Cegid, a European leader in cloud software for finance, accounting, HR, and retail, and Shine, a European fintech unicorn providing digital business accounts and payments, e-invoicing, accounting, and payroll software to small businesses, have entered a definitive agreement to merge, aiming to create a leading European software provider for businesses and their accountants.
This transformational combination seeks to establish Europe’s first fully integrated, cloud-native, and AI-driven financial hub for SMBs and accounting professionals. The unified platform will bring together market-leading capabilities in e-invoicing, accounting, digital business accounts and payments, tax, HR, and payroll. The merger accelerates Cegid’s European growth strategy, expanding its reach to over one million SMBs and 15,000 accountants across France, Germany (DACH), Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Belgium. Shine contributes more than 400,000 SMB customers, a strong brand, and a scalable technology stack to Cegid’s portfolio.
Both companies share a vision of empowering entrepreneurs by simplifying business operations. The combined financial hub is designed to reduce administrative time for small business owners through a single platform covering invoicing, accounting, payroll, business accounts and payments, tax, and reporting. It will feature deep AI automation for reduced administrative tasks and valuable insights, a superior user experience with intuitive workflows, compliance with mandatory e-invoicing and digital reporting across Europe, and a seamless collaboration model between SMBs and accounting professionals.
This combination marks a strategic advancement in Cegid’s ambition to become the preferred financial copilot for SMBs and accountants across Europe. Following recent acquisitions such as Primavera and Sevdesk, the addition of Shine significantly expands Cegid’s ability to support businesses throughout their lifecycle. Shine’s digital business accounts, payments, card, and finance capabilities are expected to enhance Cegid’s offering in France and accelerate the rollout of embedded finance solutions in other European geographies.
The merger also reinforces Cegid’s long-standing commitment to accounting and tax professionals. With Shine, Cegid intends to extend and enhance its suite of tools for accountants, enabling improved real-time collaboration with clients and paving the way for value-adding advisory capabilities. The combined platform will support SMBs and accountants through the transition to mandatory e-invoicing and digital reporting reforms across Europe, by providing a compliant and connected solution for all invoicing, payment, accounting, and reporting needs.
Rico Andersen and Martin Hegelund, Co-Founders of Shine, stated their mission to remove complexity for businesses. They commented that joining forces with Cegid allows them to extend this vision to a broader community of millions of small businesses and their accountants across Europe. They believe that by combining the strongest SMB business accounts and payments platform with advanced accounting technology, they are creating Europe’s first truly unified financial hub, built to eliminate complexity for millions of businesses.
Christian Lucas, Chairman of Cegid and Managing Partner at Silver Lake, described the combination as a strong affirmation and natural continuation of Cegid’s European growth journey. He noted that Cegid’s cloud and AI leadership, together with Shine’s innovative platform integrating digital finance capabilities, creates a powerful tool to help millions of small businesses and accountants prepare for growth opportunities in digital transformation, particularly with the shift to e-invoicing across Europe. He affirmed Silver Lake’s support for Cegid’s leadership team.
Jean-Michel Aulas, Founder of Cegid, highlighted Cegid’s history of supporting the growth and success of small businesses and their accountants for over 40 years. He commented that this combination reinforces that alliance, ensuring accountants remain central to the relationship between small businesses and their advisors by providing a shared digital environment with real-time access to financial data, improved collaboration, and simplified compliance.
Bruno Vaffier, General Manager of Cegid, noted that the merger with Shine is a natural step in Cegid’s mission to simplify and accelerate the growth of its Small Business division. He stated that together, they will offer entrepreneurs a combined platform that unites payment, accounting, and payroll, enabling them to focus on building their businesses.
Gilbert Kamieniecky, Head of Investcorp Technology Partners and Chairman of Shine, expressed pride in Shine’s growth from a startup to a European leader and unicorn, and acknowledged the partnership with the co-founders.
The transaction is subject to customary financial and regulatory approvals. Upon completion, Shine will operate within Cegid’s Small Business division, serving as a cornerstone of its French and European growth strategy.
Shine, founded by Rico Andersen and Martin Hegelund, aims to reduce time spent on financial administration for businesses. It offers a ‘financial copilot’ by integrating solutions for invoicing, accounting, payroll, business accounts and payments, and financing into a single platform. Shine is a leading European fintech unicorn, serving over 400,000 customers across France, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Germany. Shine France is regulated as a payment institution by the Autorité de contrôle prudentiel et de résolution (ACPR) and was recognized as “Best Business Bank” by ESCDA for 2024, 2025, and 2026.
Cegid is a European leader in cloud business management solutions for finance (cash-flow, tax, ERP), human resources (payroll, talent management), CPAs, retail, and entrepreneurial sectors. With a full cloud business model, Cegid provides long-term commitment to its customers and aims to accelerate their digital business transformation. Cegid combines a pragmatic business approach with innovation, expertise in technologies such as artificial intelligence, and an understanding of regulations. It has over 5,000 employees, sells its solutions in 130 countries, and reported revenues of €967 million as of December 31, 2024.
