This note discusses business valuation from both an academic point of view and from the point of view of a business valuation expert, who may follow the methods specified by a business valuation certifying organization. The note introduces the idea of discounts, such as lack-of-control discounts, lack-of-marketability discounts, key employee discounts, and concentration risk discounts. These concepts are widely used in business valuation but are rarely discussed in accounting or finance classes.
