Afileon

What Afileon does

Afileon is a German professional services alliance founded in January 2025 that consolidates independently operating mid-sized audit, tax advisory, and law firms under a single brand and shared service platform. The company is headquartered near Munich (Oberhaching) with legal entities registered in Frankfurt am Main, and operates through a centrally managed service company (Afileon GmbH) alongside Afileon Audit GmbH Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft, Afileon Parent GmbH, and Afileon Law GmbH. As of mid-2026, the alliance comprised 37 partner firms with approximately 850 professionals across 83 German locations and 72 specialist subject areas, up from 19 founding firms at launch. Partner firms maintain entrepreneurial independence and equity participation while Afileon takes reciprocal ownership stakes, creating mutual alignment between the central platform and the operating firms.

The alliance delivers four core service lines — Wirtschaftsprüfung (statutory and voluntary audit under HGB/IFRS), Steuerberatung (tax consulting, planning, compliance, and succession), Rechtsberatung under the Afileon Law brand (corporate, labor, real estate, tax criminal law), and Interdisziplinäre Leistungen (cross-disciplinary advisory for M&A, international expansion, ESG, and digitalization). The target customer base is the German Mittelstand (SMEs with €1M–€50M revenues) plus larger mid-market companies and affluent individuals/family offices. Service delivery is decentralized through partner firms; the central Afileon organization provides shared back-office functions (HR, marketing, IT, administration) and the Afileon Digital HUB, which implements standardization, DATEV ecosystem integration, AI/RPA tooling (including the EMMA bot from WIANCO OTT Robotics), and a co-developed BetterCo client-onboarding workflow. A Partners Council with paritarian governance (chaired by former German Minister Heiko Maas) oversees strategic decisions.

Afileon's business model combines professional services fees (hourly and fixed-fee billing) with a roll-up/equity-swap acquisition strategy targeting successful mid-sized tax/audit/law firms with minimum ~€2.5M annual revenue. Institutional capital is provided by Partners Group, a Swiss private markets manager, alongside partner-firm owners and management/employees. Revenue at launch was approximately €100M across the 19 founding firms; the expanded 37-firm network implies meaningfully higher aggregate turnover, though consolidated financials are not publicly disclosed. The company pursues a top-6 positioning in the German tax advisory market within three years, competing against Big 4 and Next-10 firms via differentiated brand, centralized technology investment, and CBBL international network access across ~65 countries.

Name

Afileon

Legal name

Afileon Audit GmbH Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft

Website

https://afileon.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2025

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Afileon is a German alliance of 37 independently operated mid-sized audit, tax advisory, and law firms serving the Mittelstand, combining partner-firm autonomy with shared digital infrastructure, DATEV ecosystem integration, and cross-selling across 83 locations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Munich

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Tax Advisory Services: Core tax consulting services including tax planning, tax return preparation, tax compliance, tax optimization of corporate structures, succession planning, international tax planning, and transfer pricing.
2. Audit/Assurance Services: Statutory and voluntary audit services including annual and consolidated financial statement audits under HGB and IFRS, special audits, internal control system audits, risk management, and ESG assurance.
3. Legal Advisory Services (Afileon Law): Full-service legal advice across corporate law, labor law, real estate law, tax criminal law, and succession planning, offered through the Afileon Law branded firms.
4. Interdisciplinary Advisory: Cross-disciplinary services combining tax, legal, and economic expertise for complex challenges such as international expansion, M&A transactions, due diligence, ESG reporting, and digitalization consulting.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Afileon is an alliance of 37 independent German tax advisory, audit, and legal firms serving SMEs (Mittelstand). Each partner firm delivers professional services locally to clients, while a central Afileon organization provides shared services — including the Afileon Digital HUB for digitalization and AI automation, DATEV ecosystem integration, HR, marketing, and back-office administration. The reciprocal ownership model gives partner firms entrepreneurial autonomy alongside the resources, brand, and technology of a large professional services group.

Product overview

Afileon is an alliance of independent tax consulting, auditing, and legal advisory firms serving SMEs in German-speaking markets. The offering is structured as a platform-plus-partner model: the central Afileon organization provides shared services (digitalization via the Afileon Digital HUB, a training academy, HR support, and marketing) while partner firms independently deliver four core services — Wirtschaftsprüfung (auditing/assurance), Steuerberatung (tax consulting), Rechtsberatung (Afileon Law legal services), and Interdisziplinäre Leistungen (cross-disciplinary advisory). The partner firms retain entrepreneurial independence while benefiting from pooled expertise, technology, and brand. No standalone SaaS product is sold; services are delivered through the affiliated firms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Wirtschaftsprüfung (Auditing/Assurance) Comprehensive auditing services including statutory audits of annual and consolidated accounts under German (HGB) and international (IFRS) standards, internal control system reviews, risk management assessments, company valuations, financial due diligence, and consulting on process optimization and reporting systems. Delivered through Afileon partner firms to corporate clients.
• Steuerberatung (Tax Consulting) Full-service tax advisory covering tax planning and optimization, preparation of tax returns and annual accounts, support during tax audits and criminal tax proceedings, and inheritance and gift tax planning including succession strategies. Delivered through Afileon partner firms to SMEs and entrepreneurs.
• Rechtsberatung (Legal Advice) — Afileon Law Comprehensive legal services under the Afileon Law brand covering corporate law, employment law, real estate law, and tax criminal law, with integrated tax and economic perspectives for holistic client support. Delivered through specialized Afileon Law partner firms.
• Interdisziplinäre Leistungen (Interdisciplinary Services) Cross-disciplinary advisory combining tax, legal, and economic expertise for strategic tax and legal structuring, succession planning, digitalization and process optimization, international tax planning, and corporate and real estate transactions including due diligence. Delivered jointly across Afileon partner firms for complex, multi-disciplinary mandates.
• Afileon Digital HUB Centralized digital transformation service that implements standardization, digitalization, and AI/automation across Afileon partner firms. Deploys specialists to partner firms for process optimization in payroll, income tax, and client onboarding; implements DATEV tools; and builds a KOB (practice management officer) community for peer-to-peer best practice sharing.

Quantifiable outcome

• Digital tools can reduce processing times by up to 50%
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

AI capability4 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• CBBL - Cross Border Business LawyerscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 17 June 2026Afileon became a partner of CBBL (Cross Border Business Lawyers) effective June 17, 2026. CBBL is one of the most prestigious networks of German-speaking business lawyers, with partner firms on five continents covering ~65 countries. The partnership provides Afileon's clients with direct access to experienced advisors for cross-border legal and tax matters. The first milestone was the CBBL Annual Conference on June 11, 2026, in Cologne, where Afileon was introduced as a new network partner by LHP Group's Lars Kelterborn.
• BetterCosupportingTechnology or IntegrationAfileon and BetterCo co-developed a standardized, end-to-end client onboarding workflow covering prospect capture, offer generation, contract drafting, onboarding, and KYC compliance — integrated with DATEV. The solution eliminates media breaks, reduces processing time, and ensures consistent compliance documentation. This is a product co-development partnership that serves Afileon's digitalization strategy.
• WIANCO OTT RoboticssupportingTechnology or IntegrationAfileon's Digital HUB uses EMMA, an AI-powered robotic solution from WIANCO OTT Robotics, to automate recurring knowledge and service tasks such as order creation, master data maintenance, and document filing across partner firm workflows.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Flick Gocke Schaumburg: Flick Gocke Schaumburg is a leading German independent tax and legal advisory firm focused on high-end advisory for large Mittelstand and family-owned enterprises. It competes with Afileon's premium positioning and succession/law advisory capabilities.
• Rödl & Partner: Rödl & Partner is a German-led international advisory firm focused on Mittelstand clients with integrated tax, audit, legal, and consulting services. Its cross-border Mittelstand focus and integrated service model directly mirror Afileon's value proposition.
• WTS: WTS is a global tax advisory network with strong German roots and a partner-led model similar to Afileon's. Both target Mittelstand clients with integrated tax and legal advisory, though WTS has more international presence and longer operating history.
• dhpg: dhpg is one of the leading German mid-market audit, tax, legal, and consulting firms, formed from a network of regional firms — closely analogous to Afileon's alliance structure. Both target Mittelstand clients with integrated interdisciplinary advisory.
• Ebner Stolz: Ebner Stolz is one of Germany's largest independent mid-market audit, tax, and legal advisory firms, ranking among the top 10 in Germany. It competes directly with Afileon for Mittelstand mandates and serves as the type of premium mid-market competitor Afileon aims to join.

Broad incumbents

• Baker Tilly Germany: Baker Tilly Germany is part of the global Baker Tilly network and ranks among Germany's top mid-market audit/tax firms. It offers similar Mittelstand-focused services but as part of a broader international network rather than an independent German alliance.
• Grant Thornton Germany: Grant Thornton Germany is part of the global Grant Thornton network, serving mid-market German companies with audit, tax, and advisory services. It targets the same Mittelstand segment as Afileon with overlapping service lines.
• Mazars Germany: Mazars Germany is part of the Forvis Mazars global network, providing audit, tax, and advisory to mid-market clients. It serves as a 'Next 10' competitor to Afileon for premium German Mittelstand mandates.
• BDO Germany: BDO Germany is a major mid-market audit, tax, and advisory firm, part of the global BDO network. It serves large Mittelstand clients with similar service lines to Afileon and competes for the same premium mandates.
• RSM Germany: RSM Germany is the German member of RSM International, providing audit, tax, and consulting to mid-market companies. It overlaps with Afileon's Mittelstand focus but operates through a global network rather than an independent German alliance.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/afileon

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Subsidiaries20 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Afileon