What is business planning for wealth advisory clients? Business planning integrates succession strategy, business valuation, lending coordination, retirement plan design, executive compensation, buy-sell agreements, and exit planning into a unified financial plan — connecting your largest asset to the rest of your financial life.
Most business owners pour everything into growing their company — but the financial planning around it often lags behind. At Rubiq, we work with entrepreneurs across the full arc of ownership: from formation and early-stage financing through growth, protection, and eventual exit. Every stage carries distinct planning opportunities that compound when coordinated properly.
We don't replace your CPA or attorney — we work alongside them. Rubiq serves as the hub that coordinates across your professional team, making sure everyone is aligned on your goals and no critical detail falls through the cracks.
Stage 1
Getting the financial foundation right from the start saves years of unwinding later. We help coordinate entity selection, ownership structuring, and early-stage financing — including SBA lending, conventional credit facilities, and capital planning — so your business launches with a structure that supports both growth and eventual exit.
Stage 2
As revenue scales, the planning complexity scales with it. This is the stage where qualified retirement plans — 401(k), profit sharing, cash balance, or defined benefit — become powerful tools for tax deferral and wealth accumulation. Executive compensation strategies, including deferred compensation and equity incentive plans, help retain key people and optimize the owner's total comp structure. We coordinate these decisions with your CPA to maximize the tax benefit.
Stage 3
A business that can't survive the loss of its owner isn't a business — it's a job. We review key-person insurance, buy-sell agreement funding, disability coverage, and liability structures to make sure the company and the family are protected. Buy-sell agreements need to be properly valued, adequately funded, and aligned with your estate plan — we coordinate all three.
Stage 4
Exit planning isn't something you start six months before a sale — it's a multi-year process of positioning the business, the tax strategy, and the owner's personal balance sheet for maximum after-tax proceeds. We coordinate succession planning, installment sale structures, and tax-efficient liquidity strategies. For qualifying small business stock, Section 1202 (QSBS) may allow founders to exclude up to $15 million (or 10 times basis) of capital gains for stock issued after July 4, 2025 ($10 million for earlier stock) — but eligibility requires careful planning from the point of incorporation.
Considering a C-Corp conversion before a sale? Try our QSBS calculator.
Valuation support powered by RISR
We use RISR, a financial-planning-focused valuation platform, to provide data-driven business value estimates, industry benchmarks, and succession planning insights — so you always know where you stand. Knowing your number isn't optional; it drives every exit, buy-sell, and estate decision.
Insurance as a planning tool
We review life, disability, key-person, and liability coverage as part of your business plan to make sure the right structures are in place. When gaps exist, we can help you put coverage in place or coordinate with your existing agent.
A well-designed retirement plan is often the largest tax deduction available to a profitable owner. The right design depends on your age, income, and number of employees.
| Plan feature | 2026 limit |
|---|---|
| 401(k) employee deferral | $24,500 |
| Catch-up contribution, age 50+ | $8,000 |
| Catch-up contribution, ages 60–63 | $11,250 |
| Total defined contribution additions (employee + employer) | $72,000, plus catch-ups |
| Defined benefit / cash balance annual benefit limit | $290,000 |
Because a cash balance plan is a defined benefit plan, its contributions are not capped at $72,000. Owners in their 50s and 60s can often deduct $200,000 to $350,000 or more a year on top of a 401(k), with the exact amount set by an actuary. See how a cash balance plan works, including 2026 contribution ranges by age. Source: IRS Notice 2025-67.
A Pennsylvania owner sells a business for $5,000,000 with a $500,000 tax basis, a $4,500,000 gain. In the asset-sale version, the buyer allocates $1,000,000 of the price to fully depreciated equipment.
| Stock sale | Asset sale | |
|---|---|---|
| Gain taxed as ordinary income (37%) | $0 | $1,000,000 |
| Gain taxed as long-term capital gain (20%) | $4,500,000 | $3,500,000 |
| Federal income tax | $900,000 | $1,070,000 |
| Pennsylvania tax (3.07% on the full gain) | $138,150 | $138,150 |
| Total | $1,038,150 | $1,208,150 |
The same price produces a $170,000 difference in tax, before considering the 3.8% Net Investment Income Tax, which may or may not apply depending on how actively the owner participated. That is why purchase price allocation, installment terms, QSBS eligibility, and depreciation recapture belong in the negotiation, not just the tax return. Hypothetical and simplified for illustration.
See how one owner put this together in our entrepreneur case study.
Business planning at Rubiq covers the full ownership lifecycle: entity formation and financing coordination (including SBA lending), growth-stage optimization through 401(k) plans and executive compensation, business protection via buy-sell insurance and key-person coverage, and exit planning including succession strategy, installment sales, and Section 1202 QSBS qualification. We coordinate with your CPA and attorney across every stage.
We use RISR, a financial-planning-focused valuation and succession planning platform, to provide data-driven business value estimates, industry benchmarks, and risk analysis. This gives business owners a clear, current picture of what their equity is worth — which is essential for exit planning, buy-sell agreements, and estate strategy.
Depending on revenue, headcount, and goals, business owners may benefit from 401(k) plans with profit sharing, cash balance or defined benefit plans for high earners, SEP or SIMPLE IRAs for smaller operations, or layered strategies combining multiple plan types. The right structure can defer significant income and accelerate wealth accumulation while providing employee benefits.
Section 1202 of the Internal Revenue Code allows founders of qualifying C corporations to exclude up to $15 million (or 10x their basis) in capital gains upon sale for stock issued after July 4, 2025 ($10 million for earlier stock), provided holding-period requirements are met: five years for a full exclusion, with partial exclusions after three or four years for newer stock, and the company must meet specific requirements. QSBS eligibility must be planned from incorporation — retroactive qualification is generally not possible. Rubiq helps business owners evaluate and preserve QSBS eligibility as part of long-term exit planning.
Our advisors can help business owners obtain key-person, buy-sell, disability, and other coverage through LPL Financial, and may earn a commission on policies purchased through them. We start by reviewing your existing coverage against your business and estate plan, disclose any compensation up front, and you are free to work with any agent. Insurance is evaluated as a planning tool within your broader business and estate strategy.
While Rubiq does not originate loans, we help business owners evaluate financing options — including SBA 7(a) and 504 loans, conventional credit facilities, and lines of credit — within the context of their overall financial plan. We coordinate with lenders and your CPA to ensure debt structures align with cash flow projections, tax strategy, and long-term ownership goals.
Sellers usually prefer a stock sale because most of the gain is taxed at long-term capital gains rates, while buyers often prefer an asset sale because they can depreciate the purchase price. In an asset sale, part of the price may be allocated to equipment or other assets whose prior depreciation is recaptured as ordinary income, which raises the seller’s tax. The final structure is usually negotiated, and the allocation can be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Questions we help you answer
What is my business actually worth — and is that number keeping pace with my goals?
Am I maximizing tax deferral through my retirement plan structure?
Is my buy-sell agreement properly funded and current?
Could my stock qualify for Section 1202 QSBS exclusion — and what do I need to preserve eligibility?
Are my CPA, attorney, and advisor all aligned on my exit timeline and tax strategy?