The 10 largest companies by market capitalization are now dominated by technology firms. Intangible assets, such as intellectual property, have replaced tangible assets as the major source of corporate value. Today, more than 84% — or $19 trillion — of the S&P 500’s market cap is represented by intangible assets.
Yet most businesses have a difficult time quantifying the value of their IP or that of potential mergers and acquisitions targets. This makes IP difficult to protect and affects value in M&A transactions.
