Afileon

Case Study 30: Afileon – How Private Capital Enters a Protected Profession Without Owning It

6. May 2026

For decades, the German tax advisory market was not simply fragmented. It was deliberately engineered to remain so. More than 100,000 licensed tax advisors operating across roughly 55,000 firms created a system that prioritized independence, continuity, and professional judgment over scale. Ownership was tightly restricted to qualified professionals, effectively excluding external capital and preventing the