Background information

Overnamemarkt.be, an initiative of UNIZO (EO), is an open online takeover platform where prospective buyers can publish their company profile anonymously for the benefit of prospective buyers with a view to a company takeover. Contacts are made either directly or via the intervention of a professional takeover supervisor.

The main objective of Overnamemarkt.be remains the bringing together of supply and demand with regard to takeovers and transfers of companies. Besides matching both parties, great importance is also attached to providing reliable and relevant information online about the takeover process.

This initiative is available to all companies in Flanders.

Content of measure

The platform aims to bring together buyers and sellers of companies. Overnamemarkt can be searched by sector, region, turnover, transfer value, intermediary, number of employees (full–time equivalent), keyword or a combination of these criteria. Every potential seller of a business can put their profile on the platform, either by themselves or with the assistance of a transfer broker; examples of such include banks, accountants, real estate agents and consultants working in the area of company transfers.

A list of recommendations is provided to assist entrepreneurs in putting their business on the platform. Contact is possible either by telephone or email. Any intermediary contact is guaranteed full anonymity . Advertisements are published for six months, with a possible three–month extension.

The project is funded with support of the Flemish government and run by Unizo (EO).

Use of measure

The platform has around 20,000 unique visitors per month. In June 2020, more than 400 companies were listed. The platform has a success rate of 25%.

Guidance is also available through the platform for (potential) cliënts that seek advice in the process the business transfer (for companies with an expexted selling value below €500,000).

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Does not apply to workers	Applies to all businesses	Does not apply to citizens

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
Local / regional government	Employers organisation Regional funds

Social partners

Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	Unknown	Agreed (outcome) incl. social partner initiative
Form	Not applicable	Any other form of consultation, institutionalised (as stable working groups or committees) or informal

Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:

• Only employers' organisations
• Main level of involvement: Regional or local level

Involvement

The platform is run by employers' association Unizo.

Views and reactions

Unknown

Sources

• 01 January 2016: Overnamemarkt (www.overnamemarkt.be)
• 01 January 2016: Overnamemarkt FAQ (www.overnamemarkt.be)