Bench shuts down, leaving thousands of businesses without access to accounting and tax docs

Bench, a Canada-based accounting startup that offered 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. 

The move is a shock to current and former customers. 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, although he no longer uses the platform. He learned about the shutdown from TechCrunch. 

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