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Markets, payments and financial infrastructure

Investment bank financial model, built free.

A three-statement Excel model for an investment bank or corporate advisory firm, built from your own figures and checked to balance.

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  • Usually ready within the hour

We use generative AI in parts of our process, so mistakes can occur. Every model should be checked by a person before it is relied on. Read more

The business

Advises on mergers and acquisitions, underwrites equity and debt issues and trades securities for clients (or a boutique doing advisory only), paying out a large share of revenue as compensation.

See the sampleHow the model works

In short

  • 01

    Three linked statements

    Income statement, balance sheet and cash flow, linked in every period.

  • 02

    Valued two ways

    Trading multiples and financial institution equity valuation, side by side.

  • 03

    Monthly to annual

    Monthly, quarterly, half-yearly or annual periods, for up to 30 years.

  • 04

    Checked every period

    A Checks sheet shows the balance sheet balances and the cash reconciles.

The sample

The sample, as Excel draws it.

Built by the same system and checks as yours, on illustrative figures: every sheet as Excel draws it, or live.

Annual · 10 years · Low detail
Investment bank sample model.xlsx
The Summary sheet of the sample investment bank model

Illustrative figures: the sample describes no real business. The live preview shows values; your model’s Excel file has every formula.

How it works

How the model works for an investment bank.

  1. How it earns revenue3 formulas
    Broking and exchange revenue · Across the business
    Active clients at the end of the periodActive clients at the start of the periodNet growth in active clients a yearshare of the year
    Broking and exchange revenue · Across the business
    Client tradesClient-years (average clients × years)Trades per active client a year
    Broking and exchange revenue · Across the business
    BrokerageClient tradesBrokerage per trade
  2. What drives its costs3 formulas
    Operating expenses · Across the business
    Total FTEsOperations and deliverySales and marketingTechnologyFinance, HR and administration
    Operating expenses · Across the business
    Total average FTEsOperations and deliverySales and marketingTechnologyFinance, HR and administration
    Operating expenses · Across the business
    Total staff costsSalariesOn-costsOther costs per FTE
  3. What it invests in3 formulas
    Corporate fixed assets
    Capital expenditureRevenuefrom statementsCapex as % of revenueAdditional planned capex
    Corporate fixed assets
    DepreciationDepreciation of the opening asset baseDepreciation of new capex
    Corporate fixed assets
    Closing net book valueOpening net book valueCapital expenditureDepreciation
  4. How it is funded3 formulas
    Loan origination and runoff · Loan portfolio 1
    Closing gross loansOpening gross loansLoan book growthshare of the year
    Loan origination and runoff · Loan portfolio 1
    Net loans advanced (new lending less cash repayments)Closing gross loansOpening gross loansLoans written off (from the credit loss job)
    Loan origination and runoff · Loan portfolio 1
    New lendingClosing gross loansOpening gross loansRunoff (repayments and loans written off)from repayments and loans written off
  5. How profit becomes cash3 formulas
    Working capital
    Trade receivablesRevenuefrom statementsDebtor daysDays in period
    Working capital
    InventoryDirect costs (positive)from statementsInventory daysDays in period
    Working capital
    Trade payablesCash operating costs (positive)from statementsCreditor daysDays in period
What it covers

24 parts, each one tested.

Every part is a tested building block with its own checks: yours is put together from the ones your business needs.

  • CPI forecastConsensus curve with long-run anchor
  • Operating expensesHeadcount build by function
  • Corporate costsFixed cost base indexed to CPI
  • Working capitalFull working capital
  • Income taxCorporate rate with tax losses
  • Corporate fixed assetsStraight-line over remaining life
  • DebtAmortising term loan
  • Equity raisingDistribution reinvestment plan
  • Dividends and distributionsPayout of net profit
  • Multiples valuationEV / EBITDA multiple
  • Capital adequacy (CET1)Trading book and counterparty capitalCommon equity tier 1 capital, total risk-weighted assets and capital ratios, and the surplus available for dividends or the shortfall to be raised.
  • Licence capital and liquidity requirements (non-banks)NTA and liquidity requirementMinimum capital, net tangible assets and liquid funds required of licensed non-bank firms, and the surplus available for dividends.
  • Financial-institution equity valuationJustified price to bookEquity value of banks, insurers and other balance-sheet businesses, where debt is raw material rather than financing, so value comes from returns on equity, capital and distributable earnings.
  • Broking and exchange revenueTrades × fee per tradeBrokerage, exchange, clearing and capital-markets fees driven by traded value, trades and capital raised.
  • M&A and advisory feesProbability-weighted mandate pipelineRetainers, milestone and success fees for M&A, restructuring and capital advisory mandates.
  • Capital markets underwriting and syndicationIssuance × share × gross spreadFees for underwriting and arranging equity, bond and leveraged loan issues, and securitisations.
  • Sales and trading revenueHistorical run-rate by asset classClient and principal trading revenue in fixed income, currencies, commodities and equities.
  • LeasesLease register
  • Compensation ratio, bonus pools and deferred awardsFixed pay plus a bonus poolFixed pay, variable bonus pools, adviser or producer payouts and deferred awards for revenue-generating financial businesses, where compensation is the largest cost and flexes with revenue.
  • Key-metric summaryLast-twelve-month and run-rate metrics
  • Case selectionStackable stress toggles
  • Interest-rate forecastMarket forward curve
  • Risk-weighted assetsFlat risk weightCredit risk-weighted assets for each loan portfolio.
  • Loan origination and runoffBook growth rateGross loans rolled forward from new lending, scheduled repayments, prepayments and write-offs.
Key numbers

The numbers it tracks.

  1. 01revenue by business line
  2. 02market share of fee pool
  3. 03revenue per banker
  4. 04compensation ratio
  5. 05pre-tax margin
  6. 06return on tangible equity
Used for

What it is used for.

Also used for
  • Scenarios and sensitivities
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The sample is built on illustrative figures and describes no real business. Models are calculations prepared from the information you provide. They are not financial advice and must be independently verified. See our terms.