BVWire Australia Issue #1-1 | 1 August, 2014

 

Dear Colleague,

It is an exciting time in the Australian business valuation profession. With new accreditation and business valuation training coming from two major appraisal organisations, the profession is moving forward at a pace like never before. Business Valuation Resources (BVR) is pleased to be on the ground Down Under to provide you with the latest news and developments important to our profession.

We launched the quarterly Business Valuation Australia  in early July, and now we’re  proud to announce the launch of BVWire—Australia, a free bimonthly e-zine for Australian and New Zealand business valuation practitioners. Please look for BVWire—Australia in your email inbox on the first and 15th day of each month!

Thank you for reading our premier issue. Don’t hesitate to contact me with feedback. We look forward to hearing from you!

Sonia Nair, Editor
BVWire—Australia


Specialisation is the next step in raising the bar for the business valuation industry

Business Valuation Australia spoke to Richard Stewart, founding chair of the Business Valuation Special Interest Group of the Institute of Charter Accountants Australia (ICAA) as he traced the history of business valuation in Australia.

Key milestones: Stewart lists two major events that he says dramatically changed the Australian valuation industry: the imposition of the tax consolidation regime and the introduction of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The Australian Tax Office’s observation that there was no local valuation industry body in 2003 and 2004 further highlighted the lack of a coordinated presence for the profession. Thus, a team of professional leaders—the Business Valuation Special Interest Group—was formed in 2004 to build ‘a path to promote an increase in standards and professional conduct on which users of valuation services could rely’.

Highlights of ICAA’s foray into business valuation: Among the many advances the ICAA has made to date are the introduction of the Accounting and Professional Ethical Standards Board’s (APESB) APES 225 Valuation Services; the development of numerous knowledge-sharing, training, and networking opportunities; and, especially important, moving forward with formal valuation specialisation and training for those who wish to become recognised in valuations.

Specialisation—an important step: Jan Jackson, who manages the valuation specialisation offered by Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, says the specialisation exists to create an environment that:

  • Provides employers, clients, investors, and regulators with a greater level of confidence that business valuations are undertaken by people who are educated and experienced;
  • Facilitates the professional competence of members in business valuation skills and knowledge;
  • Enhances personal promotion and introduces a key point of difference; and
  • Promotes a network of preeminent business valuation specialists.

Two pathways: Chartered Accountants who wish to become business valuation specialists have the choice of two pathways: post-graduate studies or workshop and assessment education component. For the former, members must have at least two years of practical business valuation experience; for the latter, at least four.

For more on the ICAA’s history in Australia, as well as an in-depth look at the Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand’s specialisation offerings, click here to download the full issue of the July Business Valuation Australia.

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IIBV/ASA offer business valuation courses in Melbourne

What’s new: The International Institute of Business Valuators (IIBV) is offering local courses that count towards the American Society of Appraisers (ASA) business valuation certificate and the intangible asset appraisal specialty.

The specifics: Training programs previously available only in overseas locations such as South Korea, Brazil, and Serbia are now available in Australia, with the first two sections of the four-course series ‘Principles of Valuation’ recently conducted in Melbourne. Coming up from the IIBV are IIBV103-BV Case Studies (26-29 November, 2014) and ASA204 Advanced Topics (1-4 December, 2014)—both to take place in Melbourne.

Why have business valuation training in Australia? David Crick, ASA Australia chapter president, says the decision to move forward with training in Australia was in response to business valuation practitioners wanting to get involved in in the ASA, which in Australia had up until recently been dominated by machinery and equipment valuers. His colleague, Bob Morrison, BV trainer and vice-chair-elect of the IIBV board of directors, explains: ‘A theme of the feedback from the IIBV course in Melbourne was that many valuers—even those who have been doing business valuation for ages—felt surprised to learn some of the complexities they hadn’t been exposed to previously.’ Morrison says it became clear that there was a need for intangibles training—particularly for fair value accounting work required by AASB 3—Business Combinations.

Future offerings: Crick said that, if the Melbourne courses prove popular, IIBV will look to hold them in Sydney and other capital cities in 2015. For now, business valuers from New Zealand and Indonesia will need to travel to Melbourne.

International focus: The diverse membership of IIBV’s education committee has driven its focus on global offerings. Morrison says the demand for business valuation training is increasing—and not just from those who want to get a BV accreditation. ‘As financial reporting and valuation standards continue to converge internationally, we’re seeing more and more interest from corporate and investment firms who want to know the technical side of valuation’, Morrison says.

For more information on the upcoming IIBV/ASA business valuation training courses in November and December, click here. For the entire article about the IIBV training from the Business Valuation Australia, click here.

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2014 Business Valuation & Forensic Accounting Conference

Circle these dates in your calendar—27, 28, and 29 October, 2014—and prepare to participate in this year’s Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand Business Valuation and Forensic Accounting Conference in Sydney.

Why go? The conference offers a chance to network with industry peers and hear from leading experts about the skills you need to thrive in the specialised disciplines of business valuation and forensic accounting. The conference will provide you with an opportunity to challenge the status quo as you build a sustainable practice.

Keynote speakers and sessions: With a full day dedicated to each specialisation, this year’s event brings together key speakers and presenters from across the globe. Interactive sessions will highlight the most important issues facing the profession today. Speakers include:

  • Geoffrey Watson, SC, counsel assisting the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) on the Obeid inquiry. He will bring his insights to the areas of product liability, professional negligence, general insurance, and appeals.
  • Mel Abraham, American entrepreneur with more than two decades of experience as a financial expert, valuation expert, and business and success strategist. He will advise on how to build a valuation practice without having it suck the life out of you.
  • Christian Brehm, associate at Corality Financial Group with over eight years’ industry experience, will speak about valuation modelling.
  • Nick McKenzie, Fairfax journalist who produces investigative reports for the ABC’s prestigious “Four Corners” program, will deliver a session on uncovering bribery and corruption. McKenzie also reports for Melbourne’s The Age newspaper, the Sydney Morning Herald, and the Australian Financial Review.
  • Rob Brooker, National Australia Bank’s (NAB) head of Australian economics and commodities, a macroeconomic forecaster and a modeller with solid experience in the government and private sectors, will provide an economic update.
  • Andy Gilmour FCA, director of corporate finance at RSM Bird Cameron with more than 30 years’ experience as a Chartered Accountant, will cover valuing small to medium enterprises (SMEs). He will draw upon his extensive experience in preparing valuations of companies, businesses, intangible assets, shares, and other equities.

What you need to know: The three-day conference will take place at Hilton Sydney. There are one-day, two-day, and three-day packages to suit all levels of need, time commitment, and investment. Click here to view the options. Note the early bird discount for registrations received with full payment by 29 September. A regional discount is also applicable to members working 125 kilometres or more from the event location, while a CA BV specialist discount rate is available to members who have been approved by the professional body as CA BV specialists.

Conference papers will be accessible for download 22 October. For sessions that are dependent on hard copy materials for work-through during the session, the Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand will print the papers for delegates.

To visit the conference’s official website, click here.

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Participate in BVA’s first reader survey on company tax rate cut

Business Valuation Australia is launching a reader survey section, and we want you to be a part of it. For our first survey, we want to know whether you are reflecting the fact that the company tax rate may be cut from 30% to 28.5% for income years starting 1 July, 2015 or after in your valuations, e.g., in your calculations of WACC, discounted cash flow assumptions, reduced value of franking credits, and elsewhere. Click here to participate. We will report back on responses we receive in an upcoming BVWire—Australia.

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New BVA editorial advisory board
of directors

We would like to take this opportunity to announce the new Business Valuation Australia editorial advisory board of directors. These board members bring a wealth of experience in business valuation, intellectual property valuation, forensic accounting, financial analysis, risk management, financial reporting, and corporate finance. We look forward to sharing that wealth with you, our readers, and welcome the opportunity to work with this distinguished group.

Members of the board comprise the following:

  • Simon Dalgarno, owner of Leadenhall Corporate Advisory, who has worked with both private and public companies in the valuation industry for over 13 years;
  • John-Henry Eversgerd, is leader of the McGrathNicol forensic practice in Melbourne and the company’s national head of valuations. As a Chartered Financial Analyst charterholder with a Masters of Business Administration, he has specialised in valuations and financial analysis for over 18 years.
  • John E. Gibson, CBV and FCA based in Sydney;
  • Brendan P. Halligan, founder and principal of Halligan & Co., specialising in business valuation and forensic accounting;
  • Ian Jedlin, partner of corporate finance at KPMG Australia, who was the partner in charge of valuations at KPMG Australia for five years up to last June;
  • Wayne Lonergan, founding director of Lonergan Edwards & Associates Ltd., with over 40 years’ experience in corporate finance and valuations; and
  • Richard Stewart, partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers, whose specialties include corporate finance, valuation, mergers and acquisitions, and strategic analysis.

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We welcome your feedback and comments. Contact the editor, Sonia Nair, at editorau@bvresources.com.
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