Identifiering av immateriella tillgångar : En studie om redovisning av tillgångar vid företagsförvärv på svenska MTF:er

Sammanfattning: An accounting issue that has received attention is the issue of identification of intangible assets in acquisitions. This is because the company's result can be different depending on how much the company chooses to identify intangible assets separated from goodwill. As the practice for identification of intangible assets lacks clarity, companies are able to account for this in different ways. In this study, the manner in which identification of intangible assets are managed by companies listed on Swedish multilateral trading facilities and the manner in which companies distribute the purchase sum on net tangible assets, intangible assets and goodwill in comparison with listed companies is examined. The study emanates from a systems approach and is descriptive. It seeks to describe the concerns relating to identification of intangible assets in acquisitions rather than creating general conclusions. It alos emanates from a quantitative method where data is gathered from annual reports from the companies in question for the year 2012. The result showed that listed companies identified more intangible assets separated from goodwill. At the same time it was not possible to determine if this depended on whether or not the companies listed on multilateral trading facilities were better or worse than listed companies in the accounting of acquisitions. It also emerged that the information concerning acquisitions in annual reports left much to be desired. To improve the identification of intangible assets, clearer practice is required as well as auditors speaking up on the issue.