A Nigerian HR technology startup, known for facing allegations of tax and pension irregularities, has decided to temporarily cease its operations. This action comes after the founder and CEO resigned, and the engineering team was laid off following a protest over unpaid January salaries.
The company’s board communicated through an email that they are shutting down operations temporarily to restore stability and advised clients not to fund payroll positions during this period. They are optimistic about returning to normal soon.
Employees at the startup halted operations due to delayed salaries in January. Despite the founder’s resignation, there were challenges in processing salaries for clients. The company has been manually processing payments since 2024 due to issues with payment processors and underfunded accounts.
Although the startup has paid staff their January salaries and reactivated key staff to address payroll obligations, it is still facing difficulties in disbursing payments to some clients. Plans are in place to refund clients if salaries cannot be disbursed by a specified deadline.
The uncertainty surrounding the company’s future, including payroll processing challenges, CEO resignation, and financial discrepancies, has raised concerns. However, the company remains hopeful for a return to normalcy, as indicated in its communication to customers.