Bento, a Nigerian payroll startup, laid off its entire 10-person tech team last Friday after they protested a delay in their January salaries. The decision came just a week after the company faced allegations of failing to remit taxes and pensions, along with forging tax receipts for Lagos State customers.
Founder Ebun Okubanjo, who denied the accusations, resigned on January 30. However, a statement allegedly from investors claimed the company was retrieving platform credentials from him. At least two investors later denied any knowledge of that statement.
Despite his resignation, Okubanjo continued communicating with employees on January 31. That same day, he informed them that salaries would be “strategically delayed” until the company processed all pending payroll for customers. His announcement caused concern among workers, many of whom were already struggling financially.
“It’s January, and everyone is going through it financially,” an affected ex-employee wrote in a Google Chat message reviewed by TechCabal. “Even amidst all the chaos, we’re still here working without knowing where the company is headed. The team has collectively agreed to halt all operations until we get paid.”
Okubanjo defended the delay, saying Bento had a history of prompt salary payments. He claimed the postponement was a strategy to anticipate resignations due to the ongoing controversy. When employees refused to continue working, he deactivated their emails and treated their protest as resignations.
He then made an unusual offer: he would divide the withheld salaries among any employees who chose to stay and process payroll. “If we end up with two employees making 3 million each, that is it,” he wrote in a Google Chat message. No one accepted the offer, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Bento’s tech team was mostly made up of young engineers who had been with the company for about a year. The last of the original tech team members resigned in 2024.
With no engineers left, payroll processing for Bento’s customers has been disrupted. The company had previously automated salary payments but had to switch to manual processing in 2024 due to payment processor issues and underfunded accounts. “With all the engineers gone, there is almost no one to run payroll,” said a company employee.
Despite this, Bento told customers via email that it had intentionally paused transactions to facilitate a transfer of platform credentials from Okubanjo to an interim overseer.
One employee, who spoke anonymously for fear of retaliation, said he first learned about the tax fraud allegations on social media. The news left him worried about his career.
“I even took the company off my LinkedIn for a while,” he admitted. Other employees shared similar concerns and were shocked when Okubanjo deactivated their work emails without warning.
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