Evidence for standards based valuation

International Valuation Standards establish principles for the development, documentation, and communication of valuations. Applying those principles in practice requires market inputs and assumptions that can be traced to their source, reproduced for a specified valuation date, and explained during review.

smartZebra supports this work by providing cost-of-capital parameters, comparable-company data, and multiples with source information and documented calculation paths. The platform allows professionals to configure assumptions while retaining the evidence used to support the final result.

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Topics for discussion

International Valuation Standards set expectations about how a valuation is reasoned and disclosed. Meeting those expectations requires inputs that can be traced, reproduced and explained years after the report is signed. That is the gap smartZebra exists to close. Risk-free rates, beta factors, market and country risk premia, credit spreads and multiples come from a single database, at a specific valuation date, with the raw data and the calculation path attached to the output.

Supporting the AGM is our way of backing the standards agenda in practice rather than just in principle. The public conference sessions will address developments in International Valuation Standards, intellectual-property valuation, professional skills, artificial intelligence, and valuation in the public interest. Closed board and committee meetings form part of the wider AGM programme and should be distinguished clearly from sessions available to registered delegates.

The discussions in Cologne will help smartZebra understand how standard setters and practitioners expect valuation evidence to be prepared, retained, and reviewed across jurisdictions. Relevant discussions include:

• Standard-aligned cost of capital – parameters aligned with IVS and IDW S 1, adjustable and fully documented ‍
• Beta factors – configurable regression settings, valuation-date precision and statistical quality metrics ‍
• Country risk premia – for more than 100 countries, for cross-border and emerging market work ‍
• Credit spreads – by rating and term, including synthetic ratings where none exists ‍
• Peer group selection – AI-assisted screening across a database of listed and private companies ‍
• Traceability – what a genuinely reproducible valuation file looks like in practice

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Event information

Recent months have made the case for standards better than any conference programme could. The EUIPO has pointed to IVS as the foundation for credible IP valuation in Europe, and India's Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board has notified International Valuation Standards for valuations under its insolvency framework.

As IVS adoption spreads, the practical question shifts from whether to apply the standards to how to evidence that you did. That is a data question as much as a methodology question, and Cologne is the right place to talk about it.

The IVSC AGM and Conference takes place from 16 to 18 November 2026 at Confex Cologne Congress Centre. The programme runs alongside the HypZert Annual Convention. Registration and attendance information are available from IVSC. Delegates can contact smartZebra in advance to arrange a meeting about valuation data, documentation, or the practical application of international standards.

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Try smartZebra beforehand

✅ Start your free trial with smartZebra, and determine cost of capital, beta factors and multiples in minutes – no credit card needed, and the access expires automatically.

More know-how on specific modules & solutions: Transfer Pricing · Cost of Capital · Beta Factors · Multiples · Interest Rates