The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), an agency of the UN, and the Hungarian national authority, the Hungarian Intellectual Property Office (HIPO – SZTNH), organized a joint one-day conference. The event showcased best practices in Intellectual Property (IP) valuation from Singapore and the United Kingdom, while also scrutinizing the Hungarian innovation ecosystem. The business roundtable at the event was moderated by Prof. Dr. Tamás Haidegger, Director of Initium Venture Labs.
The experts’ advice essentially boils down to adopting common standards, best practices, and fostering dialogue among various professional fields. The goal is for the IP mindset to take root in the Hungarian banking and investment sphere, ensuring that inventions, ideas, methodologies, and brand equity are factored into the business value during company exits, acquisitions, and other transactions. The dialogue has thus begun among IP lawyers, economists, engineers, and business leaders, aiming for our region to catch up with international trends. In Western and Asian stock markets, intellectual assets can constitute up to 85–90 percent of a company’s value, primarily within the deep-tech sectors.
According to Michael Kos, WIPO IP Finance and Valuation Expert, the greatest obstacles for SMEs in converting their knowledge and innovative capabilities into business assets are data clarity, subjective judgments, and diverse legal backgrounds. WIPO aims to change this by preparing reports, issuing guidelines, and organizing training worldwide; they cited the Southeast Asian ASEAN IP Valuation Pilot Project as a concrete example.
Andre Toh, a consulting expert from Ernst&Young, analyzed the Singaporean model, where a dedicated inter-university body, the Institute of Higher Knowledge, provides IP valuation training to students and professionals. In Singapore, IP valuation is considered a strategic pillar, contributing to the nation becoming an intellectual property powerhouse in the region. Furthermore, HIPO (SZTNH) and WIPO are launching a specialized economics postgraduate course next year at Corvinus University of Budapest for all stakeholders in this field.
Following the Asian example, Mishad Ansari, Founder and CEO of the biotechnology startup Bionema, presented the situation in the United Kingdom. He showcased, for instance, the three-phase IP valuation protocol developed by the INNGOT-NATWEST business partnership, which he claimed works excellently, and presented its seven-step implementation plan for Hungary.
Levente Pethő, an associate at Danubia Law Firm, presented the Hungarian context, detailing how companies that actively apply valuation methodologies gain advantages during the preparatory phases of corporate acquisitions, specific exits, tax savings, and optimization. Vivien Róka, an associate at PWC Hungary, introduced the IAS 38 standard, presenting revenue, cost, and market-based IP valuations and outlining potential challenges.
The business roundtable, which included consultants, investors, and innovative companies (O3 Partners and Richter Gedeon) alongside IP experts, was moderated by Prof. Dr. Haidegger Tamás, Director of Initium. Participants concluded that the role of IP valuation is increasing in domestic business transactions, though this growth is hindered by a lack of knowledge stemming from the adoption of new accounting rules. The use of AI, however, received mixed reception.
The Richter representative mentioned that valuing IP is often risky, especially when business planning is coupled with lengthy approval processes. The investment firm and the PWC expert agreed that it is almost always advisable to seek a third party’s opinion during business transactions, and that IP assets must be continuously reviewed and revalued, as the technological world changes rapidly and competition virtually mandates this practice.
Reach out to us for an exploratory discussion to see how we could potentially collaborate.
