Twelve Cupcakes workers to receive half of owed salary, several disappointed with partial payment
Sharon Salim
The Straits Times
April 1, 2026
When home-grown confectionery chain Twelve Cupcakes abruptly shuttered its 20 outlets on Oct 29, 2025, workers were left in the lurch without being paid.
After waiting for five months, these 80 workers are about to receive half of their owed salaries for October 2025. Workers who spoke to The Straits Times said they were surprised and disappointed that they would not be receiving their full salaries.
A statement by the Food, Drinks and Allied Workers Union (FDAWU) issued at close to 11pm on March 31 said that affected workers will begin receiving a “portion of their unpaid salaries”.
The union did not spell out the portion, but the liquidator appointed by the court to wind down the business told The Straits Times that workers will receive half of their owed salaries.
The liquidator is paying “50 per cent of the admitted (salary) claim” based on priority of payments under the Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act, said Ms Yessica Budiman from AAG Corporate Advisory in a text message, referring to workers’ claims for owed wages.
AAG Corporate Advisory is the liquidator appointed to oversee the winding down of Twelve Cupcakes.
ST understands that the liquidator contacted the workers via e-mail on March 31 to confirm their bank account details, so that the salaries and overtime pay could be paid.
Several former employees were unhappy and disappointed with the 50 per cent payment. A former employee who declined to be named said: “We did not know about the 50 per cent at all (until now). I worked for the full 29 days (in October 2025) but why did they deduct this by half?”
Another said he was unclear about the breakdown of the payout: “Until now, we still have not received a single cent.
“I really respect the law, but the law has got to help us in some way, right? Because if not, foreign companies can come to Singapore to make money and run away, with workers left hanging.”
When asked for their stand on the 50 per cent payout, both the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) and FDAWU said the payout is part of the liquidation process and redirected ST to the liquidator.
Ms Budiman said the workers are receiving half of their owed salaries due to the lack of availability of funds for distribution.
In a separate statement issued just past midnight on March 31, MOM said that it has issued a stern warning to Twelve Cupcakes for the non-payment of salaries to 80 workers. MOM said its investigations revealed that Dhunseri Ventures Limited, the parent company of Twelve Cupcakes, had placed the company into liquidation on Oct 29, 2025, “after determining it could not meet its obligations on a sustainable basis due to an acute cash-flow shortfall”.
“MOM assessed that this was a case of genuine business closure arising from severe financial distress, rather than a deliberate attempt to evade salary obligations,” the ministry said in the statement, adding that it therefore determined “a stern warning was the appropriate enforcement action in this case”.
Dhunseri Ventures Limited, which is part of the Kolkata-based Dhunseri Group, bought Twelve Cupcakes from entertainment artiste Jaime Teo and her then husband, former radio DJ Daniel Ong, in 2016. The couple started the bakery chain in 2011.
FDAWU said: “Salary payouts are being made under the liquidation process and are subject to adjudication, including the verification of claims and the availability of funds. Any further developments will depend on the progress of the liquidation process.”
The liquidator has informed the majority of affected members of the amount payable to them, FDAWU said, while the remaining members are still in the process of receiving their notice of payment.
The union added that it has been assisting affected members, particularly on matters relating to unpaid salaries and navigating the liquidation process. “This included helping members understand and complete required documentation, filing proofs of debt with the liquidator, addressing queries on tax and procedural matters, and following up regularly on the progress of payouts.”
It has also provided financial assistance, including grocery vouchers, worth more than $9,000 to the affected workers.
Ms Budiman said she is liaising with the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) on tax clearance matters. According to the IRAS website, salary in lieu of notice or “notice pay” paid by employer to employee to compensate for early termination is taxable.
AAG Corporate Advisory held a virtual meeting on Nov 24, 2025, with creditors, discussing unpaid salaries and the company’s financial situation. The corporate advisory firm revealed then that close to 100 creditors were owed slightly more than $1 million.
Since then, more creditors have come forward to file proofs of debt and are still in the process of filing them, Ms Budiman said on March 31. “We have not tabulated the figures as they change daily with new claims being filed. We are currently prioritising payments to employees.”
Due to insufficient funds for distribution, the liquidator has not invited unsecured creditors, including suppliers and customers, to submit their claims and is “unlikely” to set a submission deadline.
A notice in the Government Gazette published on Feb 25 stated the deadline as March 11 for creditors, including former employees, to file their proof of debt.
In documents seen by ST in November 2025, the highest amount is owed to Tee Yih Jia Food Manufacturing at about $196,000, while others included baking supplies provider Phoon Huat, market expansion services firm DKSH Singapore and packaging company Skypac Packaging.
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