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Valuation Research Corporation (VRC) |
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December 31, 2012 Issue |
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The Most Powerful Name In Corporate News and Information |
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With offices in 15 countries providing a global reach, Valuation Research Corporation (VRC) has been named Valuation Firm of the Year by industry peers in the private equity, investment banking and law firm M&A communities |
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Ray
Weisner
About Valuation Research Corporation (VRC): Valuation Research Corporation (VRC) is an independent firm that has been providing valuations to the U.S. and international business communities for more than 37 years. Our core services include financial opinions with respect to valuation, solvency, capital adequacy and fairness in connection with mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, leveraged buyouts, recapitalizations, financings, and financial and tax reporting matters. Our expertise includes the valuation of businesses, equity and debt securities, loans, derivative instruments, structured products, intangible assets, fixed assets and real estate. |
Valuation
Valuation
Research Corporation 39th Floor New York, New York 10110 212-983-3370 |
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Interview conducted by: Lynn Fosse, Senior Editor, CEOCFO Magazine, Published – December 31, 2012
Mr. Weisner: We are a valuation group that provides independent opinions of value to our clients, including public companies, private equity firms and hedge funds. We support them with the valuation of business entities, as well as intangible assets, fixed assets and real estate. As a full-service valuation group, and we also value hedge funds and their illiquid investments that are known as the level three assets, typically private equity and private debt investments.
CEOCFO: Are there specific industries that are a focus for you or is it across the board? Mr. Weisner: We are large enough that it is really every industry we support. Of course, we do have certain depth in some industries more than others, but collectively, with all of our offices, we do have experience with most industries.
CEOCFO: What is your geographic reach? Mr. Weisner: As a group, we have offices in about fifteen countries; with headquarter locations in nine countries. We serve about sixty countries from these offices.
CEOCFO: What are some of the elements that go into your valuation process that would surprise people? Mr. Weisner: I think it is the fact that we can provide our clients with global reach. Not all groups can provide that with a single phone call. And we are a pure play in valuation, a specialist firm, specializing in valuation only. Many of our industry colleagues or competitors are valuation units within larger organizations, or smaller groups within an accounting firm or a larger investment bank. That specialist and pure play aspect allows us a certain independence. It is rare we are going to be conflicted out of a situation by working on the other side of the deal like many that might be affiliated with an investment bank or accounting firm. That affords our clients with the comfort of independence that they enjoy by working with us.
CEOCFO: What do you look for in your professionals? What do they need to know to do the job that best represents your firm? Mr. Weisner: A key to our practice is we have mid- to senior level professionals. We often see competitors with a more vertical model of having many junior professionals on engagements. We typically start with people who have some experience, so our professionals are generally more experienced than some of our industry competitors.
CEOCFO: Can you give me an example of a project that you did what people would not expect? Something that really represents what you have done and something a little bit unique about what you have added? Mr. Weisner: One unique project would be our appraisal of the Panama Canal. It is a relatively iconic asset, and we were brought in in support of financing for the expansion of the Canal. The Panama Canal Authority decided to expand the canal and needed to borrow about $6 billion for building a parallel canal system, and more depth and width for the larger ships of today. Our services were needed to provide balance sheet values for the financial statements and for the enterprise value of the canal system. We not only appraised the canal system, but we also needed to appraise fixed assets including the electric utility system and water utility system within the canal, and other large assets.
CEOCFO: How do you reach potential clients or do people know you and come to you now? Mr. Weisner: I would say most of our clients are repeat clients. We get a lot of nice referrals from them as well. Also, the audit community is a very nice supporter of ours. We find that they are able to refer us in when there is a new client with a need for an independent valuation, and we enjoy that. Of course, we also employ the usual marketing strategies and try to get our name out there. Some projects for our clients are where virtually every quarter there is the same need. Then, a third of our practice is driven by M&A activity. Our recent award for International Valuation Firm of the Year recognized our valuation support for M&A activity. Those are obviously project-by-project. A client has an acquisition that needs valuation support for various purposes. Within that, typically once our client uses us for acquisition support, fortunately they often come back and use us for the next deal.
CEOCFO: How do your methods and practices change as the economy changes, and how do you account for what you cannot expect? If the market drops 20%, or the crisis we had, where do those intangibles come into your process? Mr. Weisner: Certainly, back in the financial crisis it was a challenge to accurately value assets, particularly financial assets. Those were challenging times, and we do need to look toward the market place, market values, and transaction prices. At the same time, in times of market upheaval we have to consider what has been driving that, and we do try to sort out what might be distressed or forced sales, and try to come with a more orderly market price. Sometimes you might have to figure what the fair value would be, under accounting standards. It also depends on the purpose of our valuation. We do a lot of fair value engagements. That is different than if we are doing, for instance, liquidation values, which might be the values that we are providing to support collateral values for financing. Depending on the purpose and the standard of value different approaches and premises come into play.
CEOCFO: Going back for a minute to your geographic range, are there areas of the world, or this country for that matter, that you would like to have a greater presence so that you can plan to open offices? How do you decide when and where to do this? Mr. Weisner: We are a relatively conservative group. We are not looking for regular geographic expansion. Often when we do grow it is because of a situation where professionals we know, perhaps we have worked with, want to ally or join us as either an office group or an affiliate group.
CEOCFO: What is ahead for VRC? Mr. Weisner: We tend to stick with what we are good at. One growth area is the valuation of illiquid assets, which are also known as level three assets. There is a nice growth and a demand for independent third party valuation of those assets. The demand is coming from the L.P.s, the investors in some cases, and even the accounting firms of the hedge funds and BDCs are looking for third party valuation support. That is a growth area for us. Regarding our support for M&A activity, we do to a certain extent have to go along with that tide. We do actively value a share of the M&A activity that there is out there.
CEOCFO: So business is good? Mr. Weisner: It has been pretty good, yes.
CEOCFO: Our readers are primarily in the business and investment community; many people that should/could be potentially interested in what you do. Why should they pay attention to VRC? Mr. Weisner: Very often, your readers are going to have a need for third party valuations, whether that be U.S. based needs which we would serve from one of our nine U.S. offices, or whether that be a cross-border, multinational need. We would be able to provide them with experience, independent experience. A specialist from Valuation Research Corporation can provide support, whether it is for financial reporting, tax reporting, or financial support for financing and investing needs.
CEOCFO: Do you have any final thoughts? What else should people know, or what do people know about Valuation Research Corporation that we have not touched on, if anything?
Mr. Weisner:
We are pleased to
confirm that we were recently named the Valuation Firm of the Year by
industry peers in the private equity, investment banking, and law firm M&A
community. They recently named Valuation Research as the Valuation Firm of
the Year, and frankly, with pretty steep competition from multinational
firms, including those in the valuation groups of investment banks and some
large accounting firms. The fact that we have been recognized speaks to our
experience. And clients who have worked with us can feel confident in the
industry confirmation of our reputation. |
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“We are pleased to confirm that we were recently named the Valuation Firm of the Year by industry peers in the private equity, investment banking, and law firm M&A community.” - Raymond Weisner |
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Business Services, Valuation Research Corporation, CEO Interviews 2012, providing valuations to the U.S. and international business communities, private equity firms, investment bans, law firm M&A communities, Recent CEO Interviews, Business Services Stock, Business Services Companies, financial opinions with respect to valuation, solvency, capital adequacy and fairness in connection with mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, leveraged buyouts, recapitalizations, financings, and financial and tax reporting matters, valuation of businesses, equity and debt securities, loans, derivative instruments, structured products, intangible assets, fixed assets and real estate, Valuation Research Corporation Press Releases, News, Companies looking for venture capital, Angel Investors, private companies looking for investors, business services companies seeking investors, valuation research companies needing investment capital |
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