


A sales book used by investment banks to sell products and services

What is a Pitchbook?

A pitchbook is a sales book used by investment banks to sell products and services, as well as to pitch potential clients. The purpose of a pitchbook is to secure a deal with the potential clients. It provides an overview of the firm, including historical information, financial strength, and services available to potential clients. Learn more in CFI’s PowerPoint & Pitchbooks Course!


Table of Contents – CFI’s Investment Banking Pitchbook Template


If the pitchbook is being used by investment advisors, it may include their biographical information such as experience, educational qualifications, licenses, and industry awards. The sales team of an investment bank use the details outlined in the pitchbook to sell its services to potential clients.


Types of Pitchbooks

There are several types of pitchbooks. They include:


General Pitchbook

A general pitchbook provides a general overview of the firm and contains important information such as past successful investments, recent trends in the market, current deals, and information about profits. It also contains information about the organization, such as key executives of the firm, size of the company, global presence, and corporate history.

Another component of a general pitchbook is a past client list. It includes a sector-specific client list with the respective services provided to them. Lastly, the pitchbook may also provide details on the firm’s competition. It includes an overview of the firm’s main competitors, their performance, and the firm’s market position against its competitors.


Deal Pitchbook

A deal pitchbook is prepared for specific deals, focusing on how the investment firm can deliver services that cater to the client’s financial needs. For example, if the pitchbook is for an IPO, it will outline how the offering will benefit the potential client. It will also show comparable IPOs that the investment bank handled in the recent past within the client’s industry.

The deal pitchbook makes use of graphs to show the firm’s overview, market rates, trends, and valuation summary. Since the pitchbook focuses on specific deals, it includes a list of potential buyers, financial providers, acquisition, and a brief overview. The deal pitchbook also provides a summary of proposals and recommendations for achieving the client’s objectives.


Management Presentations

Management presentations are used to pitch potential investors after the company reaches a deal with potential clients. The presentation includes information about the client’s company, its investment needs, financial ratios, and details about the project that needs to be financed. Specific data include the products and services offered by the client, market overview, key company executives, a history of financial performance, and future growth prospects.

For management presentations to be comprehensive, the investment bank must work directly with its clients to make sure that the pitch contains as many details about the company as possible.


Sell-side M&A Pitchbooks

Sell-side M&A pitchbooks are more popular among investment banks. They are created when a client approaches an investment bank looking for potential buyers. The client can be a large company looking to sell a department or section of the business, or a firm looking for a partner to acquire it for strategic reasons.

The main purpose of a sell-side M&A pitchbook is to convince the client why they should choose the investment bank to handle the transaction. It comprises a list of potential buyers of the client’s business, valuation summary, recommendations, list of the bank’s successful deals in the client’s industry, and an appendix section.


pitchbook slide


Components of a Pitchbook

A typical pitchbook comprises the following sections:


Bank Introduction

The bank uses this section to introduce who they are and why they are the best in the industry. It provides an overview of the transactions that it has handled successfully and some of the industry awards it won in the past. It also includes information about how it ranks in the industry in comparison with its competitors. The bank introduction also contains a biography of the team members involved in the transaction, outlining their experiences, education, qualifications, and why they are the best people for the job.


Market Update

The market update section is used to show the current state of the financial markets. The client will be interested in this section to see the bank’s thoughts on the direction of the financial markets. For the bank to stay ahead of the competition, it must demonstrate a smart perspective on the market and provide convincing reasons why now is the best time to invest. The section can include charts and graphs to describe the current trends and market position in the client’s industry.


Transaction Strategy

The transaction section provides details of the strategy that the bank will use to meet the needs of the client, depending on whether the client wants to issue an IPO, sell a business, or find a strategic partner. The bank provides details of the potential buyers in an M&A transaction, the amount of capital the bank can raise, the fee to be charged, and the timing of the transaction.


Valuation Methods

The bank shows the valuation methods it used to reach certain conclusions. For example, the bank may use comparable analysis to benchmark the client’s business against other similar firms in its market. It obtains the figures using sales, revenues, and valuation multiples like PE and trading multiples. Other valuation methods that can be used include financial modeling and DCF analysis.



The appendix section contains backup information of the information provided in the body of the pitchbook. It is added as the last section of the pitchbook and includes information on the assumptions used in calculating future projections, financial reports, WACC calculations, etc.


pitchbook example page


Who Prepares a Pitchbook?

The pitchbook preparation involves many parties including the managing director, vice president, associates, and analysts. Usually, the senior bankers (mainly managing director and VP) come up with an outline of the pitchbook, based on the financial solution that the client is looking for. The outline will then be passed to the associates and analysts to do the analysis and come up with numbers relating to the client’s industry.

The investment bankers need to make sure that they are using the latest industry information in preparing the pitch in order to beat the competition and convince the client that they are the best in the industry. The pitchbook will often comprise a number of drafts that undergo several changes to make sure they are perfect and without typographical errors.

Learn more in CFI’s PowerPoint & Pitchbooks Course!


Related Readings


  • Comparable Company Analysis
  • Corporate Structure
  • Financial Analysis Ratios Glossary
  • Key Players in the Capital Markets

M&A Modeling Course


