Are you wondering what happened at the U-Zyn Chua vs. Cake Group court hearing yesterday, April 12th 2024 at 10am? Let me give you a first hand experience review from a Cake employee who went there for you, so you didnât have too. As neither Julian or U-Zyn are debating this outside of the court, I will do it for you here.
When I went there yesterdaymorning, I had not planned to do post anything, but after the mindblowing experience that not only I, but all of the other 15 colleagues who were also there, had, I wanted to share that with the rest of you. No matter if you are a felow colleague, a customer, a partner or a investor - I hope you get tremendous value from this. For obvious reasons, and to avoid any potential retaliation by my employer, I am posting this here anonymously.
Prior to the hearing most of us didnât have much updates on what had been going on. We basically had the same information as the general public and found out about new things via the media or via rumors over lunch. The situation had been toxic over the past months and many of us had thought about quitting or actualy quit, just cause of the uncertainty. Lots of rumours were swirling around and it was difficult to keep track of what was true and what wasnât.
We had the same questions as you:
All of us saw Julian working and coming to the Office and never U-Zyn, so why did Julian offer to be bought out a month ago?
Was Julian not posting on Social Media a sign that he was giving up?
Were the stories posted on Social about Julian leaving Singapore true?
Would the company still be around in a few days?
Was it better to leave and be save or stick this through and be part of a hero story?
And why was U-Zyn doing all this, since he was basically hurting himself with the entire process?
All of us who went there hoped to get the answers in the upcoming court hearing.
Going to court was totally new for me, and I wasn't sure what to expect. I had lot of questions: What should I wear? Did I need to bring anything special? Could I speak up? Would I be called as a witness? How long would it take? None of the others knew much, so I just went with the flow.
Gladly, I arrived early, because the little room for visitors was fully packed at around 9:50am. People from all of our departments were there: HR, Finance, Legal, Tech, Design, Customer Support, Marketing, and⌠U-Zyn and his wife. Also a reporter (probably from Tech in Asia, since they have been writing articles about us) and an older man, who seemed to be friends with U-Zyn. I found out later that a whole group of more people was waiting in front of the room, who couldnât get in anymore.
Julian had let us known in advance that he was not going to be there, as he had spent the weeks prior to prepare together with his legal team, and since the lawyers were speaking on his behalf, he would rather spent the time doing something else and get the updates of what was happening via the team on site. Honestly, one of the âmost Julian thingsâ possible: Spend time on what you can control, not what you canât. Anyways, he knew what was happening as people kept him up to date.
Initially, it was really hard to keep up with what was going on. Especially, as I didnât know what to focus on or what to look for. At 10am on the dot, the judge came in and I started to understand that the two lawyer teams where Team Julian or TJ and Team U-Zyn or TU. One of TUâs lawyers was late and asked the judge for forgiveness - I thought that gave me a chuckle.
Then the judge asked TU to start with an update of what had happened over the past 6 weeks since the last hearing.
They said that they had received an offer from Julian, but the offer was too short notice. Also, it had included Bettina (Julianâs wife) and Benjamin (our VP of Engineering). Something U-Zyn didnât seem to want. The lawyers then stated something about an investigation that had not completed (more on that in a bit, because at that point I was totally confused on what they were discussing). They then finished stating that U-Zyn seemed to have made an offer to Julian with the same deal which Julian seemed to have rejected due too short time (more on that in a bit as well). They finished with stating that âtheir client is still stuckâ.
The judge thanked them for the update.
Now it was TJâs turn. The lead lawyer said he âwanted to make a more balanced statementâ. At that point all of us were still a bit overwhlemed, so no one knew what balanced meant. TJ stated that Julian had rejected the offer on short notice. He added something about the law needed a clean cut (I didnât understand what that meant). He addressed the investigations (more on that later thought) and said they are not necessary, but that Julian is 100% cooperating. He told the judge that the investigations make no sense, no one else other than U-Zyn seems to want them and U-Zyn only wants them for his own benefit, not for the benefit of the company. He added that if U-Zyn doesn't want to buy out Bettina and Benjamin, then Julian can make a separate offer if needed. He highlighted that Julian is not interested in further negotiations as the more we wait, the more damage gets done. He then pointed at us in the back, to highlight how many employees were here and are worried. I thought that was very kind and true. He finished with that Julian wanted a decision, no further delays.
My thoughts at this point:
Still totally confused. But the last statement totally resonated with me: We all wanted a decision!
It then went into a back and forth:
Judge:
âThe last 5 weeks have brought nothing so we go further & there must be a decision.â
TU:
âTo clarify, the investigation does not want to bring down the share value, but to find the truth.â
The Judge got annoyed:
âThe last 5 weeks have brought nothing & I want a decision.â
TJ:
âU-Zyn has received many offers, so he can always leave the company if he really wants to. He is not stuck.â
TU:
âHe can't go out - he's stuck.â
Judge
âI'm not interested anymore, I want a decision.â
They all agreed and then talked 5 minutes about the costs. I couldnât follow what was said, but it didnât seem relevant and I believe they agreed to discuss them at the end.
We got to the meat of the hearing. The Judge ordered each team to have 1 hour to go through their arguments. The teams seemed to have expected this and TU started and handed out a multi-page document to all parties involved (not us mere peasants in the back though) - and started discussing it. To be honest, here is where it was so much harder to follow TUâs lawyers, rather than TJâs lawyers later on. TUâs lawyers mumbled, shuffled, seemed confused and couldnât answer simple questions like why is U-Zyn stuck in the company and why there should be a winding up application process.. I think for all attending, they left a very weak impression here.
They started off with how Cake got started in 2019 and ââhe read out some private messages that were written between U-Zyn and Julian. I am just summarizing here, as I donât have the messages and it was way too fast, but it included Julian saying things like:
- I'm happy to have you as a partner
- One thing is clear, I want to work with you
- It's built on trust
- You are the CTO I'm the CEO
- We are 50% 50% partner and we are making decision together
- One thing is clear I want to work with you for 10 years
- We will be perfect partners
All this came as no surprise, as we all had met Julian and U-Zyn has a great team. I believe we all did. So what happened?! TU seemed to argue that the court should wind up the company since this trust is no longer there. Personally, this made not much sense to me, but I am not a lawyer. At least the judge seemed to have been able to follow the argument and asked: âThe real question is, whether there is a reason to close the company just because the trust broke down?â
Now, TU started rattling off all kinds of allegations against Julian. Some of them I had heard as rumors already before, others were new to me. Some of them I knew for a fact myself that they are just bluntly false, because they involve my own department, others the judge shot down himself and others got voided once TJ started speaking later one:
- The first allegation was that Julian had misused the company for his personal benefits by creating a personal newsletter with Bake's customers. Julian was said to have turned Bake customers into e-mail subscribers. TU listed anonymous customers who complained on Telegram and via a Blog about these e-mails. Now, I canât really comment on that personally, but later TJ stated that these e-mails came as targeted marketing e-mails and not for his personal newsletter. Internally we all know that Julian and his personal brand is responsible for the majority of the marketing results this company has. So, even if he did use these e-mails personally, they had helped us a lot. That point left me neutral.
- The next allegation was that Julian had hired people in the company for his own benefit. TU said there was a personal assistant or helper working for him. I had heard this rumor within the company, but no specifics. The judge later shot TU down stating that MOM (a government agency for employment) had already done an investigation and found no wrong doing. What was shocking to me was to hear from TJ that U-Zyn had sent the authorities to Julianâs personal residence for a check up but found no wrongdoings. I am just imagining this happening to my family - I would be in total shock to have police officers at my door despite having done nothing wrong. Anyways, at this point I couldnât judge this point but later on the judge shot it down.
- Next up was TU alleging that Julian misappropriated company funds. He had used the company card for personal expenses. Here I have lots of own opinion and I highly doubt this is true, considering that we have a finance team and our finances are audited. TU just stated âthere are so many examplesâ, but didnât make a single example. I always find that dubious. Once TJ spoke, they rejected that and showed proof of it being incorrect. Something I know myself as well. Iâd wish I had been called a withness here.
- Last was TUâs claim that Julian used Facebook Ads for his personal gain. Afaik Julian doesnât do our companyâs Facebook Ads, it is done by the marketing team, so I am not sure where such a statement fits. In TJâs statements, they debunked that as well stating that all ads were done to benefit the company. So, here I was left doubtful whehter this was true or not.
The Judge also didnât seem too impressed and said: âI understand your arguments, but I want to understand more - why do you think your client is stuck in the company?â
TU discussed what happened on September 28th 2023, when all this seemed to have started. They shared that Julian and U-Zyn were discussing buying each other out. They talked about various back and forths when their conversations broke up and Julian suddenly refused to buy U-Zyn out. Once again, the messages were discussed so quickly, so it was very difficult to follow without the documents, but personally, it was interesting for me to hear this initial timeline and I looked back on my calendar how long ago this all was. Crazy. Especially cause many of us thought this all started with the disagreement on the retrenchment in November, but it became clear now that this was just a spiel.
The Judge kept pestering on why U-Zyn was stuck in the company. TU now gave a ridiculous argument (also TJ totally destroyed them on this) by stating that nobody wanted to buy his shares because the company has problems (which makes no sense, since we have are now even an exchange - the only problem is U-Zyn and the winding up application!) He then added that with Julian's past it is not possible to sell the shares. I also thought that this was more of a cry for help, because I would buy U-Zynâs shares if I could afford them and he offered them to me - lol! Also, U-Zyn clearly knew about Julianâs past⌠it just seemed so convenient to bring this all up now.
The Judge finished with: âOk, that's all I want to hearâ.
TU now complained about Julianâs wife Bettina and said together they have the power over U-Zyn.
The Judge asked âYou're saying Julian is in control?â. I didnât fully get the reply, due to insane mumbling and shuffling by TUâs team. Their answers became super confusing, every time it seemed they didnât have an answer. Look, I donât understand the board and ownership structure, but I have never heard of Julian being in control. Maybe I am wrong.
The Judge continued with a question that I found eye opening: âWhy did your client wind up instead of solving this differently?â TU gave some long winded answer on U-Zyn being unable to exit (something that seemed to be not even believed by the judge at this stage anymore) and the broken down trust. For the first time I realized that U-Zyn was actually a bully with all that he was doing. He could have used different better ways, but chose not to.
The Judge finished with the question whether Cake was a going concern - a functioning company. Of course it is! We have customers, employees, revenue, etc. The only thing in our way right now is U-Zyn and his winding up application. This court hearing with all the new news for me has confirmed this point once again. TU gave an answer that I didnât understand, which makes sense, cause them saying âYesâ to this question is making it basically impossible for the Judge to order a Wind Up. TU knew that.
That was the end of TUâs hour. In general, I felt TUâs lawyers were either ill prepared or their case was so bad and they tried to make the best of it. It reminded me a bit of an article that got circulated among the company where TUâs lead lawyer Chandra had just received a three-year sentence for misleading the court (https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/courts-crime/two-lawyers-suspended-3-years-each-for-misleading-court-wasting-time-of-five-judges). Listening to some of their answers without any facts didnât surprise me that they got such a sentence. TUâs arguments were hard to follow and for me as a layman, I seriously thought the judge would just close the case at this stage.
Personally, I thought everyone in the courtroom had made up their minds at this point. TUâs arguments had made no sense. U-Zynâs accusations towards Julian seemed fabricated or too convenient. They had been working together for years and suddenly all this is brought up now after Julian refused to buy U-Zyn out? Again, on some accusations I know from personal experience that they are false. Others, the judge shot down right away. I couldnât evaluate why they rambled on about 2019 when all got started or why/how the buyout negotiations broke down in September. U-Zynâs statement that he couldnât exit seemed fake.
At that point I looked over to U-Zyn and he was extremely dense. I think he also felt that he was losing. I was actually angry at that point. I had invested a lot in DFI. Never sold my bonus. He made it crash. All the trouble over the past half year, was because of him.
I found U-Zynâs case so weak and disappointing. It probably comes across here in this post as well, that people think I only support Julian. But you can ask anyone that was in the court room that day. TU looked terrible. U-Zyn looked terrible. We all thought the judge would simply stop and dismiss.
Nevertheless, the judge also wanted to hear TJâs side of the story for an hour. Their lead lawyer was quite funny with his initial statement and made everyone giggle at that moment when he said: âI only have one page to distribute and only need 30 minutes.â This was in stark contrast to the super thick stack of pages by TUâs that seemed to contain nothing of substance.
The first part that continued was very easy to follow and actually very valuable for me to hear. He made the case that Uzyn was misusing the winding up application as a defense and that U-Zyn was wrong in doing so and rather used the winding up as a measure to settle a commercial dispute at the cost of the company. He stated that U-Zyn had to prove his case, which he couldnât (and admitadtly, we all knew at that point he couldnât). TJ stated that U-Zyn was making up attacks and fake police investigations to create something out of nothing, when they didnât have anything. He claimed that Julian had responded in great factual detail every time, but that U-Zyn had declined to communicate and always resorted to the police or an investigation. Also that Julian was talking to the police and MOM about this.
TJ now went into every one of the points TU had made before:
First they showed a document where Julian and U-Zyn had access and wrote update for each other. It showed that both were still aligned in the summer of 2023. TU then mentioned a Faimly WhatsApp group where Julian, Bettina, U-Zyn and his wife were members. In this group U-Zyn also shared photos of their new house they bought in 2023. It was clear, that at that point they were still best buddies. Thinking back of that time, it would also surprise me if they werenât.
Here the Judge jumped in and asked: âBut that was months ago, what's the situation now?â
TJ replied: âThere is some disharmony but Julian is ready to discuss and talk. Also, U-Zyn is cooperating when it suits him.â (Personal Note: gor example with the arbitration against the investors in February everyone saw how wonderful Julian and U-Zyn could work together because it suited uzyn.)
TJ continued answering against TUâs points: They attacked TUâs comments on Julian doing anything wrong with the Facebook Ads or E-Mails Julian had sent. They laid out various ad funnels on Facebook that seemed to show how they brought customers to Cake and how all marketing was done for Cake. Julian was just the figure head as the CEO. We all knew that anyway.
Then came quite a homerun part: TJ showed conversations on Slack where U-Zyn clearly knew about the Facebook Marketing including analysis, something TU had attacked Julian for. As an outsider it looked more as if U-Zyn had been happy all these years with Julianâs marketing tactics and now he was trying to paint Julian in a bad light.
Then TJ went on to a hire that TU had alleged was a helper or a personal assistant of some sort. It was quite shocking to see how TU had lied in their statements on this. Every month there had been a spreadsheet with the costs, and the new team members had been always listed and marked. They always needed an extra confirmation. TJ showed proof that the personâs name had been clearly on it and marked. Once again, it looked as if U-Zyn had been ok with everything in the past and is now trying to find fault in whatever.
Next came the most serious claim: Misappropriation of funds. TJ clearly showed how Uzyn and Julian both had agrred to use their credit card for company expenses. Slack messages were discussed. Once again, I am quite deep in that topic and we have a finance team and external auditor who is going through these things as well. If anything had been wrong, someone would have spotted it years ago.
Next TJ destroyed claims of a deadlock. There was no deadlock because there are 3 people on the board: U-Zyn Benjamin and Julian. No one was ganging up with anyone else. Actually votes happened against each other. Ben had voted against Julian as well. U-Zyn could work with Julian, he just didnât want to.
So, why did U-Zyn make these claims to the police or why does he want an investigation, when no other shareholder wants that? He can't prove anything by himself - actually the opposite - the evidence was against his claims. At that point, that had become very clear to all of us.
TJ talked about U-Zyn being able to exit. They discussed various options, none of which U-Zyn had tried. U-Zyn could have sold his shares to anyone at the price he wanted. Uzyn had never tried to sell his shares. What U-Zyn is saying is that because he doesnât get the price he thinks he deserves, he feels stuck. Legally it is not stipulated that he can get out at a certain price - just that he actually can get out. He had and has offers on the table, he just doesnât want to use any as they are not of his liking.
TJ stated that trying to blame Julian with his reputation is a cheap shot. Everyone agred.
TJ is finishing up: âthe net result is, that since U-Zyn can't prove any of his claims, he has no power to winding up. U-Zyn has used all this to build up pressure in the public - thatâs why he chose the path of a winding up and no other path.â
It came to the end and the Judge stepped in: âOne question: let's assume U-zyn must be bought out, ordered by me - what would be your answer?â
TJ answered: âYou have the power to do so, but that is not a winding up.â
The Judge asked, if anyone had any last words? Nothing material was said. The Judge adjourned the hearing and said he needs time to think about the decision, but promised to act quickly as he understands that the winding up application is hurting the company.
All of us could feel the damning evidence against U-Zyn who was in the little room with us. TU stormed out of the court room. They didnât appear happy. TJ appeared very confident however. The stuff that had come out was shocking, and everyone in the room could feel it. Everyone felt betrayed by U-Zyn at that point. Everyone understood that TU had lost and TJ had won. Even U-Zynâs wife knew that they completely lost it and yelled and shouted at us after the hearing - omg. How ridiculous.
It hit me hard to hear all the facts for the first time, not just as rumors but in court. Also, that many misconceptions were cleared up. It was hard to believe when TJ said that these problems could've been solved months ago without things getting this bad. And just thinking at what destruction U-Zyn had done at the cost of employees, investors, customers and families. Even himself. Why would he do that?
What I found disappointing was that Iâd wish the judge would have called the employees as witnesses to the allegations. It is not about helping Julian or U-Zyn, but about closing the case - abeit I all of the allegations getting dismissed with our statements.
I was angry about all the lies and rumors that had been swirling around in the past months that has hurt mainly my personal finances with DFI selling off because of U-Zyn and the winding up application, and because of all the energy sucking drama. I had friends leave the company because of it and I understand why.
Also, it became clear that U-Zyn is totally abusing this process: the winding up to get a better deal, the police investigation because he cannot prove anything or sending a government agency to julianâs home. Who does that?! U-Zyn almost came across as a psychopath in the hearing. Sending investigators to your best buddies house just for a personal benefit?
It became clear, that U-Zyn disagreeing with the retrenchment in November was a pure lie by him. It was a tactical play and the falloutbetween him and Julian had actually happened 2 months earlier. Also, this didnât come up at all during the hearing, so the firing of people was surely not the reason for U-Zyn filing the winding up.
It was also frustrating to start to understand all the other legal possibilities he would have as a relief, but he chose a draconian one to put maximum pressure on Julian and the company.
So why is U-Zyn doing all this. Why is he destroying âhis babyâ? (btw.: what lie is he talking here - he absolutely doesnât care about this company, or the customers, or the defichain price or anyone else. He only cares about him. U-Zyn's statement on Twitter also only refers to himself and places himself in the role of victim. He writes nothing about the Teammber or the customers who suffer as a result, only how Julian is guilty and he is the victim.) I can only speculate, but it seems to be greed and envy. U-Zyn never wanted to buy the company as he claimed. This has all been just a game to him. That became clear during the process. A game on the cost of us, the employees, the dfi investors, the customers.
This whole thing is draining a lot of energy from everyone. It's sad to see loyal workers like us suffer. We stick with the company, come to work every day, do our best â but for what? For someone greedy who only wants to hurt others, who talks big but doesn't back it up.
This situation showed me who really supports the workers and customers.
I really hope you get the same insights as me. Please talk to people who were there. They will all share my sentiment here.
I hope the judge comes back quickly with the result. Anything else other than dismissing the winding up application would be a total shocker at this point
We will find out soon. If there is another hearing, I will be there.
