Cegid has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Shine in a deal that brings together one of Europe’s largest cloud software providers for finance, accounting, HR, and retail with one of the continent’s fastest-growing fintech unicorns. The combined company will form what the parties describe as Europe’s first fully integrated, cloud-native, AI-driven financial hub for small and medium-sized businesses and accountants.
With the acquisition, Cegid will expand its reach to more than one million SMBs and 15,000 accountants across major European markets, including France, Germany, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Belgium. Shine contributes over 400,000 SMB customers, a strong brand, and a scalable technology stack, enhancing Cegid’s position in the European SME software market.
The transaction accelerates Cegid’s strategic ambitions by unifying invoicing, accounting, payroll, business accounts and payments, tax, and reporting into a single platform designed to help small businesses reduce administrative workloads and increase operational efficiency. The companies emphasized that deep AI automation, integrated workflows, and a fully compliant environment for upcoming mandatory e-invoicing requirements will be core components of the new offering.
Cegid will also leverage Shine’s digital business accounts, payments, card, and finance capabilities to strengthen its financial services offering in France while facilitating the rollout of embedded finance products across Europe. This combination follows Cegid’s recent acquisitions of Primavera and Sevdesk and positions the company to support SMBs throughout all stages of their business lifecycle.
Accountants remain a central focus of Cegid’s long-standing strategy, and the acquisition is structured to enhance collaboration between accountants and their clients. The combined platform will provide real-time financial visibility, improved cooperation, and streamlined compliance at a time when accounting professionals are preparing for continent-wide digital reporting reforms.
Shine will operate within Cegid’s Small Business division once financial and regulatory approvals are completed. The companies expect the merger to strengthen Cegid’s ecosystem and significantly increase its ability to deliver advisory-driven value to accountants and entrepreneurs across Europe.
KEY QUOTES
“From founding Shine as a start-up to building it into a leading European unicorn, our mission has been driven by the ambition to radically remove complexity for businesses. Joining forces with Cegid allows us to uniquely bring that vision into a much broader community of millions of small businesses, and their accountants, across Europe. By combining the strongest SMB business accounts and payments platform with the most advanced accounting technology, we are creating Europe’s first truly unified financial hub, built to eliminate complexity for millions of businesses. Two category leaders. One unified platform. Europe’s new business finance powerhouse is here.”
Rico Andersen and Martin Hegelund, Co-Founders of Shine
“This combination is a strong affirmation and natural continuation of Cegid’s European growth journey. For more than four decades, Cegid has stood alongside accountants as trusted partners to small businesses, and with Shine we are strengthening that bond for the next digital era. Cegid’s cloud and AI leadership together with Shine’s highly innovation-driven platform that integrates leading digital finance capabilities, creates a powerful platform that will help millions of small businesses and accountants prepare for and seize the enormous growth and value creation opportunities inherent in the next decade of digital transformation, particularly with the shift to e-invoicing across Europe. We are proud to continue supporting Cegid’s leadership team as it builds one of Europe’s flagship technology companies, and this combination represents a significant investment in Cegid’s long-term relationship with the accounting profession and its critical role in the success of millions of small businesses.”
Christian Lucas, Chairman of Cegid and Managing Partner at Silver Lake
“Founded over 40 years ago, Cegid has always supported the growth and success of small businesses and their accountants. This combination reinforces that alliance – ensuring accountants remain at the centre of the relationship between small businesses and their advisors, by giving them a shared digital environment with real-time access to financial data, improved collaboration, and simplified compliance. This merger is about equipping accountants for the next generation of small businesses. With Shine, we are reaffirming Cegid’s long-term commitment to CPAs and to the future of the French accountancy ecosystem.”Jean-Michel Aulas, Founder of Cegid
“This merger with Shine is a natural step in Cegid’s mission to simplify and accelerate the growth of our Small Business division. Together, we will offer entrepreneurs a combined platform that unites payment, accounting, and payroll – helping them focus on what matters most: building their business.”
Bruno Vaffier, General Manager of Cegid
“Our investment in Shine is one that we are immensely proud of, as we saw the company grow from a start-up with only a few million in revenue into a European leader and unicorn. I am also grateful for the strong partnership and friendship with the two founders, Rico and Martin.”
Gilbert Kamieniecky, Head of Investcorp Technology Partners and Chairman of Shine
