South Africa, Jan. 14 -- According to the new study, corporate reputation now has measurable value: companies with strong reputations can realise as much as 4.78% in additional annual shareholder returns, creating a global "Reputation Economy" worth an estimated $7.07tr.

From a soft concept to hard asset

The research, The Global Reputation Economy: A New Asset Class for a New Era has successfully quantified the financial value of reputation, moving it from a soft concept to a hard asset.

The analysis found that among the companies studied, the magnitude of this "reputation return" could add anywhere from $2m to as much as $202bn in unexpected shareholder returns, above what would be expected strictly from standard financial performance...