Together with the acceptance that there are valid and objective evaluation methods that can be properly applied to determine the value of intellectual property, has come the increasing acceptance of IP as a tradeable asset.
In order to use IP assets as collateral to obtain finance, organisations need to be able to prove they have a cash value which is lasting, and have a realisable market value.

Credit: https://minutehack.com/guides/some-surprisingly-interesting-facts-about-intellectual-property