Two strong firms with their own identity
For a number of years, PIA Group has been steadily expanding its growth around entrepreneurial firms with their own history, culture and client base. The addition of VDV Accountants and Groupe MDS aligns with that approach. Over the past 25 years, VDV Accountants has grown into a household name in East Flanders, with a primary focus on tax expertise, proactive guidance and personal service for entrepreneurs, liberal professions and self-employed individuals.
Groupe MDS also has a very distinct profile. The firm has been rooted in Brussels, Flemish Brabant and Walloon Brabant for almost 30 years, and serves a diverse client base consisting of SMEs, consultants, industrial companies and international clients. "VDV Accountants and Groupe MDS are two different firms, but they share the same ambition," says Nathalie Calle, CEO of PIA Group Belux. "They want to stay close to their client base while placing greater focus on the future of the profession."
Digitalisation as a lever for enhanced advisory services
The accountancy sector is changing rapidly. E-invoicing, automation, AI and data-driven processes are forcing firms to organise their operations differently. For PIA Group, the challenge is not only to keep up with that evolution, but above all to translate it into concrete support for firms, employees and clients.
"Technology is not an end in itself," says Nathalie Calle. "It is a way to offer our people and our clients better support. Within PIA Group we build solutions that help firms work more efficiently, share knowledge and develop new services without abandoning their local approach." For VDV Accountants, this means additional capacity to keep developing its tax expertise and digital services. For Groupe MDS, the added value lies, among other things, in continued automation and process improvement.
The PIA approach: don’t fix what isn’t broken
The two firms are joining PIA Group based on the same conviction: they want to continue growing and professionalising without losing their own identity. "We don’t believe in uniform firms without an individual character," says Steven Brouckaert, Executive Chairman of PIA Group. "Entrepreneurs choose people, trust and proximity. Our role is to bolster local firms behind the scenes so that they can deliver even more value to their clients at the front end. Don’t fix what isn’t broken remains an important guiding principle."
Support that enhances client advisory services
PIA Group supports affiliated firms in areas including IT, HR, digitalisation, innovation and advisory services, creating time and space for what is becoming increasingly important in the profession: advice that provides genuine added value. Today, clients expect not only accurate accounting but also guidance on taxation, growth, organisation, asset accumulation and digital transformation.
The integration of VDV Accountants and Groupe MDS into PIA Group gives their clients access to a broader network of specialists, including in legal services, VAT, corporate finance, wealth planning, digital transformation and CFO-as-a-service. The integration also opens up new opportunities for employees, with greater knowledge sharing, specialised support and further development prospects within an international group.
About PIA Group
In a market based on economies of scale, PIA Group aims to be a leading international provider of accountancy, audit and advisory services whilst retaining a personal connection between its staff and clients. We therefore drive our growth forward with a continuously expanding group of enterprising partners. The mutual interaction between those partners and our expert teams enables each PIA office to offer entrepreneurs tailored up-to-date services and expertise that genuinely contribute to their professional success and personal happiness. PIA Group was founded in Belgium in 1999 by Steven Brouckaert. The group operates in Belgium, the NetherlandsLuxembourg and Germany, with a total of more than 160 branches and 3,500 staff across these four countries. Over 2025, PIA Group’s Benelux offices realised a total turnover in excess of €440 million.
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For more information about this press release or if you have questions for Steven Brouckaert or Nathalie Calle, please feel free to contact Stefan Knecht, stefan.k@pia.be, +32 495 54 60 82.
