Singapore's Honestbee CEO Departs as Reports Suggest Company Failing



Singapore's Honestbee CEO Departs as Reports Suggest Company Failing



SINGAPORE - In just four years, Honestbee has managed to extend its grocery and restaurant delivery operations to 10,000+ stores throughout Asia. After a $15 million Series A round of fundraising in 2015, Honestbee has gone on to raise an additional $46 million. But now, according to news source Tech Crunch, the startup has begun to flounder—and may capsize. Last week, Tech Crunch broke the news that Honestbee was hemorrhaging money—at a rate of $6.5 million a month, and this week the company has reportedly fired its CEO and CO-Founder Joel Sng.

Honestbee has extended its grocery and restaurant delivery operations to 10,000+ stores throughout Asia, but now may be in trouble

Sng’s firing is the latest in a series of misfortunes that have beset the company, according to Tech Crunch. The company was forced to suspend its services in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, and the Philippines earlier this week and announced plans to layoff 10 percent of its staff.

The company confirmed Sng’s departure with Tech Crunch this Thursday, May 2 though, a day prior, Sng sent a statement denying his impending departure.

Joel Sng, CEO and Co-Founder, Honestbee“Guys, just want to let everyone know of the fake news article on Tech Crunch,” Sng stated. “I am not an abandon-ship person, and I will never leave the company to be rudderless.”

Brian Koo, Founder of Honestbee Investor Formation Group, will serve as interim CEO.

Brian Koo, Founder, Honestbee Investor Formation Group“I will be working with the executive team to conduct an in-depth review of our business to focus and align our strategic interests across our various geographies and verticals, and take the opportunity to articulate a clear vision for the future of Honestbee,” Koo noted.

To read Tech Crunch’s article in its entirety, click here.