YouTuber Jimmy Donaldson, known as MrBeast, is not officially involved in bids to purchase TikTok’s United States operations.This clarification follows reports that suggested he was part of an investor group led by Jesse Tinsley, founder of Recruiter.com Ventures.Speculation arose after Donaldson posted on X on Jan. 13, joking about buying TikTok to prevent its ban.Subsequent reports hinted at his involvement in an all-cash acquisition effort, which was supported by a statement from a law firm connected to the group.However, Matthew Hiltzik, Donaldson’s representative, stated on Jan. 22 that he has no exclusive agreements with any buyers and is in discussions with multiple parties.The investor group’s details, including the bid amount, remain unclear, and Tinsley’s representative has not commented on the situation

GeekWire’s startup coverage documents the Pacific Northwest entrepreneurial scene. Sign up for our weekly startup newsletter , and check out the GeekWire funding tracker and venture capital directory .After a surprise shutdown that shocked customers, Vancouver, B.C.-based startup Bench Accounting will be acquired by Employer.com.The companies made the announcement Monday morning on their websites. “Your service will continue seamlessly with the platform you’ve always trusted,” reads a message on Bench’s homepage.TechCrunch reported that Bench customers will be able to “port their data or keep their service under new ownership.”Employer.com is based in San Francisco and offers workforce management software for payroll, compliance, and more.Jesse Tinsley, a Bay Area entrepreneur focused on HR tech, said he acquired the Employer.com domain last month. Tinsley also runs Recruiter.com, which is publicly traded, and BountyJobs.Employer.com put out a press release last month noting that Recruiter.com Ventures was consolidating its portfolio of brands under Employer.com. The company did not appear to offer accounting services prior to its planned acquisition of Bench.Bench announced Friday that it was abruptly closing.The company, which described itself in September as North America’s “largest bookkeeping service for small businesses,” raised more than $100 million since launching in 2012, including a $60 million round in 2021. It employed more than 650 people at the time.The shutdown sparked backlash from customers who were left scrambling just before the year wraps up.Raman Morris, an entrepreneur in Seattle who is launching a new preschool business, said she signed up for Bench two weeks ago and made advance payments that extend through 2025.“I don’t know how many customers they did this with and just ran off with their money,” she told GeekWire.Matt Palackdharry, founder of Kinetic Talents, said he also just signed up for Bench

Bench, the VC-backed accounting startup that left thousands of customers locked out of their accounts after it suddenly shut down last week, will be acquired by Employer.com for an undisclosed price in a last-minute deal, TechCrunch has exclusively learned.The San Francisco-based HR tech company Employer.com focuses on payroll and onboarding, in contrast to Bench, which specializes in accounting and tax. Employer.com’s chief marketing officer Matt Charney told TechCrunch the company will revive Bench’s platform and provide instructions for customers to login and obtain their data imminently. Customers will be given the choice to port their data or keep their service under new ownership, Charney told TechCrunch. Bench’s previous recommendation to file for a six month extension with the Internal Revenue Service to look for a new bookkeeper is no longer needed if customers decide to stay on, Employer.com confirmed.Bench’s website, which is still offline at the time of writing, previously touted more than 35,000 “American small business owners” as customers, according to an archived copy. Bench’s website currently reads: “More information on how to continue your services will be available soon.” The startup’s abrupt shutdown on Friday caused chaos, with customers finding themselves locked out of their accounts right as tax season is set to begin, and emails from TechCrunch to Bench employees bouncing back. TechCrunch confirmed the acquisition with a Bench board member. Neither Bench nor Employer.com would comment on the acquisition price.Employer.com is a new company: Its CEO, Jesse Tinsley announced his acquisition of the domain name in November for about $450,000. Tinsley is behind a host of HR, onboarding, and recruiting-related businesses, including Recruiter.com and BountyJobs