Company valuation: assessing your business value with rigour.
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- More than 15 years advising owner-managed companies in the German-speaking region
- Over 100 completed transactions
- 100 % independent — no bank, no fund
- Confidential from the first conversation
Knowing your own company's value is the basis for every significant entrepreneurial decision — succession, sale, change of shareholders, investment offers or inheritance. Without knowing the value, you negotiate blind. A professional valuation creates the factual basis to decide with confidence.
IGCP Capital Partners has been valuing owner-led companies in the DACH region for more than 15 years. With more than 100 supported transactions we know not just the methods but the actual market prices being paid in the current environment. We are 100% independent — and value without self-interest in the result.
Free online calculator
For initial orientation, our free business value calculator gives you a pro-forma estimate in two minutes — no registration required.
The three valuation logics
In practice three valuation logics are used, each answering a different question.
Net asset value. What would the company be worth if all assets were sold individually and liabilities repaid? This method gives a floor value but ignores business model and the future.
Income value and Discounted Cash Flow (DCF). What are the future earnings — discounted to today — worth? These methods reflect the company as a going concern and are the central yardstick for most SMEs. A plausible plan and an appropriate capitalisation or discount rate are decisive.
Market multiples. What are buyers currently paying for comparable companies? Common multiples refer to EBIT, EBITDA or revenue and derive from comparable transactions in the sector. This method injects market reality.
A detailed introduction to the three logics is available in What is my company worth?. A valuation is only robust when the methods converge into a consistent range.
Valuation standards in Austria and Germany: KFS/BW 1 and IDW S 1
In Austria the professional standard is the expert opinion KFS/BW 1 of the Chamber of Tax Advisers and Auditors; its revised version of 6 November 2025 is binding for engagements accepted after 30 June 2026. In Germany the standard is IDW S 1 of the Institute of Public Auditors. Both distinguish the objectified enterprise value — a typified value from the perspective of a hypothetical acquirer, without synergies or party-specific circumstances — from the subjective decision value that reflects a specific buyer's or seller's situation.
In income and DCF approaches the capitalisation rate decides the outcome: risk-free base rate, market risk premium, company-specific beta and, where appropriate, size and illiquidity premiums. As an orientation, the base rate derived from the yield curve under the IDW methodology stood at a rounded 3.75 % on 1 September 2026, and the IDW's valuation committee has recommended a market risk premium of 5.25 to 6.75 % before personal taxes since September 2025. A formal opinion under either standard is needed where the value must hold up before a court, the tax office, a bank or a disputing co-shareholder; for a sale, a succession or an investor entry the achievable market price counts, and that is what IGCP values — with income value, multiples and transaction prices actually paid. See also Capitalisation rate and Calculating company value in Austria.
What really drives value
Being methodically valued is one thing. Actually increasing the value is another. In practice a small number of factors disproportionately drive the value: sustainable earnings, low dependence on the owner, documented processes, a balanced customer base, a qualified second tier of management, and a plausible growth story.
Which levers are particularly effective and how to address them in a structured way is described in Increasing enterprise value. The most important insight: value creation takes time. Those who work on the right levers one or two years before a planned transaction usually end up with more than they could win through tough price negotiations alone.
Whether the assumptions behind a valuation hold up under the buyer's review becomes clear in due diligence — how we steer it is described in our due diligence support.
Valuation as preparation for a sale
A robust valuation is more than a number on paper. It is the basis for developing realistic price expectations, preparing negotiation positions and substantiating arguments later in the process. It also reveals where the company should be developed in the coming months to be better positioned at the time of sale.
In preparing a succession or company sale, a valuation is therefore usually the first step. It provides the basis for deciding whether, when and how a sale process should be launched — and creates clarity long before any conversation with potential buyers.
Tax and legal aspects of a valuation — for inheritance, gifts or changes among shareholders — are handled together with the client's tax advisor and lawyer. IGCP delivers the economic valuation and interpretation, not the tax or legal advice.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Which valuation method is typical for SMEs?
- In practice the income value method or simplified DCF models and EBIT/EBITDA market multiples dominate for small and mid-sized businesses. Net asset value usually serves as a floor. Banks and investors typically expect several methods in parallel — a robust value range emerges from the combination, not from a single number.
- What does a company valuation cost?
- It depends on the purpose. An indicative value range for an initial standpoint check is significantly cheaper than a detailed valuation report for court or tax purposes. For sale preparation a robust indicative valuation is usually sufficient — the market determines the final price anyway. For a concrete quote we discuss occasion and depth in a non-binding first conversation.
- How long does a company valuation take?
- With complete data, we deliver an indicative valuation in two to four weeks. The driver is document quality: if annual accounts, management reports and a plausible plan are in place, it goes quickly. If numbers are missing or adjustments are needed, it takes accordingly longer.
- Which valuation standards apply in Austria and Germany?
- In Austria the expert opinion KFS/BW 1 of the Chamber of Tax Advisers and Auditors (revised on 6 November 2025, binding for engagements after 30 June 2026); in Germany the standard IDW S 1 of the Institute of Public Auditors. Both govern the application of income and DCF methods and distinguish the objectified enterprise value from the subjective decision value. For a sale or succession, the market price reflected in transaction multiples matters alongside.
If you need a robust assessment of your company's value, talk to us confidentially and without obligation.