Bento Africa has collapsed in a manner that exposes the disorder behind its operations. What began as accusations of tax and pension fraud have spiralled into mass layoffs, internal confusion, and withheld salaries.
The company now exists in a state of uncertainty, with its entire tech team dismissed, payroll operations stalled, and leadership disputes playing out in real time.
The first signs of trouble emerged when businesses discovered Bento had collected employee PAYE taxes and pensions but failed to remit them. Receipts issued by the company turned out to be fraudulent, and clients confirmed that their payments had never reached regulatory bodies.
The Lagos Inland Revenue Service (LIRS) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) opened investigations, but Bento’s leadership dismissed the accusations. Ebun Okubanjo, the company’s CEO, insisted there had been no wrongdoing, yet a week later, he announced his resignation.
The resignation did not provide clarity. Bento released a statement claiming investors were retrieving credentials from Okubanjo, but, according to a report, at least two investors said they had never seen such a statement. Meanwhile, Okubanjo continued communicating with employees, giving directives as if he had never stepped down.
When January salaries were delayed, he told employees to wait until Bento had processed all pending payrolls.

The situation worsened when multiple clients, starting from multiple tweets on X, revealed they had received fake tax receipts from Bento. These businesses had trusted the company to handle their payroll obligations, expecting regulatory payments to be processed accurately.
Instead, many found themselves in violation of tax laws, with regulators demanding payments they had already made to Bento. Some companies cut ties immediately, while others have attempted to recover lost funds.
Mass layoffs disguised as resignations
Frustration escalated when Bento’s 10-person tech team refused to work without pay. They demanded clarity on their salaries, but instead of resolving the issue, the company reportedly treated their protest as voluntary resignations. Employees were locked out of their work emails and dismissed without notice.
Okubanjo’s response to the layoffs reflected the same attitude that had defined his handling of the fraud allegations—avoidance and deflection. He claimed salary delays were a “strategic measure” in anticipation of resignations, then suggested redistributing unpaid wages among employees willing to remain. “If we end up with two employees making 3 million each, that is it,” he wrote in internal messages. No one accepted the offer.
The layoffs have stalled Bento’s ability to process payroll. The company had already been struggling with payment processor issues and underfunded accounts, forcing it to manually handle transactions. Now, with its entire tech team gone, payroll operations have ground to a halt.
Bento sent an email to customers claiming that transactions had been intentionally paused to allow for a transfer of credentials, but internally, there is no evidence of a structured transition.
Customers dependent on Bento for payroll have been left scrambling. Several businesses reported that salary payments failed without explanation, forcing them to find alternative solutions. Some employers discovered their workers had not been paid for weeks, despite Bento deducting funds from their accounts. The company’s silence only deepened the confusion.


One company mentioned that they paid the taxes, but pensions for its employees are still pending because Bento ‘pocketed’ the money.
Toxic work culture and a pattern of neglect
The company’s internal turmoil did not begin with financial mismanagement.
In 2022, Technext reported on allegations of a toxic work environment at the company, with multiple employees accusing Okubanjo of verbal abuse, denial of leave requests, and abrupt terminations without due process. A culture of fear and instability defined daily operations, with employees allegedly pressured into working under harsh conditions.
Following that report, Okubanjo issued an apology and stepped back from personnel decisions, but no real changes followed. The same patterns of abrupt firings, erratic leadership, and disregard for employee well-being remained in place. The fraud allegations and subsequent layoffs fit neatly into a larger narrative of mismanagement and ethical negligence.
Bento’s work culture had long been described as hostile and unpredictable. Employees recounted being fired over Slack messages and emails, with some saying they had no idea why they had been dismissed. Meetings often escalated into shouting matches, and those who questioned decisions were removed without warning.
Some employees learned about the recent tax fraud allegations on social media, a reflection of the opacity that has defined Bento’s operations. One employee reportedly admitted to removing the company from his LinkedIn profile, worried about the reputational damage. Others who had stayed, hoping for stability, found themselves abruptly cut off.


Leadership in disarray
Bento’s leadership failed to address these problems, instead deepening them with unclear messaging and erratic decision-making. Okubanjo’s resignation should have marked a shift in direction, yet he continued running operations from the shadows.
The company had no clear plan for handling client concerns, regulatory investigations, or internal operations. The fraud allegations had already driven away major clients, yet Bento failed to implement damage control. As complaints mounted, Bento’s leadership chose silence over accountability.
The fallout and unresolved issues
Bento now finds itself in a precarious position. The fraud allegations remain under investigation, with LIRS and the EFCC continuing their probe into tax and pension irregularities. Some of the company’s former clients have already taken legal action, while former employees have demanded compensation for unpaid wages.
With Bento remaining silent and no clear resolution in sight, affected businesses are turning to the tax authorities for answers. One company, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they are ‘just looking forward’ to the findings of the investigation, suggesting that companies are relying on external regulators rather than expecting any accountability from Bento itself.
The company’s handling of its financial crisis has raised broader concerns about transparency in Nigeria’s startup ecosystem. Bento’s ability to operate for years without scrutiny highlights weaknesses in regulatory enforcement. Businesses trusted the company to process payroll without verifying whether remittances were made.


For now, Bento’s operations remain frozen. The company has no functional tech team, no clear leadership structure, and no ability to process payroll. Employees remain locked out of their accounts, and customers continue searching for answers. The promises made by Bento’s leadership—whether regarding salaries, operational continuity, or compliance—have consistently failed to materialise.
The damage extends beyond Bento’s immediate circle. Companies that rely on its payroll system now face regulatory penalties and financial uncertainty. Employees who depended on Bento for salary processing have been left unpaid. Former staff members, dismissed without warning, remain uncertain about whether they will ever receive owed wages.
Bento’s failure represents more than just a collapsed startup. It stands as a case study of how unchecked leadership, poor financial oversight, and toxic workplace culture can destroy a company from within. The company’s unravelling was not caused by a single misstep but by a sustained pattern of deception, deflection, and dysfunction.