Fresh Opportunities and Risks to Consider When Modeling From accelerated expensing to revamped Qualified Small Business Stock rules, the OBBBA has shifted both the numerator (cash flows) and the denominator (risk and discount rates) of the valuation equation. The result is a more dynamic environment—one with fresh opportunities, but also new pitfalls. With the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), valuation professionals and business owners alike find themselves working under a new spotlight. The law, signed on July 4, 2025, reshapes the tax landscape in ways that directly alter the assumptions embedded in business valuations. From accelerated…
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Why Valuation isn’t the Only Thing that Matters During an Exit A big mistake that some startup businesses make is doing whatever it takes to maximize their valuation when they exit, writes Michael Morgan, CFO of Tegile Systems. A single-minded focus on valuation can backfire if the market enters a downturn, he writes. To read the full article in CFO, click: Avoid These Mistakes When Planning an Exit.
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The need to develop reliable, defensible fair value markets for hard-to-value assets is universal. Sujan Rajbhandary, senior member of Mercer Capital’s Financial Reporting Valuation Group, sits down with Travis Harms to get his insight from a financial reporting perspective on a few issues around valuations of startups. To read more about the results of this report in the Mercer Capital’s Financial Reporting Blog, click: A Few Thoughts on Valuing Investments in Startups: An Interview with Travis Harms. This article is republished from Mercer Capital’s Financial Reporting Blog. It is reprinted with permission. To subscribe to the blog, visit: http://mercercapital.com/category/financialreportingblog/.
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Magic, Sex, and Outer Space Goodwill is the established reputation of a business regarded as a quantifiable asset. Or of a person who’s part of that business: That’s why you often hear discussions about how to best separate personal goodwill from enterprise goodwill. But what if your personal goodwill was regarded so highly, in a contract, that you’d need to work for the new company that was buying you out for six years? And if you left, you’d have to give all the money back? James Altucher reminisces: In 2002 I framed a $200 check from a company called thestreet.com.…