Beleaguered heritage company My Community owes National Arts Council $330,000

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SINGAPORE – Beleaguered heritage firm My Community Limited, which is currently undergoing liquidation, owes the National Arts Council (NAC) about $330,000, The Straits Times has learnt.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) told ST on July 24 that the company has an outstanding debt with the Cultural Matching Fund, which is administered by the council.

According to documents prepared by My Community Limited’s liquidator – Alton Murray Chun-Wen Poon of Perun Consultants (Singapore) – the NAC is owed a total of $330,675.75 by the company, which on July 3 appointed Poon to be its provisional liquidator.

Poon’s appointment was confirmed following a creditors’ meeting that was held virtually on July 24.

As at July 3, 11 creditors who are owed a total of $492,109.65 by My Community Limited had been identified, with the NAC owed the largest sum by far. The next largest creditor on the list, Red Flare Productions, is owed $32,948.50.

The MCCY spokesperson said that the monies owed to the NAC were disbursed as grants to My Community Limited in 2021 and 2024.

The spokesperson added that the company subsequently failed to fulfil the grant requirements, without going into further details.

She added that the Cultural Matching Fund “decided to recover the monies in November 2025 to ensure that public funds are used in accordance with grant conditions”.

“We will continue to participate in the liquidation process, to pursue recovery of public monies,” said the spokesperson.

The Cultural Matching Fund provides matching grants for private cash donations to registered charities in the arts and heritage sector.

My Community Limited, a company limited by guarantee, was registered on Jan 3, 2020 and subsequently registered as a charity on May 8 that year.

It is linked to My Community, a heritage organisation that was registered as a society on Aug 26, 2010 and was known for free guided tours.

The liquidator Poon told ST on July 24 that My Community Limited’s creditors have filed claims totaling about $800,000.

Poon added that the sum includes a claim of $281,850 from the company’s director, Kwek Li Yong, for loans personally extended to the company to support its operations.

Kwek was on Oct 4, 2025, arrested for suspected forgery, and investigations into the case are ongoing.

Poon said that the quantum of claims “is expected to evolve as additional creditors file their claims”.

“All claims remain subject to adjudication and there is currently no deadline imposed for creditors to submit their claims,” he added.

Those who attended the virtual creditors’ meeting on July 24 told ST that Kwek had cited a reduction in donations in recent years, as well as a lack of long-term funding from the Government for costs such as labour and rental, as reasons for the company’s financial circumstances.

Creditors were told that My Community Limited had about $1,700 in current assets, and said they were not optimistic of recovering the sums that they were owed.

One creditor who was not on the list of 11 that had been compiled as at July 3 was communications agency Socium.

A director at Socium told ST that My Community Limited had on September 30, 2024 signed a contract worth about $80,000 for the agency to provide public relations services for two months.

Payment for the services was to be made in three tranches over three months, with the first due on Oct 14, 2024. However, the director said that after signing the contract, My Community Limited requested for variations to it, including changes to the payment terms.

Before receiving any payment from My Community Limited, Socium paid for services that were part of the contract, such as production fees for a promotional video that was shot from Oct 3 to Oct 9.

On Oct 23, 2024, Socium formally terminated its contract with My Community Limited, said the director. This was after My Community Limited’s Kwek responded to payment reminders by claiming credit for the work done by Socium and refusing to pay.

Subsequently, Socium sent a letter of demand to My Community Limited on Nov 1 to recover more than $20,000 for the services rendered in September and October.

The director said Socium’s lawyers last heard from My Community Limited on Jan 21, 2025, and that the company has continued to deny all claims in the letter of demand.

Another creditor, who declined to be named, said he hopes that the NAC will take the lead on behalf of all creditors to ensure that as much money is recovered from My Community Limited as possible.

“They have the resources to mount a challenge, and it is in their interest to ensure that something like that does not happen again to Singaporeans, other small and medium-sized enterprises, and the Government,” the creditor said.

Poon said the next steps in the liquidation include securing My Community Limited’s books and records, taking control of and realising any remaining assets, and conducting investigations into the company’s affairs.

“Any distribution to creditors, if any, will depend on the eventual realisation of assets and the adjudication of claims,” he said.