Nigerian HR tech firm Bento has temporarily ceased operations amid allegations of tax and pension irregularities. This follows the resignation of CEO Ebun Okubanjo and the layoff of the engineering team after protests over unpaid January salaries.
In an email to stakeholders, the company’s board stated, “We will proceed to temporarily shut down operations to bring stability back to the company.” They emphasized the importance of clients refraining from funding their payroll positions during this period, expressing confidence in the eventual restoration of normalcy.
The situation escalated in January when Bento laid off its 10-person tech team after employees refused to continue working until they received their overdue January salaries. Despite Okubanjo resigning on January 30, he informed employees the following day that salaries would be “strategically delayed” to prioritize the processing of client payroll. In response to the financial difficulties, Bento employees collectively agreed to halt operations until their salaries were paid.
The layoffs severely impacted Bento’s ability to operate, particularly in terms of payroll processing for its clients. At least three clients publicly reported on social media that Bento had failed to process payroll for their employees in the first week of February. The company, which had previously automated salary disbursements, has been forced to manually process payments since the beginning of 2024 due to ongoing issues with payment processors and challenges in reconciling underfunded accounts.
In an email to its customers, Bento stated that it has now paid staff their January salaries and has “reactivated key staff to aid in bringing core functionality back online to clear outstanding payroll obligations triggered by our clients.” However, the company continues to face difficulties in disbursing payments for some customers.
Bento has announced plans to refund clients for whom it cannot process salary disbursements by the close of business on Tuesday. The combination of payroll processing challenges, the abrupt resignation of the CEO, and allegations of financial discrepancies—including the failure to remit tax and pension payments—casts a shadow over the company’s future. Nevertheless, in their communication to customers, Bento’s board expressed optimism, stating they are “confident of the restoration of normalcy soon.”
