Bench Accounting, a Vancouver B.C.-based startup serving thousands of small businesses, abruptly shut down on Friday. The company’s homepage has a “Notice of Service Closure” message with a short FAQ.

Vancouver-based bookkeeping service Bench Accounting has announced its sudden closure, putting hundreds of staff out of work and forcing clients to seek alternatives just days from the end of the year.

The previous homepage of the Bench website was replaced Friday with a “ notice of service closure ” that said its platform was no longer accessible and that customers can expect to receive more information about how to access their data by Dec.