Intangible Asset Finance: Funding the hidden value that powers your business

It’s easy to understand tangible assets. Things like equipment, vehicles and premises are the assets your business depends on.

But what about intangible assets? They are just as important for your business. At Rangewell we can provide ways to fund them, too.

What are intangible assets?

Intangible assets are non-physical assets. They don’t have a physical form – but they still have huge value. Assets like patents, copyrights, licenses, trademarks and goodwill are all classed as intangibles.

The right to build a particular product, for example, where you own the patent and copyright is an intangible asset, but it is very real in what it does for your business. Intangible assets can be worth more than your tangible assets, although they may be difficult to recognise and measure.

Buying and selling intangible assets

You can buy and sell intangible assets. You might want to buy the rights to build a particular product, for example. Intangible assets and intellectual property can be bought and sold, rented or exchanged or acquired through legal or contractual rights.

Acquiring patents, copyrights and trademarks can be a key to building your business. Taking over a well-known but underused brand name, for example, can often provide access to loyal new customers, as well as a profitable product line.

Financing intangible assets

Funding for tangible assets – Asset Finance – is a standard form of business finance.

Intangible assets can also be financed, although fewer lenders are able to help. Those lenders who work in the field may be able to consider funding options, secured on the assets themselves, offering a cost-effective way to fund the assets your business needs.

One of the reasons why this is is because it is very difficult to determine an accurate valuation of an intangible asset. An asset, such as a trademark, may be very valuable to the company that owns it and contribute to millions of pounds worth of sales each year, but it might be difficult or impossible to sell on if the lender needed to recoup losses if a loan could not be repaid. Another potential buyer may simply not exist.

Arriving at a fair valuation for an intangible asset will, therefore, require specialist skills. A detailed valuation report will need to be prepared by independent experts in areas such as marketing or patent law depending on the nature of the asset.

Intangible asset lenders will be able to work with you to provide this report and an assessment of the value of the asset to you and your business, as well as on the open market.

Raising funds on intangible assets

Under certain circumstances, it may be possible to raise finance using intangible assets such as brand names as collateral.

At Rangewell, we know lenders who may be able to offer this kind of funding. We can work with you to discuss whether your assets may be suitable, and the most appropriate way to make use of them.

Why you need Rangewell to arrange Intangible Asset Funding

At Rangewell, we can help you find the lenders who work in this field and help you prepare an application for funding.

We will work to help you understand their requirements and the lending criteria they set - and work with you to support making your application a success.

Call us to discuss Intangible Asset Funding

Arranging any kind of funding for intangible assets requires specialised expertise.

At Rangewell, we can work with legal and other specialists to understand your needs and assemble a proposal, and then approach our contents working in this field.

By getting us involved in your plans early, you can take full advantage of our expertise and contacts in this area.

For a preliminary discussion about what might be possible, please contact us. Whatever type of asset finance your business needs - intangible asset funding, finance for soft assets or even if you're looking to finance new assets - Rangewell can help.