Regulations M&A Awards 2026

Dear dealmaker,

On Thursday, 26 November 2026, the 9th edition of the annual M&A Awards will take place at the grand Paleis 10 / Palais 10 at Brussels Expo.

The M&A Awards is a flagship event for professionals in M&A, corporate finance, private equity, and venture capital. It brings together senior dealmakers from across the country for a black-tie gala dinner, where an exclusive group of industry leaders gathers to celebrate the most outstanding deals and dealmakers of the past year.

The annual M&A Awards recognizes exceptional transactions and deal teams from (listed) companies, large corporations, state-owned entities, and government institutions, honouring them for their outstanding performance and leadership.

This year we will present M&A Awards for the following categories:

1. Best Large Cap Corporate Deal
2. Best Mid Cap Corporate Deal
3. Best Large Cap Private Equity Exit
4. Best Mid Cap Private Equity Exit
5. Best Venture Capital Deal – Technology
6. Best Venture Capital Deal – Life Sciences
7. Lifetime Achievement

The M&A community nominates and endorses deals that meet our criteria. A panel of experts from Vlerick Business School then compiles a longlist for each category. From this longlist, an independent Jury of industry leaders and subject-matter experts selects the winner in each award category.

This document outlines the procedures and criteria used to determine the winners of the M&A Awards. These regulations have been established in collaboration with our Knowledge Partner, Vlerick Business School.

Join us in celebrating the very best of M&A in Belgium and seize the opportunity to network with Belgian leading M&A and private equity professionals. A great way to celebrate success in M&A with your team and your clients.

We are very much looking forward to seeing you!

Melle Eijckelhoff, M&A Community Manager
Email Melle or call +31 6 20013546.
Schedule an appointment with Melle here.

Definitions

1. Organization: M&A Community Belgium BV, initiator and organizer of the M&A Awards Belgium.
2. Belgian M&A deals: deals where the buyer, seller or target is of Belgian origin and/or has a Headquarter in Belgium.
3. Corporate M&A deals: deals done by corporate acquirers, i.e., companies that provide products or services themselves (rather than pure financial investors). These acquirers are usually companies that are operating in a type of business that is related to the acquired company, such as competitors, suppliers, or customers.
4. Private equity deals: deals done by private equity firms, i.e., private equity is an alternative investment class and consists of capital that is not listed on a public exchange. Private equity is composed of funds and investors that directly invest in private companies, or that engage in buyouts of public companies, resulting in the delisting of public equity.
5. Venture capital transactions: deals involving start-up/scale-up companies and venture capital firms investing in the growth of these companies
6. Large cap: deals with a value of > € 250 million.
7. Mid cap: deals with a value of € 25 – 250 million.
8. Jury: a small group of captains of industry and experts selected to cast their votes for each of the M&A Awards categories. Jury members hold senior positions in which they have built extensive M&A experience and demonstrated strong leadership. The jury may include captains of industry, (supervisory) board members, managing directors/CEOs, senior partners, professors, and economists with expertise in M&A, corporate finance, private equity, and/or venture capital.
9. Deal: a transaction between multiple companies in which shares are bought and sold and/or funding is being provided.
10. Deal database: An online overview of Belgium deals with key data including the dealmakers involved as presented on Dealmakerdata.
11. M&A Awards Jury: An independent Jury of industry leaders and subject-matter experts that selects the winner in each award category. The jury is appointed annually by the organisation and published on MAAwards.be and/or MandA.be.

M&A Awards Categories

1. Best Large Cap Corporate Deal

Corporate deals are defined as deals done by corporate acquirers, i.e., companies that provide products or services themselves (rather than pure financial investors). These acquirers are usually companies that are operating in a type of business that is related to the acquired company, such as competitors, suppliers, or customers. The ownership structure of the acquiring company is irrelevant and can hence be backed by private equity. The value of a Large Cap deal exceeds € 250 million. Transactions leading to both minority and majority stakes can be considered.

2. Best Mid Cap Corporate Deal

Corporate deals are defined as deals done by corporate acquirers, i.e., companies that provide products or services themselves (rather than pure financial investors). These acquirers are usually companies that are operating in a type of business that is related to the acquired company, such as competitors, suppliers, or customers. The ownership structure of the acquiring company is irrelevant and can hence be backed by private equity. The value of a Mid Cap deal lies between € 25 and € 250 million. Transactions leading to both minority and majority stakes can be considered.

3. Best Large Cap Private Equity Exit

This category includes transactions in which the selling party is a private equity firm or family investor. It focuses on exit deals where the value creation process and the quality of the exit can be judged. The value of the Large Cap deal exceeds € 250 million. The buyer is irrelevant and can be a private equity party, corporate, family office or existing management via a management buy-out. Both minority and majority stakes can be considered.

4. Best Mid Cap Private Equity Exit

This category includes transactions in which the selling party is a private equity firm or family investor. It focuses on exit deals where the value creation process and the quality of the exit can be judged. The value of the Mid Cap deal lies between € 25 and € 250 million. The buyer is irrelevant and can be a private equity party, corporate, family office or existing management via a management buy-out. Both minority and majority stakes can be considered.

5. & 6. Best Venture Capital Deal – Technology and Life Sciences

Venture capital deals are defined as deals involving Belgian based start-up/scale-up companies and venture capital firms. Venture capital provides growth capital for start-ups or young high-growth companies. Venture capital refers to equity investments made for the launch, the early development or for accelerating the go-to-market process. The distinguishing feature with a venture capital deal is that there is an investment in a company that goes through a technological, high-risk pre-investment and therefore initially has negative cash flows.

This category includes capital rounds in which venture capitalists invest capital as well as transactions allowing venture capitalists to successfully exit their stakes. There is no floor or cap regarding deal size nor regarding the acquired fraction of shares.

7. Lifetime Achievement Award

This category honors individuals that have made significant contributions to the Belgian and/or international M&A scene over the course of their lifetime. It is a recognition of their dedication, skills, and outstanding accomplishments. These professionals have typically demonstrated excellence throughout their entire career and have made a lasting impact on the industry.

Everyone professionally active in the context of M&A is eligible. This includes but is not restricted to the following professions: M&A advisors, consultants, lawyers, (private equity) investors, entrepreneurs, CEOs, CFOs, corporate M&A Directors, bankers, brokers, board members, economists, and professors.

Submissions for the Lifetime Achievement Award must be done by sending an email to our founder Melle Eijckelhoff.

Criteria

The nominated deals in the categories 1 through 6 are assessed by the jury based on the following criteria:

Regulations for nominations and selection

1. To be considered for selection to the long list of nominations, deals must be submitted by M&A-, private equity- or venture capital professionals via <[email protected]> and will be published in the M&A Deal database.
2. Nominated deals must have at least one Belgian component; the buyer, seller or target must be of Belgian origin.
3. Only deals that are published in the M&A Deal database before 1 October 2026 can be considered for selection to the long list.
4. The review period encompasses deals completed between 1 October 2025, and 30 September 2026 (a comprehensive twelve-month span of activity), with a stipulation that completion must be ensured by 31 December 2026, for submissions made during this time.
5. A deal cannot be nominated in multiple categories.
6. Nominations for the Lifetime Achievement Award are not based upon a specific time period but consider the entire career of the proposed individuals.

Timeframe of the Awards procedure

Framework & procedure

1. The nomination and selection process for the annual M&A Awards starts 24 April 2026.
2. Based on the submitted deals that are published in the Deal database, the organization will make a selection of the deals (long list) that meet the criteria for nomination.
3. The organization will contact the parties involved for deals that are selected for the longlist to complete the deal records, motivate their submission and endorse the M&A deal for the short list.
4. The endorsement must consist of a minimum of 500 words. Sensitive information (like deal values) can be treated confidentially, upon request.
5. The organization ensures all pitches meet the requirements stipulated in these regulations. If needed, pitches can be declared invalid.
6. The organization selects a longlist of nominated deals per category. All deals on the longlist must be supported by at least one professional party.
7. In case of a scarcity of suggested transactions, the organization might proactively nominate extra deals and/or reach out to dealmakers regarding endorsement of relevant deals.
8. The deals on the longlist are reviewed by the organization and its knowledge partner Vlerick Business School.
9. The longlist is presented to the jury for the final deliberation.
10. The jury casts their votes and reduces the shortlisted deals to three nominations in each category to create the shortlist of nominated deals. The nominees are announced on MAawards.be, MandA.be and in a press release as soon as the jury has agreed to do so.
11. No nominations will be announced for the Lifetime Achievement Award.
12. The jury selects one winner in each category. The winners are announced during the M&A Awards Ceremony.
13. The M&A Awards are evaluated every year. Evaluated elements are, amongst others, the categories, the regulations and the venue.

Determination of the nominees and winners

1. In all categories, the nominees and winners are determined by the jury.
2. There is only one winner per category.
3. If the organization decides that a category has not enough candidates, the organization can cancel the category or change the number of nominees.
4. The jury is not allowed to nominate a deal in multiple categories. In this case, the deal in the category with the fewest votes is cancelled.
5. If multiple deals receive the same amount of votes, the jury determines the winner based on the given criteria.
6. Members of the jury cannot vote for deals in which they are implicated or where the buyer, seller or target is their employer.

Questions?

Melle Eijckelhoff, M&A Community Manager
Email Melle or call +31 6 20013546.
Schedule an appointment with Melle here.