Foundations · Track 3 · Tutorial 4 of 6

Sell a controlling stake

When the group sells enough of a subsidiary to lose control, the company stops being consolidated, the stake kept is revalued, and a gain or loss is recognised. Record the sale once, and BrizoConsol handles all three.

You will needA subsidiary recorded as Subsidiary in Ownership, with its NCI account setup and Acquisition details saved. Pro or Premium edition.

By the endThe company consolidated up to the month before the sale and carried as one investment line from that month, with its goodwill and NCI removed and the gain or loss in profit and loss.

1Understand what changes when control is lost

In the running example the group has owned 80% of Company B since January 2025, with goodwill of 40,000 (see Account for minority shareholders). In October 2026 it sells 50% for 350,000 and keeps 30%, which gives it significant influence but not control. The 30% kept is worth 210,000.

Company B is consolidated line by line with goodwill of 40,000 and NCI of 100,000 until September; from October the 30% kept is one investment line of 210,000; the gain before the translation reserve is recycled is 350,000 + 210,000 + 100,000 − 500,000 − 40,000 = 120,000 — Line by line until September; one investment line from October.

Until September	Company B is consolidated line by line, with goodwill and 20% NCI.
In October	Its net assets, goodwill and NCI leave the group accounts. The 30% kept is treated as if sold and bought back at fair value, so the gain or loss covers the whole stake, not only the 50% sold.
Translation reserve	Company B is a foreign company (see Handle foreign currency companies). The group’s share of its translation reserve built up since the group took control — including the exchange differences on its goodwill — moves out of equity and into the gain or loss. The NCI’s share is removed with the NCI and is not recycled.
From October	Company B is a JV / Associate. Its figures are no longer consolidated; BrizoConsol posts the group’s 30% share of its profit as JV entries.

2Choose the disposal account

Open Ownership & Equity → Ownership, and open NCI account setup with the NCI account settings icon.
Choose a profit and loss account for Disposal gain/loss (loss of control), and click Save.
Click Company B, open the Acquisition details tab, and check Investment in subsidiary and Acquisition bank account are chosen.

The gain or loss is posted to the disposal account. The investment account is where the group’s original cost is cleared from, and the bank account receives the proceeds.

3Record the sale

On Company B’s Ownership history tab, click + Add record.
Choose your group, Dispose, Oct-2026 and 50.
Choose JV / Associate as the relationship. This is what tells BrizoConsol control is lost.
Enter the Disposal amount (350,000).
Enter the Retained interest fair value (210,000), and choose the Retained interest account the 30% will be carried in.
Check the notice says the disposal changes control, and click Add Record.

Add Ownership Record for Company B: Dispose 50% in Oct-2026, relationship JV / Associate, disposal amount 350,000, retained interest fair value 210,000 in Investment in associates, and the notice that the disposal changes control — When and how much (1), the loss of control (2), the proceeds (3), the stake kept (4), and the notice (5).

Disposal amount	What the buyer paid for the 50%, in the group currency.
Retained interest fair value	What the 30% kept is worth at the date of the sale — usually from the same valuation as the sale price. It becomes the starting value of the investment.
Retained interest account	The investment account the 30% sits in from October, for example an investment in associates account.

If the notice starts with Warning, the Disposal gain/loss (loss of control) account is not set. You can save the record, but go back to step 2 before you report.

4Check the record

There is nothing to post: saving the record recalculates the group and posts the entries.

Company B ownership history: Jan 2025 Acquire 80% as Subsidiary with goodwill 40,000.00, and Oct 2026 Dispose 50% as JV / Associate, cumulative 30%, proceeds 350,000.00, retained fair value 210,000.00, gain Calc. at post — The sale, with the group’s holding down to 30% (1).

Check

The new row shows Dispose, JV / Associate and a Cumulative % of 30%. Net assets at date (fair value) shows the 210,000 you entered for the stake kept, and Goodwill / Gain (auto) shows Calc. at post — the gain is worked out when the entries are posted.

5Check the result

Open Reports → Profit & Loss for Oct-2026. The gain is on the Disposal gain/loss (loss of control) account — the 120,000 plus or minus the recycled translation reserve — and Company B’s revenue and costs are included up to September only.
Open Reports → Balance Sheet with Show Entities on. From October, Company B’s assets and liabilities, its goodwill and its NCI are gone, and the retained interest account shows 210,000.
Open Ownership & Equity → NCI Report for Company B and Oct-2026. The Disposal (Loss of Control) rows show each balance removed and where it was posted, including Disposal (Loss of Control) - Owners CTA Recycling for the translation reserve.
Open Ownership & Equity → JV / Associate Report for Company B to see the group’s 30% share of its profit from October.

For September and earlier, Company B is still shown line by line, so the comparatives are not restated.

6If something does not look right

What you see	What to do
The dialog does not ask for the retained interest	The relationship is still Subsidiary. Choose JV / Associate if the group no longer controls Company B. If it does, see Buy out or sell to minority shareholders.
Loss-of-control disposal requires a disposal gain/loss P&L account…	Choose the Disposal gain/loss (loss of control) account in NCI account setup.
Investment account must be configured for loss-of-control disposal…	Choose Investment in subsidiary on Company B’s Acquisition details tab.
Acquisition bank account must be configured for disposal posting…	Choose the Acquisition bank account on the same tab.
Missing closing exchange rate for the retranslation of goodwill…	Add the closing rate for Company B’s currency for the month named in the message. Every month since the group took control needs one.
The gain looks wrong	Check the Disposal amount and Retained interest fair value — both are in the group currency — and the Owners CTA Recycling row in the NCI Report.
Company B is dropped from the wrong month	Edit the record’s Month. Company B stops being consolidated from that month.

Want more detail? See the documentation

Ownership NCI — Non-Controlling Interest JV / Associate JV / Associate Report

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