In the Benelux ~80% of SME owners thinking about a transfer start with the same conversation partner: the accountant who has done the books for twenty years. Only later, when direction firms up, do M&A advisors and brokers join. That order has not changed in thirty years.
Three design principles
- The interface is for the advisor, not the owner. Ten minutes to a defensible valuation, not half a day building Excel.
- Integration with existing tools is non-negotiable. Silverfin, Octopus, Yuki, Exact, Twinfield. Sit on top of them, do not replace them.
- The methodology must defend the advisor, not replace them. The audit trail logs every choice with a name, date and rationale next to it.
Why the Benelux can do this now
- Digitally mature accountancy. Silverfin in BE, Yuki/Twinfield in NL. Penetration above European average.
- Unified reporting standards. RGS in NL, BE-GAAP/MAR in BE. These make cross-sector benchmarking technically possible.
- Open registry infrastructure. KBO in Belgium, KVK in the Netherlands. API access to company master data, NACE/SBI codes, filings.
How Upswitch is built around this
Free tier for orientation and accounting connection, Starter (€1,490/yr) for 20 active client workflows, Pro (€2,990/yr) for 50 active client workflows plus portfolio automation. Silverfin, Octopus, Yuki, Exact, Twinfield wired directly into the workflow. The owner has a minimal entry path; 80%+ of serious usage runs through accountants and M&A advisors in our partner network. Built for advisors first by intent, not as an afterthought. The same data infrastructure powers the Upswitch Index per business type, every advisor benchmarks every client valuation against sector- and country-specific bands automatically.
Frequently asked questions
Does this work for owners without an accountant?
A minority. For them the PLG free tier and direct self-service is open. The majority benefits more from going through their existing advisor, who is already involved early.
Which integrations are live today?
Silverfin (BE), Octopus (BE), Yuki (NL), Exact (NL/BE), Twinfield (NL). Chart of accounts auto-maps to our taxonomy via RGS or BE-GAAP/MAR.
How do your prices compare to traditional M&A fees?
€1,490 to €2,990 per firm per year, with team collaboration included and 20 to 50 active client workflows, vs. €15k to €100k per deal for a traditional M&A advisor. Complementary economics. We serve volume; brokers and M&A advisors work on top of the infrastructure on the deals where their expertise matters.
Upswitch is the M&A infrastructure layer for the European SME economy. Defensible valuations and structured transaction matching for the lower mid-market.
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Live multiples for the sectors this article touches
Each link opens the live published EV/EBITDA, EV/Revenue and P/E bands per business type. Anchored at the right parent industry on the Upswitch Index.
B2B services
Accountant-led valuation distribution dominates B2B-service SME succession.
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Manufacturing
Family manufacturers go to their accountant first; the integration layer must serve them.
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Healthcare practices
Practice owners use their accountant as primary M&A advisor for succession decisions.
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