through pandemic leadership, numerous education awards and the lived experience of raising three children with distinct talents and passions.
The city campus model she chose—nestled within Hextar World in Petaling Jaya rather than isolated on traditional grounds—reflects this ex-banker’s pragmatism applied to modern family life.
“We wanted to reimagine what a modern school could be — one that fits seamlessly into the rhythm of urban family life,” Ng says. The decision enables partnerships with institutions like Malaysia's premier ballet academy and ice-skating academy, embedding world-class enrichment within daily rhythms rather than adding layers of logistical complexity to family schedules.
The library on the first floor of TRIN International School
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“Passion is a currency,” Ng observes. “It motivates, inspires, and adds meaning. That's why we emphasise creativity, independence, and passion projects that allow each child to discover their unique potential.” The phrasing—treating passion as tradeable value—reveals how her financial training shaped not merely operational decisions but philosophical ones.
At TRIN, values-centred education means something precise: developing the kind of person each child will become, not simply the grades they achieve. Bilingualism transcends textbooks; it becomes a way of thinking across cultures. Coding and financial literacy aren't vocational add-ons but foundational literacies.
“A TRIN graduate will leave with a strong foundation in intellect, character, and creativity, grounded in self-belief and a sense of purpose. Through reflection activities and service projects, students learn that who they are matters just as much as what they achieve.”
Above After her first child was born, Ng thought deeply about what it meant to optimise a child’s potential and inculcate values-driven learning
After her first child was born, Ng thought deeply about what it meant to optimise a child’s potential and inculcate values-driven learning
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When a former investment banker reimagines education, she doesn't sentimentalise the work. She asks harder questions: How do you scale excellence? How do you build systems that serve families authentically? How do you prepare children not for tomorrow's jobs but for lives of genuine complexity and meaning?
These are questions that demand both intellectual rigour and emotional intelligence—precisely what Ng brings to an institution that refuses to be defined by traditional category.
Credits
Images: Fady Younis
Previously contributing to Esquire Malaysia, Expat Lifestyle and Newsweek, Tania oversees digital stories across Tatler’s key content pillars, also leading the Front & Female platform exploring issues and topics affecting women today.
