What are intangible assets and how are they valued?
Intangible assets are non-physical assets that generate economic value, including brands, patents, trademarks, customer relationships, software, goodwill, and contractual rights. They are valued using income approaches (relief from royalty, excess earnings), market approaches (comparable transactions), or cost approaches (replacement cost), depending on the asset type and purpose.
Why Intangible Asset Valuations Matter
Intangible assets often represent the majority of a modern business's value — sometimes 80% or more. Yet they frequently go unrecognised or undervalued, leading to suboptimal decisions in transactions, tax planning, and financial reporting.
Our Brisbane valuers specialise in identifying, classifying, and valuing intangible assets, ensuring you capture the full value of your business's non-physical assets.
Types of Intangible Assets We Value
We value the full spectrum of intangible assets across all industries.
Brands & Trademarks
Brand valuations using relief from royalty methodology determine what it would cost to license the brand at arm's length. This captures the brand's contribution to revenue through customer recognition and loyalty.
Intellectual Property
Patents, copyrights, trade secrets, proprietary processes, and software are valued based on the income they generate, comparable IP transactions, or the cost to recreate them.
Customer Relationships & Contracts
Customer lists, long-term contracts, and recurring revenue relationships are valued using multi-period excess earnings methods that model the future cash flows attributable to existing customer relationships.
Goodwill
Goodwill represents value above identifiable tangible and intangible assets — including reputation, workforce capability, and market position. We distinguish between personal and commercial goodwill where required.
Valuation Methods for Intangibles
Different intangible assets require different valuation approaches. The three primary methods are the income approach (quantifying future economic benefits), the market approach (referencing comparable transactions), and the cost approach (estimating recreation or replacement cost).
We select the most appropriate method based on the asset type, available data, and purpose of the valuation, often using multiple methods to cross-check results.
Common Purposes for Intangible Asset Valuations
Intangible asset valuations are required for purchase price allocations in acquisitions, financial reporting under AASB 138, tax compliance including transfer pricing, licensing negotiations, insurance, and dispute resolution.
Each purpose may require different valuation bases (fair value, market value, value in use) and our reports clearly specify the basis adopted and the rationale for selection.
Key Benefits
How It Works
1Asset Identification
Systematic identification and classification of all intangible assets within your business, including those not currently recognised on the balance sheet.
2Data Collection
Gathering financial data, revenue attribution information, licensing benchmarks, comparable transactions, and useful life estimates.
3Valuation Analysis
Application of appropriate valuation methodologies with sensitivity analysis and cross-checking between methods.
4Reporting & Advisory
Comprehensive valuation report with clear methodology explanation, supporting evidence, and advisory on maximising intangible asset value.
Common Questions About Business Valuation
People Also Ask
For modern service and technology businesses, intangible assets typically represent 60-90% of total enterprise value. Even traditional businesses often have significant intangible value in brands, customer relationships, and proprietary processes.
Under Australian accounting standards (AASB 138), acquired intangible assets must be recognised at fair value. Internally generated intangibles have more restrictive recognition criteria but may still require valuation for other purposes.
Some lenders accept intangible assets as security, particularly IP portfolios and strong brands. A professional valuation is essential to support any lending arrangement secured by intangible assets.
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Ready to Get Started?
Speak with our Brisbane valuation experts today. Free initial consultation with no obligation.