M&A

Overview

M&A covers any transaction that changes lasting control over a company, from a full takeover to a majority buyout or the sale of a division. In Belgium such a transaction only has to be notified to the Belgian Competition Authority when the parties together turn over more than EUR 100 million in the country and at least two of them each reach EUR 40 million there, and deals that clear the bar are usually waved through in 15 business days under the simplified procedure, as with the 2026 buyout of Easi Corporate SA by Apheon Midcap Buyout VI SCSp. The clearest example is axi, where Bart Verhelst leads a group assembled from Netleaf, Core ICT, Spikes and OQuila, with IceLake taking a principal shareholding to fund the next round.

Stated facts & numbers

• Entities tied to this concept on the wiki: 28, of which 15 people and 0 companies
• Videos discussing it: 97 across Belgian tech and business channels
• Belgian merger notification threshold: Combined turnover in Belgium above EUR 100 million, and at least two parties each above EUR 40 million in Belgium
• Simplified procedure clock: Clearance decision within 15 business days
• Recent Belgian tech concentration: Apheon Midcap Buyout VI SCSp / Easi Corporate SA, simplified procedure, 2026
• Buy-and-build example: axi, led by Bart Verhelst since 1 January 2025, built from Netleaf, Core ICT, A&M, Spikes and OQuila, with IceLake as principal shareholder
• Founder exit example: jobtoolz, Kortrijk, acquired by ISH Holding in July 2023
• Counterweight: odoo, founded and still led by Fabien Pinckaers, scaled without a sale to a strategic acquirer
• Most quoted line on integration: "Maar het integreren is het echte werk", Thomas Van Eeckhout