Bench Closure Leaves Thousands of Businesses Without Accounting and Tax Documents

Bench, a Canada-based accounting startup offering software-as-a-service for small and medium-sized businesses, has abruptly shut down, according to a notice posted on its website.

“We regret to inform you that as of December 27, 2024, the Bench platform will no longer be accessible,” the notice reads. “We know this news is abrupt and may cause disruption, so we’re committed to helping Bench customers navigate through the transition.”

The company’s entire website is currently offline except for the notice, leaving thousands of businesses in the lurch. Bench touted having more than 35,000 U.S. customers just hours before it was shut down, according to a snapshot saved by the Internet Archive.

Bench, which had raised $113 million from high-profile backers such as Shopify and Bain Capital Ventures, developed a software platform to help customers store and manage their bookkeeping and tax reporting documents.

Justin Metros, the co-founder and CTO of Radiator, said years of his company’s accounting and tax documents are still stored on the site. “I’ve never seen anyone just shut down like that,” Metros said. “That’s crazy.”

Others aired their concerns on social media, with one posting, “as a customer, I’m pissed,” having just migrated from QuickBooks to Bench.

Bench’s notice advises customers to file a six-month extension with the IRS and mentions they can download their data by December 30, with access until March 2025.

The notice recommends migrating to Kick, a new accounting startup that raised $9 million in October 2024. Kick’s CEO, Conrad Wadowski, posted a message on LinkedIn about assisting Bench users in recovering their financial data.

Founded in 2012, Bench employed more than 600 staff, according to a snapshot of its “About” page. The startup raised $60 million in a Series C round in 2021. Its co-founder, Ian Crosby, posted on LinkedIn expressing his sadness over the shutdown, alleging he had been replaced by board members looking to bring in a “new professional CEO.”

“I hope the story of Bench goes on to become a warning for VCs that think they can ‘upgrade’ a company by replacing the founder. It never works,” Crosby have wrote.