The paper discusses the impact of new approach to company assets on the banking system. Special attention is given to the measurement and valuation of intangible assets in the modern companies of the post-industrial era. Traditional paradigms of management of the industrial era, based on material sources of value (land, labour and capital) prove inadequate in describing new developments such as the rise and expansion of intellectual capital and the problem of its management.

Economic activity has so far been described and classified through the system of accounts held by organizations. The existing accounting system was developed largely with a view to capture, as accurately as possible, the flow and accrual of value in industrial companies. Yet, according to many researchers, the industrial era is probably in its twilight. The new economy businesses have specific features. They tend to operate in services. The fixed assets figuring on their balance sheets are rather modest, typically including the computer system and the office. The essential assets consist in employees' intellectual capabilities, as well as their professional connections and reputation. Such companies operate through networks and do not have to spend vast amounts on advertising and public relations.

The paper presents an overview of concepts within the theory of intellectual capital in enterprises. A balance sheet - even with intangible assets featuring on it - provides only a static measure. In order to take a full advantage of the new approach to company assets, it is necessary to introduce intellectual capital management accounting. In practice, this is done through conducting intellectual capital accounts. Financial flows between those resemble the flows between the traditional accounts. Based on such accounts, it is easier to justify a decision - otherwise contestable - to invest a financial surplus into an "intellectual asset" instead of paying it to shareholders as dividend.

The introduction of intangible (intellectual) asset measurement and reporting is a major qualitative breakthrough in the way companies are described in the market. A future-oriented management approach requires that current practice of simple trend analysis and forecasting is abandoned.