Interviews

Three Questions with Anna-Kristine Wipper: Making IP “Bankable”

Published: October 20, 2026

As intangible assets play an increasingly important role in enterprise growth and investment decisions, the challenge for businesses is not simply to protect intellectual property (IP), but to demonstrate how it contributes to value. That question sits at the heart of INTA’s Frankfurt Workshop: Integrating Intellectual Property, Finance, and Valuation, taking place on December 9, 2026. Frankfurt is considered Germany’s financial capital, which makes it a natural location to convene professionals from finance, law, business, government, academia, and industry to examine how IP valuation can support growth and investment decisions, including the role of IP in venture capital, lending, and cross-border growth.

Anna Kristine-Wipper, PwC Law (Germany)

Dr. Anna-Kristine Wipper, Partner at PwC Law in Germany, will moderate Panel 2, Unlocking Investment Potential: The Role of Intellectual Property in Capital Allocation and Financing Decisions. Dr. Wipper specializes in IP law, advising companies on trademark, design, and unfair competition matters as well as global IP portfolios.

Her panel will consider how investors and lenders assess IP when making capital allocation decisions and how companies can integrate intangible assets into financial analysis and due diligence. The discussion will also address the practical opportunities and challenges associated with using IP to improve access to capital.

Ahead of the workshop, the INTA Bulletin sat down with Dr. Wipper, who discussed how to make intangible assets “truly bankable,” common misconceptions about IP and finance, and why Frankfurt provides a fitting setting for those conversations.

How can businesses better demonstrate the value of their intangible assets to investors and lenders?
Investors and lenders are, rightly, pragmatic: before any discussion of value, they want certainty that the IP exists, is valid, and belongs to the business. That is where demonstrating value begins. Clean registrations, a documented chain of title—including employee inventions and contributions from developers and agencies—and transparency on licenses and security interests turn a portfolio into something a financier can rely on. The next step is to connect rights to revenue: which trademarks carry pricing power, which patents protect core products, which licenses generate income. Businesses that treat this as an ongoing governance task, rather than a one-off exercise ahead of a transaction, are far better placed. A structured IP review that identifies both risks and untapped potential, aligned with recognized valuation approaches, gives investors a case they can test, and that is ultimately what builds confidence.

The next step is to connect rights to revenue: which trademarks carry pricing power, which patents protect core products, which licenses generate income.

If you could change one misconception that businesses have about IP and finance, what would it be?
I would challenge the idea that IP is purely a legal matter: something to be registered, renewed, and defended, but managed separately from finance. In reality, intangible assets often account for a significant share of enterprise value, yet self-created trademarks and similar rights rarely appear on the balance sheet. As a result, they are easily overlooked when companies plan financing, M&A, or restructuring. When legal, tax, and finance teams look at IP together, the questions change: not only “Is it protected?” but “What does it contribute, how can it be leveraged, and what could put it at risk?” This shift does not require new instruments. It requires a different mindset, one that sees IP as a strategic asset that deserves a place in the boardroom, not only in the legal department.

It requires a different mindset, one that sees IP as a strategic asset that deserves a place in the boardroom, not only in the legal department.

Frankfurt is one of Europe’s leading financial centers. What makes it an ideal location for a conversation about IP, finance, and valuation?
Frankfurt brings together the institutions that shape European finance, including the European Central Bank, the Deutsche Bundesbank, the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin), and the stock exchange group Deutsche Börse, alongside a dense community of banks, investors, auditors, and valuation experts. Conversations about IP and finance are too often held in separate rooms: lawyers discuss protection; financiers discuss risk and return. Frankfurt is a place where those perspectives meet naturally. At the same time, IP-backed financing in Europe is still evolving, and many of the open questions, such as how to value intangibles reliably, how to take security over them, and how lenders and regulators treat them, will be answered where capital and expertise are concentrated. That makes Frankfurt an ideal setting for a candid, practical exchange. Our panel will bring together legal, financial, and valuation perspectives to explore what it takes to make intangible assets truly bankable.

Learn more and register for the Frankfurt Workshop: Integrating Intellectual Property, Finance, and Valuation.

Although every effort has been made to verify the accuracy of this article, readers are urged to check independently on matters of specific concern or interest. The opinions expressed in this interview are those of the persons being interviewed and do not purport to reflect the views of INTA or its members.