At their annual general and separate meetings in Madrid November 5-7, the International Valuation Standards Board (IVSB) and the International Valuation Professional Board (IVPB) confirmed the following:

IVSB predicts new international standards by 2010. The IVSB is still updating the current (8th ed.) of the International Valuation Standards, aiming to: 1) include requirements for valuing all assets, liabilities and businesses; and 2) improve structure and drafting. The Board anticipates issuing an exposure draft by the second quarter 2010, with final publication of the revised standards by year’s end. Also slated for release next year: two guidance notes, Valuation of Intangible Assets and Valuation of Investment Property Under Construction. Finally, the Board approved a discussion paper on how to better communicate “the degree of certainty that can be attached to valuation estimates,” also slated for a 2010 release.

IVPB will issue standards guidance. Responding to the “clear demand for best practice guidance to support the consistent implementation of the IVS,” the IVPB will update several “guidance notes” (no longer “standards”), including those on The Cost Approach for Financial Reporting and Discounted Cash Flow, according to a release. Additional activities:

• The IVSB is collaborating with The Appraisal Foundation (TAF) to reduce current practice diversity in intangible asset valuation for financial reporting. Once TAF publishes its working group paper on Identification of Contributory Assets and the Calculation of Economic Rent, the IVSB will review and publish an exposure draft of an international version by Q2 2010.
• The IVPB is working on a joint, non-authoritative document addressing the auditor’s use of an “expert,” including a model agreement between the auditor and the valuator and a dialogue on maintaining independence.
• The IVPB is developing benchmarks to improve the standards of “valuation education around the world and to promote good ethical practices globally.” It has approved an exposure draft of a model Code of Ethics; it will also issue a discussion paper on the Definition of a Professional Valuer shortly.