W. Holger Schmidt (photo left) and his colleague C. Schwarz (photo right) visited the renowned TAXarena at the Leipzig Congress Centre on 30 January 2025. Known for its innovative solutions and forward-looking strategies for tax firms, the exhibition offered exciting insights into current industry topics.
With exhibitors including global players, local heroes, hidden champions and visionary start-ups, TAXarena was the ideal place to gather valuable inspiration and examples of best practice. The event provided hands-on learning to increase efficiency, flexibility and quality of advice. Topics that are crucial to increasing client satisfaction.
During the exhibition we had the opportunity to talk to Mr M. Oppl from Convotis (in the middle of the picture) in person. Convotis GmbH, Düsseldorf, is a strong system house partner of addVALUE. The direct exchange in Leipzig was extremely informative and opened up new perspectives for future cooperation.
Dear clients and business partners,
For the new year, we wish you and your loved ones health, success, and lots of happiness. May 2025 bring you numerous valuable moments, new opportunities, and exciting challenges. We look forward to standing by your side again this year and continuing to grow successfully together with you.
Here’s to continued trust and successful cooperation!
Your addVALUE audit & tax team
OBERHARZ am BROCKEN: On sunny days like the end of October 2024 in the picturesque heart of the Harz Mountains, the special appeal of working in auditing becomes apparent. Together with the management of the Oberharz am Brocken tourism company, our audit team accompanied the first steps of a new contractual relationship. For us, personal dialogue and direct insight into the local circumstances and processes are of great importance in order to gain a deep understanding of the business activities. In this context, our visit also included a tour of Germany's oldest show cave. Naturally, we were amazed by the impressive stalactite formations and received interesting first-hand information on the height of the cave and other relevant aspects. However, our discussions also focussed on topics such as the mapping of visitor flows in accounting, the cash register system used and the fixed assets installed in the mountain. And yes, we were also able to marvel at the skeleton of a cave bear. Our team has a clear recommendation: A visit to the Baumannshöhle cave in Rübeland is definitely worthwhile. Further information can be found at www.harzer-höhlen.de.
New York: Our student J. Riegler was in New York from September 3rd to 11th, 2024, to gain in-depth insights into international financial markets. As part of a trip with IG Börse Dresden, he visited several renowned institutions. One of the highlights was the visit to the FED Museum, where J. Riegler learned about the US financial system and saw the famous gold vault. At First Eagle (see picture), he gained valuable insights into direct lending as an asset class while enjoying a stunning view of Central Park.
“The trip combined knowledge, inspiration, and the unique charm of New York,” says J. Riegler The visit to DZ Bank was equally fascinating, where he explored the effects of US politics on financial markets and conducted real-time data analysis using Bloomberg Terminals.
Of course, there was also time to experience the vibrant city. J. Riegler had the opportunity to visit New York’s iconic landmarks, including the Staten Island Ferry with views of the Statue of Liberty, as well as Times Square and the Financial District. A visit to Wall Street, the NYSE, and the famous "Charging Bull" rounded out the unforgettable experience.
This trip was the perfect mix of professional knowledge and personal inspiration – truly a highlight!
FRANKFURT: Our addVALUE experts for company valuations experienced an intensive exchange of experiences on September 5, 2024 in the Main metropolis Frankfurt at the invitation of the IDW Academy. From regular inquiries, our specialists are familiar with the desire of small and medium-sized companies for a cost-effective valuation. Methodologically, the IDW S1 “Principles for the Performance of Business Valuations” is usually used as the valuation standard. However, SMEs regularly come up against limits in terms of providing the data required to apply IDW S1.
More than 20 participants intensively discussed possible solutions or alternatives. We would therefore also like to thank WP CVA Dr. Lars Franken (photo right), who patiently answered our questions from practitioners and was also available to take a photo with our colleague (photo, left).
A summer evening for the medium-sized businesses in the Leipzig region from BVMW Leipzig Economic Region (Leipzig City + District + North Saxony) [BVMW Wirtschaftsregion Leipzig (Stadt+Landkreis Leipzig+Nordsachsen)] at Gut Kahnsdorf on Lake Hainer.
Our Partner W. Holger Schmidt (photo, right / German Public Accountant) took advantage of the opportunity and was able to make new contacts and maintain our existing regional network.
My thanks to Manuela Luther (photo in the middle) from Weddingvillage, who usually makes wedding parties happy at this location, and Michael Odenthal (photo on the left) from querifai in Munich for new insights into data analytics.
DRESDEN: A successful evening in the historical ambience of the Deutsches Hygiene-Museum with engaging speakers on interesting and current topics. Many thanks to the team from WMS Wachstumsfonds Mittelstand Sachsen.
Food for thought from the presentations was provided by our colleague W. Holger Schmidt:
Short and concise Mr. Martin Dulig (left photo) Sächsisches Staatsministerium für Wirtschaft, Arbeit und Verkehr (Saxon State Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labour and Transport)
Frank Bösenberg from Silicon Saxony (I was impressed by the first-hand information about the cluster and I am delighted for Dresden and Saxony)
Sybille Sonntag with Kulturhauptstadt Europas Chemnitz 2025 gGmbH (Promoted Chemnitz with commitment and a passionate presentation and whetted the appetite for 2025).
Prof. Michael Paul with insights and outlooks on the annual Bach Festival in LEIPZIG REGION and the message that life without Bach is possible but pointless.
I owe good conversations after the lectures in particular to:
Dr. Marcus Haberstroh (photo above, right) as Managing Director of SpinLab - The HHL Accelerator; Olaf Horlbeck (photo above, middle) who is a committed candidate for a mandate in the Saxon state parliament (Sächsischer Landtag) and who, as a master carpenter and designer in the skilled trades, stands up for sustainability and Daniel W. Flade (thanks for the photo above, right!) a professional colleague from Chemnitz committed to quality with a focus on the restructuring of companies and Sebastian Skoda.
LEIPZIG: We focus on knowledge and skills. Our application as addVALUE audit&tax Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft as a practice partner of the BA-Saxony was successful. After receiving the certificate, we are now pleased to be able to follow this path together with a candidate for 3 years.
Interested parties for the start dates 2024, 2025 and 2026 are cordially invited to get to know us.
Contact address: schmidt@value-wp.de
HANNOVER: We are delighted to report on our participation in the German Foundation Day 2024 in Hanover. This significant event, organized by the Federal Association of German Foundations, was a great success and provided us with numerous valuable insights into current developments and challenges in the foundation sector.
Deepening Our Expertise in the Foundation Sector
Our expert in accounting and advisory services for foundations attended this congress with enthusiasm. The Foundation Day, under the motto "In the Midst: How Foundations Shape Transformation," focused on the diverse aspects of foundation work in a changing society.
Inspiring Key Events
We were particularly excited about the following sessions:
The presentation on the use of Artificial Intelligence in foundation work was a real highlight. It impressively demonstrated how AI, particularly systems like ChatGPT, can revolutionize efficiency and accuracy in foundation work.
Our Goals and Value for Our Clients
Our goal was to gain first-hand insights into the challenges and best practices in foundation work. The knowledge gained from the congress is invaluable for providing tailored advice to our clients.
We received valuable information on energetic and economic requirements for construction and renovation measures, as well as the importance of compliance in foundation work—topics that are of central importance to many of our clients.
Networking and Future Collaborations
The congress offered excellent networking opportunities. We established numerous new contacts and deepened existing relationships, which helps us stay ahead of the curve and develop innovative solutions for our clients.
Conclusion and Outlook
Our participation in the German Foundation Day 2024 was a great success and has further deepened our understanding of the current and future challenges in the foundation sector. We are excited to incorporate these new insights into our daily work to continue serving our clients at the highest level.
Our special thanks go to the Federal Association of German Foundations for the excellent organization. We are already looking forward to future events that will further strengthen and deepen our expertise.
LEIPZIG: The supposedly rather “dry” topic of ESG reporting brought experts together on Thursday and resulted in a challenging exchange on current top compliance issues and solutions that managing directors regularly have or are looking for. In addition to the requirements of ESG reporting, these include data protection regulations, information security requirements, industry-specific IT security requirements and compliance with the requirements of the Money Laundering Act.
The consultants from jurcons Beratungs- und Informations GmbH & Co. KG, Leipzig, with managing director and lawyer Hagen Albus, have many years of experience as lawyers, primarily in the fields of information technology and labor law. On request, they can act as external data protection, money laundering or information security officers for companies. addVALUE audit&tax GmbH Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft can act in particular as auditors in connection with sustainability information. As part of the implementation of processes to fulfil reporting obligations, many advantages of an interdisciplinary team were recognized and a concrete implementation was prepared.
BERLIN: An energetic and successful start to the week. The climate-friendly return journey by train from Berlin to Leipzig gives us time to reflect. Not only about the good fortune of being able to use one of the last trains before the next wave of strikes, but also about the diverse and complex issues surrounding the topic of energy. More than 10 years after the founding of the energy network at the BBH Group in Berlin, today's conference was a highlight of this platform. My thanks to the organizers, moderators and the Academy of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation as host as well as the convincing speakers such as Julia Friedlander from the Atlantikbrücke e.V. or Andreas Jung as climate and energy policy spokesman of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group, to name a few.
In our view, what has changed in the network discussion in the last 12 years?
1. the view of the topic is becoming much more international.
2. the problems and framework conditions have become increasingly unfavorable.
3. bureaucratic obstacles and nonsense are increasingly being discussed.
4. the number of participants from operating companies involved in energy generation, storage, transportation and consumption has unfortunately decreased.
January 22, 2024: The latest update to the Saxon Foundation Act will result in changes as of December 31, 2023. The background to this was the desire of the Saxon legislature to repeal state law regulations in the wake of amended provisions of the German Civil Code (BGB) and to regulate foundation civil law uniformly.
What does this mean in concrete terms for foundations in Saxony? In future, non-tax-privileged foundations will have to provide evidence in the form of a report on the fulfillment of the foundation's purpose and an external audit report. According to the law, this audit report can also be prepared by us as an independent auditing company.
At present, the supervisory authorities in Saxony are already assuming an audit obligation for 2023. But even here, changes are apparently not impossible. We are monitoring developments in this regard.
