Wholesale trade
In NACE division 46, 4.6 companies per 100 started in the past twelve months, against 7.5 nationally; that is lower than that of 71% of the 86 other NACE divisions. Comparison: as of 08-10-2026 05:30.
Key figures for NACE division 46
fiscal year 2025 · median over 29,282 filed annual accountsForeign control in NACE division 46
46,182 registered companiesStaff cost per FTE in NACE division 46
9,668 employers| Size | Median | Middle half | Employers |
|---|---|---|---|
| fewer than 10 FTE | €60,300 | €47,600 to €78,300 | 6,096 |
| 10 to 49 FTE | €69,900 | €57,500 to €88,700 | 2,915 |
| 50 to 249 FTE | €83,400 | €67,100 to €118,400 | 558 |
| 250 FTE or more | €80,100 | €64,700 to €98,300 | 99 |
Employers with the highest staff cost per FTE in this division All sectors by staff cost In the Analysis workbench
Bankruptcies
past five yearsNationally, 1.61% of current registrations have a published bankruptcy opening in the past five years. This sector's historical share is higher than that of 74% of the 87 other NACE divisions. The median bankruptcy probability in NACE division 46 is 0.4%, against 0.2% nationally, over 39,737 scored companies. Comparison: as of 08-10-2026 05:30.
Bankruptcies still running
NACE division 46Measured nationally: Of 107,790 bankruptcies of legal entities across Belgium, 49% were closed within five years for insufficient assets and 28% after liquidation, 3% were withdrawn; 20% were still open after five years. Half had ended after 26 months (a quarter after 15, three quarters after 51 months).
Counts companies with this main activity in the register on 8 October 2026. The outcome itself is not measured by sector: the activity of a company that leaves the register after its bankruptcy is too often not kept to compare closed cases fairly.
Regional split
by region · 50,909 of 62,604 enterprises with a registered office on fileRecent bankruptcies in this sector
8| Date | Company |
|---|---|
| 07-10-2026 | Badmobiel
BE 0734.539.230 |
| 07-10-2026 | CTL Lab Belgium
BE 0666.691.490 |
| 06-10-2026 | ROCKSKIN
BE 0743.596.456 |
| 02-10-2026 | GLOBAL BEVERAGE
BE 0524.675.968 |
| 01-10-2026 | BIERHALLE DEMEYER
BE 0450.384.757 |
| 30-09-2026 | Bedo Food
BE 0742.588.943 |
| 30-09-2026 | Lease or Buy Sun Protection
BE 1010.602.616 |
| 30-09-2026 | ARBO IMPORT & MARKETING
BE 0886.011.757 |
Geographic distribution
by province · based on the establishment addressWhere are this sector's balance sheets registered? By municipality, down to the address
Subsidies in this sector
per register · legal entities with an enterprise number- Flemish subsidies €661.1m awarded
- Federal transfers 67.7m amount as published
- Wallonia-Brussels Federation €30.7m paid
- EU budget €564.5m attributed share
- EU research €55.2m eu contribution
How these figures are counted
Current enterprise registrations are counted through their registered main activities; establishment units are excluded. Counted in the KBO's NACE 2025 nomenclature, the one in which code 46 exists.
Share of currently registered companies with a published bankruptcy opening in the past five years. Registered main activities in the selected classification can overlap. This retrospective share is not a future bankruptcy probability.
The comparison with the country and with the other NACE divisions comes from a nightly overview of every division, each counted in the nomenclature in which it exists. A standing such as "higher than 80%" counts the other divisions that have the figure. The bankruptcy probability is the median of our nightly score over the division's companies that have one; the count is stated.
The middle company of the sector, based on all filed annual accounts.