Bench is back in play

More than a decade after calling out Medicare fraud at his company, a former healthcare CFO was awarded a multi-million dollar payout. Blowing the whistle might’ve been risky, but it paid off in the end — literally. Plus, don’t miss the latest in the Carvana saga as Hindenburg Research accuses the company of a “father-son accounting grift,” with allegations of sham deals and insider stock sell-offs. Carvana denies the claims.

In Today's Newsletter:
⚫ Bench acquired after sudden collapse
⚫ Will accountants be forced to accept AI?
⚫ SEC expands PCAOB authority
⚫ Does WFH contribute to more errors?

Turning numbers into opportunities

As a senior associate at KPMG, Sade Meeks is no stranger to solving complex problems and navigating high-pressure environments. But her work extends far beyond the office. With a knack for numbers and a heart for service, New York City-based Meeks has channeled her expertise into building The Scholarship Collective, a platform aimed at helping students overcome financial barriers to education. Meeks sat down with The Net Gains to share how she's using her career skills to impact future students. - Bianca Prieto

How has your accounting career shaped your approach to problem-solving and leadership? 

The most influential aspect of my accounting career surprisingly has nothing to do with numbers, policy or regulation. It's people. Mentorship is both an upward and downward gift. The mentorship of the associates on my team allows me to open my perspective to the bigger picture and evaluate my approach from different angles. This elevates the quality of my assessment and increases the scope of what I am able to learn from a problem or experience. Mentorship from the managers and partners above me allows me to challenge myself to think differently and pass that knowledge on to those below me on the team. Leadership is about empowerment and the leadership that mentorship teaches is that you can learn just as much from giving guidance as you can from receiving it. 

What skills or insights from your career have helped you in build The Scholarship Collective and reach an online audience of over 400,000? 

KPMG can be fast-paced and deadline-driven so each element in the overall "system" to provide client services must serve a purpose and be documented. Early on when I was the only one working on growing The Scholarship Collective, I documented everything I did. This habit of documentation inadvertently created my own "system" for growing my online audience that I can now delegate to my team. Public accounting is a continuous learning journey that warrants me as a professional to pivot and shift as the rules and regulations governing my clients' tax strategy change. The adaptability I rely on daily at KPMG mirrors the agility needed to grow an online audience amid changing social media algorithms. The habits and processes I’ve developed at work help me create a more efficient and effective system for The Scholarship Collective, enabling us to better serve students and families with our resources and services.

How can accounting professionals use their expertise to help reduce the financial barriers to higher education?

There are many organizations out there that have opportunities for accounting professionals to mentor students in various ways. An organization I love to volunteer for is Junior Achievement USA. Volunteering ranges from young students in elementary school all the way to high school so that professionals can touch each piece of their journey in financial literacy, career and more. 

Bench is back, but now under Employer.com

Bench, the accounting startup that abruptly shut down on December 27, is making a comeback under new ownership. Employer.com, a workforce management and business support solutions company, has acquired the platform, offering hope to thousands of small business owners who were locked out of their accounts just as tax season loomed.

The shutdown left customers stranded, unable to access critical financial data and services, while hundreds of Bench employees were terminated without notice or severance. For small business owners, many of whom depend on Bench’s services to manage their bookkeeping and prepare for taxes, the timing of the shutdown could not have been worse.

With the acquisition, Employer aims to restore stability to the platform and regain customer trust. While details about how the transition will unfold remain unclear, the move is being watched closely by the startup community as a reminder of the risks associated with heavily VC-backed companies managing essential business operations. For now, small business owners and former employees are left wondering what this acquisition means for the future of Bench and its services.

Why this matters: The sudden collapse of Bench may reveal deeper issues in the startup ecosystem. When VC-backed companies controlling critical business functions fail, the impact cascades. Thousands of small businesses lose access to vital services and data, especially devastating during tax season. (TechCrunch)

Could AI transform the $100B+ accounting industry?

Despite being a $100B+ market with millions of professionals, accounting still runs on outdated technology and is slow to adopt AI. Venture capital firm a16z discusses how labor shortages, mounting workloads and emerging AI capabilities are pushing the industry to an inflection point, creating opportunities for startup innovation.

Why this matters: The outdated state of accounting technology represents a massive opportunity for startups to modernize a critical industry worth. (a16z)

Say what? Unless you're one of the #cryptobros who already know what a stablecoin sandwich is or what atomic swaps means, this crypto-speak explainer from PYMNTS can help. We think...

Delete that: You know the value of keeping records secure and organized—so why let old, unencrypted chats linger on platforms like Facebook Messenger or Slack? Wired highlights how these forgotten messages could reveal more about your clients or yourself than you’d like. A digital cleanup might be overdue. 

Deja Vu? Another year, another round of “How was your holiday?” in the office. This Instagram reel by Paul Longley perfectly captures the predictability of those post-break conversations—and honestly, it’s painfully relatable.

Best/Worst: This Reddit thread is spilling the tea on the best and worst parts of accounting jobs, with favorites like mentoring new hires to IRS headaches or endless follow-ups. What would you add?

15.1%

The 2024 return posted by Wellington, one of billionaire investor Ken Griffin's hedge funds at Citadel, which all reported double digits. (CNBC)

• 5 ways AI will reshape accounting by 2030
• Carvana denies Hindenburg Research's claims
• SEC expands PCAOB's power to remove accounting firms
• Is remote work to blame for rise in accounting errors?
• Thomson Reuters buys SafeSend for $600M

Former Indiana health system CFO to receive whistleblower settlement

Community Health Network (CHN) will pay former CFO and COO Thomas Fischer $6.3M as part of a $145.7M settlement. It comes after the Indianapolis-based nonprofit healthcare provider agreed in 2023 to pay $345M to the United States following a Department of Justice investigation prompted by Fischer’s complaint, which alleged CHN violated the False Claims Act by knowingly submitting Medicare claims for services referred in violation of the Stark Law.

Why this matters: This case highlights how whistleblower provisions in healthcare fraud cases can lead to significant recoveries for both the government and individual whistleblowers. It also demonstrates the ongoing issue of Medicare fraud in healthcare systems and the effectiveness of qui tam lawsuits in exposing it. (CFO Dive)

The Net Gains is your one-stop shop for fresh, FREE accounting insights. You can reach the newsletter team at thenetgains@mynewsletter.co. We enjoy hearing from you.

Interested in advertising? Email us at newslettersales@mvfglobal.com

 If you've been enjoying the newsletter, don't keep it a secret. Share it with an industry colleague. (Copy the link here.)

The Net Gains is curated and written by Paul McCormack and edited by Bianca Prieto.