An asset is a valuable resource owned or controlled by an individual or business that has monetary value and is expected to provide a future financial benefit. Examples include cash, investments, gold, real estate, equipment, and intellectual property. Assets can be converted to cash, used to generate income, or help cover business costs. An asset can produce income, in present or in the future. An asset may appreciate over time. In business, an asset may generate cash flow, reduce expenses, or improve sales.
In corporate strategy, assets are broadly classified as tangible (physical) and intangible (non-physical), which are further categorized by their liquidity, such as current assets e.g., cash, inventory and non-current assets e.g., property, equipment. Additionally, a strategic view considers assets like intellectual property, human resources, marketing assets, and infrastructure. Strong customer relationships, strong supplier relationship, robust marketing channel relationship brand value, proprietary processes, and even skilled human resources are also strategic assets. “Strategic asset allocation” refers to a long-term investment plan for a diversified portfolio.
We shall discuss types of assets.
Tangible Assets
Physical assets that have a physical form. Tangible assets are physical items that a company owns, their values are measurable and they be touched, such as buildings, vehicles, machinery, cash, and inventory. They are recorded on a company’s balance sheet and are essential for operations. These assets can depreciate over time. Examples include both long-term “fixed assets” like factories, plant and machinery and land, and shorter-term “current assets” like cash and raw materials.
Current Tangible
Current tangible assets are physical assets a company can convert to cash within one year, such as cash in bank, inventory, and marketable securities. These assets are used in a company’s normal operations and appear on the balance sheet as part of its short-term liquidity. Cash in bank account, cash in hand, raw materials, work-in-progress, and finished goods held for sale, marketable securities which include short-term investments that are highly liquid in nature, accounts receivable such as money owed to the company by customers for goods or services purchased on credit are all current tangible.
Non-Current Tangible
Also called Fixed Assets are property, plant, and equipment (PPE), buildings, and machinery. They are not expected to be converted to cash within a year and provide benefits to the business over an extended period, with their value often decreasing over time through depreciation.
Intangible Assets
Non-physical assets that have value. They are non-physical assets that hold long-term value for a business, such as patents, copyrights, trademarks, and goodwill. They cannot be touched but are crucial for a company’s core competence and competitive advantage and value. These assets can have a definite life like a patent or an indefinite one like a strong brand name. Customer loyalty, brand recognition, and software are also intangible assets.
Financial Assets
Assets that derive their value from a promised claim, like cash or investments. A financial asset is an intangible instrument whose value is derived from a prescribed claim to future payments, income, or ownership. Common examples include cash, stocks, and bonds. Financial assets are typically more liquid than physical assets and are essential for investment and wealth creation. Examples are cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, and marketable securities
Current Assets
Assets expected to be converted to cash or used up within one year. Current assets are a company’s resources that can be converted into cash within one year, such as cash, inventory, and accounts receivable, prepaid expenses etc. They are important for a business’s day-to-day operations because they provide the liquidity needed to pay short-term liabilities like operating expenses, bills, and loan payments.
Non-Current Assets
Assets not expected to be converted to cash within one year. Non-current assets are long-term investments like property, plant, and equipment, intangible assets such as patents, and other long-term investments that a company holds for more than one year. They are not expected to be quickly converted to cash and are used to support the company’s operations over an extended period. On a balance sheet, these assets are capitalized rather than expensed in the year of purchase, and their value is gradually reduced over time through processes like depreciation or repayment.
Strategic asset types
Strategic assets can be categorized into four main types: intellectual property, human resources, marketing assets, and infrastructure. These are the unique, often intangible, assets that a company uses to create a competitive advantage, such as patents, industrial design, trademark, trade secret, brand reputation, specialized skills, and proprietary technology. It includes strategic perspective, sometimes called strategic asset management. Corporate strategy categorizes assets based on their role in gaining a competitive advantage. Intellectual Property Assets such as trademarks, patents, software, and product designs, human resource assets such as skills, expertise, and the knowledge of employees, marketing assets such as brand name, customer loyalty, and distribution rights and technology, plus organizational culture, and proprietary systems are all strategic assets. Strategic assets also include the above given tangible assets, current tangible assets, non-current tangible assets, intangible assets, financial assets, current assets, and non-current assets.