Draft a valuation memo from approved inputs
Assemble a consistent valuation memo from an analyst-approved deal packet and capitalization table. Trace figures to their approved versions, flag conflicting dates or share definitions, and leave valuation judgments with the analyst.
How this works
Convert approved valuation analysis into a reviewable memo. Preserve the analyst's qualifications, ranges, and uncertainty; memo assembly must not introduce a new valuation conclusion.
Before you start
Responsible analyst
Identify the qualified analyst who owns assumptions, disputed figures, and final approval; an unassigned review cannot become an approved memo.
Versioned workspace
Use authorized document copies, a calculation tool, and an approved memo template. Keep draft versions separate from issued documents.
Prepare the inputs
- Engagement scope
- Required
Subject entity and security, purpose, valuation date, reporting currency, units, reviewer.
Require explicit values; do not borrow a date or security class from another engagement.
- Approved analysis
- Required
Versioned analyst-approved conclusions, methods, assumptions, calculations, limitations, and approval evidence.
Approval must cover the actual version. A template or prior memo cannot substitute for current analysis.
- Capitalization table
- Required
Dated table with security classes, quantities, basic and diluted definitions, and document coordinates.
Confirm the analyst accepts its date and treatment of options, convertibles, and class rights; preserve unresolved differences.
- Memo controls
- Required
Required sections, terminology, rounding policy, precedence rules, and prior memo if revising.
Separate reusable structure from old deal content. Identify the authoritative source for each repeated figure.
Implementation, step by step
Lock the scope and approved packet
- Assign a memo ID and inventory every input with version, date, approval state, and source ID. Record the valuation subject separately from the reporting entity.
- Ask for missing approval or scope fields. Mark the run blocked if analysis is provisional; prepare an input-gap list instead of a valuation narrative.
Checkpoint: One scope record identifies the analyst, valuation date, security, currency, and approved packet.
Extract figures without changing definitions
- Build a figure register containing each value, unit, basis, source ID, and page, cell, or table row. Preserve distinctions between enterprise value, equity value, and security value.
- Extract capitalization rows by class. Keep basic and diluted quantities separate and retain the analyst's definitions for options and convertible instruments.
Checkpoint: Every material number has a traceable location and an explicit meaning.
Reconcile the approved calculation chain
- Check totals and repeat only the arithmetic specified in the approved analysis using a calculation tool. Record operands, formula, result, and rounding difference.
- Compare capitalization dates and denominators with the approved calculations. Log conflicts for the analyst; do not choose a replacement denominator, allocation model, or exchange rate.
Checkpoint: Each repeated calculation passes or has an open exception that blocks the affected conclusion.
Assemble the memo
- Populate the approved template with scope, source basis, analyst-approved method, assumptions, results, limitations, and outstanding matters. Attach source IDs to factual claims and figures.
- Preserve ranges and conditional language. Remove inherited names and figures from template examples; mark missing sections as awaiting analyst input rather than filling them from general knowledge.
Checkpoint: The draft contains no newly selected assumptions, valuation methods, or conclusions.
Run consistency and evidence checks
- Compare every repeated figure across summary, narrative, and tables against the register. Check currency, units, dates, class labels, rounding, and cross-references.
- Review revisions against the previous draft. Explain each changed figure through an approved source change; retain unresolved exceptions visibly alongside affected sections.
Checkpoint: The check log names all discrepancies and distinguishes completed checks from unavailable evidence.
Prepare analyst review and release status
- Deliver the draft, source register, calculation checks, and exception log together. Summarize changed inputs and the exact decisions required from the analyst.
- Label the memo draft until approval covers this version. Record the approval reference and only perform an external release when the destination and action are already authorized.
Checkpoint: Review and release states are explicit; no unresolved conclusion is presented as approved.
Decisions along the way
Analysis and capitalization sources disagree.
Block dependent figures and request an analyst-approved resolution; preserve both source values.
A requested section requires a new valuation judgment.
List the required analyst input and leave that section pending.
An approved input changes after drafting.
Create a revision and recheck all dependent figures and conclusions before review.
What you will produce
Valuation memo draft
Editable documentA versioned memo ready for analyst review.
Include: memo_id · scope · approved_method · results · limitations · source_references · open_exceptions · review_state
Evidence and reconciliation register
Workbook or structured tableTraceable numbers, checks, and unresolved decisions.
Include: source_id · version · location · value · unit · basis · formula · check_result · exception_owner
Check the result
- Recompute approved arithmetic independently of generated prose.
- Confirm every conclusion appears in the approved packet with its original qualifiers.
- Search the draft for stale names, dates, currency labels, and template figures.
- Ensure material unresolved exceptions prevent a ready-for-release status.
When something goes wrong
Extraction merges security classes or drops a unit
Compare with the original table, correct the register, and rerun dependent checks.
Approval evidence or a required source is inaccessible
Report the missing version and owner; do not reuse an earlier approval implicitly.
A worked example
SYNTHETIC EXAMPLE · NOT A REPORTED BUSINESS RESULT
Request
Prepare a draft memo for ordinary shares using the approved packet.
Inputs
The analyst approves equity value of 8 million units and 2 million ordinary shares, yielding 4 per share. A newer capitalization table shows 2.2 million shares without an approved bridge.
Expected result
Record both denominators and their versions. Block the per-share conclusion, request the analyst's reconciliation, and draft unaffected sections. Do not silently divide by 2.2 million or retain 4 as current.
Run a small pilot
Start small
Replay five completed engagements using their approved packets and hold every output for analyst review.
Record the baseline
Record manual assembly time and observed figure, citation, and qualification corrections.
Agree success criteria
Every material figure is traceable; no unsupported conclusion or hidden conflict survives review.
Stop or revise
Pause if a draft changes valuation judgment, conceals a discrepancy, or appears approved without evidence.
Keep the scope clear
- Do not select valuation assumptions, certify tax treatment, or issue an investment recommendation.
- Do not infer rights across security classes or independently price missing instruments.
- Keep confidential deal documents within authorized storage and model access.
Check before using
The responsible qualified analyst approves valuation assumptions, methods, security treatment, conclusions, and release. The draft does not determine investment value or certify tax compliance.
Business activities
- Manage finances and accounting
- Raise capital or evaluate investments
FROM A RECIPE TO YOUR WORKFLOW
Bring the company context together.
This workflow needs reliable inputs before it needs a better prompt. Moat8 Vault brings working information into a readable archive for the AI tools you use.
For this recipe: Approved valuation conclusions and supporting analysis · Versioned capitalization table · Memo template and engagement scope
Start with one recurring task, agree which sources to use, and review the first result with your team.
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