Competition Law in the Digital Age - Newsletter March 2026
5 March 2026
PIA Group International (PIA Group), a leading international provider of accountancy, advisory and audit services based in Ghent, Belgium, has entered into a strategic partnership with LADM Aymans Bacht (LADM). LADM is a multidisciplinary professional services firm with five offices and 130 employees in North Rhine-Westphalia. As part of its market entry into Germany, the PIA Group has established PIA Deutschland GmbH Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft and, as a shareholder of LADM, PIA Deutschland NRW GmbH Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft.
The PIA Group is one of the fastest-growing international tax advisory and audit groups, which is now extending its activities to Germany following its presence in Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. It is majority-owned by Baltisse, the family office of Belgian entrepreneur Filip Balcaen. Through their cooperation, the PIA Group and LADM aim to achieve market leadership in cross-border tax advisory and auditing services between Germany and the Netherlands.
Through the strategic partnership with LADM, the number of PIA Group employees has risen to just under 3,500. The group comprises a total of 75 firms across more than 150 locations, generating a combined annual turnover of around 500 million euros.
Hengeler Mueller advised the PIA Group on professional, regulatory and corporate law aspects of the transaction.
Hengeler Mueller team for PIA Group International
Professional Regulation/Regulatory: Prof. Dirk Uwer (partner), Manuel Joseph (associate, both Düsseldorf),
Corporate: Annika Clauss (partner), Christoph Roggemann (senior associate, both Frankfurt).
