Chartered accountant · Computer scientist · ISO/IEC 42001 Lead Auditor trained

Does your business earn money from software you built with AI?

It appears nowhere in your financial statements, so a bank or a buyer will not count it as value unless you can prove what it is worth.

A machine you build goes on your balance sheet. Software you build rarely does. When it does, it goes in at cost rather than at what a buyer would pay. I valued one company's software at €19.5 million when its accounts showed nothing. The bank approved the loan. Now owners are building software with AI, earning from it and keeping no record a buyer, a bank or a big customer would accept.

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Case study

A bank said no to a software company with over €40 million in revenue.

The company wanted a loan to buy part of a commercial building. On paper it owned €2.8 million of assets against €1.9 million of liabilities, and the bank declined. Its most valuable asset, the subscription software its customers paid for every month, appeared nowhere in the numbers.

I spent almost two months analysing the data, source code, documentation and architecture, and valued the software at €19.5 million. With that valuation in front of it, the bank reviewed the application and approved the loan.

The software had always been there. Nobody had proved what it was worth.

Net asset value presented to the bank, before and after the software valuation

€0.9m to €20.4m

Outcome

Loan approved. The business has since bought more property.

Free for briefing readers

Using AI in your business? There are more documents to keep now: an inventory of the tools, a policy for your staff and the proof that both are followed.

A buyer's due diligence team and an ISO/IEC 42001 auditor open with the same three questions. Where is AI used in this business? What data does it touch? Who answers for it? In most businesses the answers live in people's heads. The free register below puts them on paper in about an hour. The weekly briefing then shows you which document to keep next.

A due diligence team is the group a buyer sends to inspect a business before money changes hands. ISO/IEC 42001 is the international standard for managing AI in an organisation.

Free when you join

The AI Inventory and Asset Register

One spreadsheet that lists every AI tool, every dataset and every connection between your systems, laid out the way a buyer's advisers and an AI auditor both expect to see it. The first pass takes about an hour.

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My story

Why I do this work

Early in my career, a new client came to me on the verge of losing his business. Years of work, his income and his family's security were all at risk. We found a way through, and he kept the business.

That was the moment I understood the purpose of this work. It is not the accounts themselves. It is protecting what an owner has spent years building, at exactly the moment someone else looks closely.

I went on to run my own accounting and audit practice, and to work alongside firms such as PwC, Deloitte and BDO. I also build software, which is why I now work at the point where finance, technology and governance meet.

A business should make you proud, make you wealthy and keep you on the winning side. My job is to make sure it holds up when it matters.

What readers of my first book say

Owners who applied the method

“As a business owner, I was looking to sell my company and was uncertain about the process. However, after reading this guide, I was able to apply the methods outlined within its pages and was amazed by the results. Not only did I successfully sell my business but I was able to secure a sale price that was significantly higher than what I initially thought was possible.”

Aaron Martin
Business transformation coach, serial entrepreneur

“The succession planning steps in the book enabled me to seamlessly hand over the reins to my children, and their fresh perspective has taken the business to new heights, resulting in continued revenue growth.”

Sean Johnson
Founder and CEO, advisor

“As a result of reading about cash flow and budgets, I now have good reasons to do it and know what to do about it.”

Hilary Rowland
Managing Director, Next Chapter Retreats

Ways to work with me

Start free. Go further when you are ready.

01 · Free

The weekly briefing

Make Your Business More Valuable With AI, every Tuesday. Find every AI tool your team uses, control what client data each one touches and show the proof on one page.

Free. The first issue is out now.

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02 · Software

AICORES® early access

Import your figures and AICORES® builds your cash flow forecast, with the checks an accountant would expect.

Early-access pricing: Foundation plan, €97

Request early access

03 · Engagement

Business Value Review

A fixed-fee review of what your business is worth to a buyer, a bank or an investor, across the five CORES® pillars and the AI and data risks they now ask about, with a written report and a walkthrough call.

Fixed fee €2,950

Read about the Review

04 · Engagement

AI and asset value review

A fixed-scope written review of your software, data and AI: what they are worth, what they put at risk, and what to fix before a bank, a buyer or an auditor looks. Available on its own or as an add-on to the Business Value Review.

From €3,450

Enquire

05 · Speaking

Talks and workshops

Sessions for business groups, professional bodies and author communities on AI, governance and business value.

From €1,500 for a 45-minute talk. Half-day workshops quoted on request.

Enquire about dates

What is your business worth when someone checks?

Get the weekly briefing and find out. The first issue is out now, and the next one arrives on Tuesday.

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