China's mixed messages over the health of its trademark-backed financing programme

Lending against IP assets remains, on the whole, a tricky business, in part due to the lack of a single widely accepted method of valuation. But in China, it seems that such concerns have not hindered the development of a multimillion-dollar market in trademark, patent and copyright-backed loans. However, over the past year, the economic slowdown has put the brakes on brand-backed lending.