The bench closes and thousands of businesses are left without accounting and tax documents

Canada-based accounting startup Bench, which offers software for small and medium-sized businesses, has abruptly shut down. his website.

“We regret to inform you that as of December 27, 2024, the Bench platform will no longer be available,” the notice read. “We know this news is sudden and may cause disruption, so we are committed to helping Bench customers with the transition.”

Except for a notice, the company’s entire website is currently offline, leaving thousands of businesses stranded. According to a snapshot, Bench said it had more than 35,000 US customers in the hours before the shutdown. Hosted by the Internet Archive.

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

The move comes as a shock to current and former customers. Justin Metros, co-founder and CTO RadiatorAlthough he no longer uses the platform, he said his company’s accounting and tax records for years are still stored on the site. He learned about the shutdown from TechCrunch.

“I’ve never seen anyone shut down like that,” Metros said. “This is crazy.”

Others air their concerns on social media a post “As a customer who just moved from QuickBooks to Bench, I’m nervous.”

Bench’s notice says its clients must provide the IRS with a 6-month extension to “find the right accounting partner.” It also says customers will be able to download their data until December 30, and will have until March 2025 to do so.

The notice advises customers to move Kick, the new accounting startup announced Raised $9 million in seed round led by OpenAI and General Catalyst in October 2024. Conrad Wadowski, CEO and Founder of Kick, placed A message to former Bench users on LinkedIn about how Kick “works to put your finances back in your hands.”

Bench did not respond to requests for comment by TechCrunch at press time. Wadowski did not directly respond to TechCrunch’s question about the details of any possible deal or other business relationship with Bench before the shutdown.

“As you can see on the website, we’re moving fast and ready to support Bench’s many customers with their accounting needs,” he told TechCrunch.

Founded in 2012, Bench employed more than 600 people image of his About page. The startup has been backed by investors including IT firm Sage, Contour Venture Partners and Altos Ventures. it happened is also a member TechStars accelerator.

Bench last raised $60 million in Series C round in 2021. Its co-founder and CEO Ian Crosby left shortly after.

Crosby Posted on LinkedIn Today, he claimed he was “very sad” to see Bench close, claiming it has been replaced by unnamed board members who want to bring in “a new professional CEO” to take Bench in a different direction.

“I hope Bench’s story serves as a warning to VCs who think they can ‘improve’ a company by replacing its founder. It never works,” Crosby wrote.