Why Business Valuation Credentials Matter And What to Look For
When you start looking for a business valuation firm, credentials may not be the first thing you think about. Many business owners focus on turnaround time, cost, or a referral from their attorney or accountant. That makes sense, but it leaves out one of the most important questions you can ask.
The credentials behind a business valuation directly affect whether your report will be accepted by the IRS, hold up in court, or be trusted by buyers, partners, and lenders. A valuation prepared by someone without the right professional designation can be rejected, not because the analysis is wrong, but because the appraiser did not meet the required standard.
Below, we cover the three business valuation credentials that carry the most weight, what each one requires, and why working with a firm that holds all three, like Sun Business Valuations, matters for your specific situation.
The Three Credentials That Matter
There are three professional designations recognized across the business valuation profession, by the IRS, and in legal proceedings. Each is issued by a different organization and requires a separate process to earn.
ASA — Accredited Senior Appraiser
Issued by the American Society of Appraisers, the ASA is the most demanding of the three to earn. Candidates must complete coursework, pass multiple exams, and submit a valuation report for peer review, where credentialed peers evaluate the actual work product. Many candidates do not pass the peer review on the first attempt, and a significant number of people who begin the program do not complete it.
ABV — Accredited in Business Valuation
The ABV is issued by the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), the organization that oversees the accounting profession in the United States. Earning it requires passing a rigorous two-part exam and meeting substantial experience and education requirements. This credential carries particular weight in financial and tax-related valuation contexts, in part because of the AICPA’s broad recognition across accounting, legal, and regulatory communities.
CVA — Certified Valuation Analyst
The CVA is issued by the National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts (NACVA), the largest professional organization focused exclusively on business valuation. It is a highly respected credential that requires passing a comprehensive exam and submitting a valuation report for peer review. Earning the CVA is a rigorous undertaking, backed by a professional community with its own conduct standards and continuing education requirements.
Most valuation professionals hold one of these designations, sometimes two. Holding all three is uncommon; each requires its own independent process, and completing all three represents a substantial commitment beyond day-to-day valuation work.
What Ongoing Certification Requires
Earning these credentials is not a one-time event. All three require continuing education to maintain, which means our credentialed professionals stay current with updated methodologies, new databases, and regulatory changes that affect how valuations are prepared and supported.
There is also an ethics component. Each organization has conduct standards and violating them can result in losing the designation. When you work with a credentialed firm, you are working with professionals who are accountable to a governing body with real enforcement, not just someone with years of experience.
What the IRS Requires: The Qualified Appraiser Standard
For estate filings, gift transfers, and charitable contributions involving a business interest, the IRS has a specific definition of a qualified appraiser, set out in 26 CFR § 1.170A-17. Among other requirements, the appraiser must hold a recognized appraiser designation, defined as one awarded by a generally recognized professional appraiser organization based on demonstrated competency.
If your valuation was not prepared by a qualified appraiser under this definition, the IRS can reject the report. That can mean penalties, a required re-appraisal, or delays in an estate or gift filing. The credential is not a formality. It is a threshold requirement.
Our valuations conform to IRS Revenue Ruling 59-60, which defines fair market value for most tax, legal, and transactional contexts. A report needs to demonstrate that the appraiser understood and correctly applied that standard, and ours do.
What Courts Require: The Daubert Standard
If your valuation is connected to a legal proceeding — a partnership dispute, a divorce, or a damages claim — credentials become especially consequential.
In federal court and many state courts, judges evaluate whether an expert is qualified to testify under what is known as a Daubert challenge, derived from Federal Rule of Evidence 702. The judge determines whether the expert’s qualifications, methodology, and conclusions meet the standard for admissibility. If they do not, the judge can bar the expert from testifying and exclude the report entirely as evidence.
When that happens, the party who relied on that valuation loses both the report and the testimony. Depending on the case, that can end their position in the litigation. Courts do reject business valuation reports, and experts are disqualified. Working with a certified business appraiser who meets recognized professional standards is the most direct protection against that outcome.
The Difference Between a Certified Appraisal and a Broker’s Opinion
Business brokers sometimes provide what is called a broker’s opinion of value, an informal estimate used to help an owner decide whether to list a business for sale. Reputable brokers are upfront that this is not a certified appraisal and should not be used for tax, legal, or formal transactional purposes.
A broker’s opinion is less expensive because it is less rigorous. It is not prepared to any recognized standard, does not require a professional designation, and carries no standing with the IRS or courts. If your valuation will be used for anything beyond an initial conversation, you need a certified appraisal from a qualified business valuation firm. Sun Business Valuations can tell you in a free consultation exactly what your situation requires.
Why Sun Business Valuations
Sun Business Valuations is one of the very few valuation firms in the country where professionals hold certifications from all three leading organizations: the ASA, the ABV, and the CVA. Our team’s expertise is further strengthened by CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) and CPA (Certified Public Accountant) credentials, two of the most respected designations in financial analysis and accounting. All designations can be verified directly through their issuing organizations, each of which maintains public credential lookup tools.
Our valuations conform to IRS Revenue Ruling 59-60, are accepted by major accounting firms, and have held up under legal scrutiny. Our professionals have provided expert witness testimony in proceedings across more than a dozen states and at the federal level.
The credential behind a valuation determines whether the report does the job it needs to do. We have made sure ours will.
Ready To Discuss Your Business Valuation Needs?
To discuss your situation and receive information about our process, timeline, and cost, call Stephen Goldberg, Managing Partner, at 800.232.0180, or complete this form, and we will get back to you shortly. We offer a no-charge initial consultation and provide a fixed-fee quote before any engagement begins.
Sun Business Valuations provides professional business valuation services throughout the United States. Our certified experts deliver accurate, defensible valuations for businesses of all sizes across diverse industries.