The unlevered beta (asset beta, or beta désendetté) measures the systematic risk of a company's assets independently of its capital structure — as if it were entirely equity-financed with no debt. It is derived by "unlevering" the observed equity beta of comparable listed companies using the Hamada formula: β_unlevered = β_levered / (1 + (1 - tax rate) × Net debt/Equity). It represents the pure business risk of the sector, stripped of financial leverage effects. To apply it to a specific unlisted company, it is re-levered to the target capital structure, producing the levered equity beta used in the CAPM.

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Example: a listed Swiss sector peer has a levered beta of 1.30, gearing of 60% and a 14% tax rate. Unlevered beta = 1.30 / (1 + (1 - 0.14) × 0.60) = 0.87. This asset beta represents the pure industrial sector risk. Re-levered to the target's capital structure (40% gearing): β_levered = 0.87 × (1 + (1 - 0.14) × 0.40) = 1.17. Applied in CAPM with 6.5% MRP: equity risk premium = 7.6%.

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At Hectelion, unlevered beta construction and relevering to target capital structures is rigorously documented in every WACC calculation for unlisted company valuations.