LBO Model — Multi-Tranche Leveraged Buyout (Excel + Google Sheets) | Senior/Mezz/PIK · Cash Sweep · MoIC, IRR & Dated XI

Description
The LBO Model is a self-contained, multi-tranche leveraged-buyout model for private-equity teams, investment-banking analysts, search-fund buyers, and finance students who need to determine — and defend — the returns on a debt-funded acquisition. Set the entry EV/EBITDA multiple and the leverage on each tranche, and the Sources & Uses, the five-year operating projection with a full multi-tranche debt waterfall, and the sponsor's MoIC, IRR, and dated XIRR all populate automatically. The workbook ships pre-filled with a complete, tied-out worked deal and a 4-page methodology PDF.
This is a transparent, robust model — not a black box, and not a file that breaks. The standard LBO identities are written so every line can be traced from input to output, and interest is charged on the beginning debt balance so the waterfall — cash interest, PIK accretion, mandatory amortization, and a 100% cash sweep — fully resolves with no circular reference and no iterative calculation. It runs on arithmetic-only formulas, unchanged, in both Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets.
**How this compares** — Most downloadable LBO templates are single-tranche: one loan, a straight-line paydown, and an approximated IRR. This model carries a full senior / mezzanine / PIK / revolver stack with a genuine cash-sweep waterfall, accreting PIK, and a dated XIRR on the actual sponsor cash flows — the depth an underwriter would otherwise build by hand. Every worked-example output has been recomputed cell-by-cell against an independent rebuild (Sources = Uses, balance check 0), so the returns are defensible in diligence. That hand-build is roughly a half-day of an analyst's time; here it is done and independently tied out.
**What you get**
- A leverage-driven Sources & Uses built from the entry EV/EBITDA multiple (balance check = 0)
- A multi-tranche debt stack: senior term loan + mezzanine + PIK (accreting) + revolver, with a minimum-cash floor
- A 5-year operating projection with the full waterfall: cash interest, PIK accretion, mandatory amortization, 100% cash sweep
- Optional dividend recaps and a variable hold (1-5 years)
- Beginning-balance interest, so there are no circular references and no iterative calc
- Sponsor returns: exit equity, MoIC, annualized IRR, and a dated XIRR
- A 2-way MoIC/IRR sensitivity grid and a dashboard
- A pre-filled, tied-out worked deal and a 4-page methodology PDF
**Model structure — Excel (7 tabs)**
1. START HERE — what the model does, input order, and the method in plain English
2. Assumptions — entry/exit multiples, the debt stack (leverage + rates), operating drivers, tax (all $M)
3. Sources & Uses — EV + fees + minimum cash, funded by the debt tranches and sponsor equity (plug)
4. Operating & Debt — 5-year revenue-driven projection with the full multi-tranche waterfall
5. Returns — exit equity, MoIC, annualized IRR, and a dated XIRR
6. Sensitivity — 2-way MoIC/IRR grid across entry and exit multiples
7. Dashboard — headline returns and deal summary
**Key methodological features**
- Entry on an EV/EBITDA multiple; each tranche off its leverage x entry EBITDA; equity as the plug
- Full waterfall: cash interest, PIK accretion, mandatory amortization, 100% cash sweep (revolver -> senior -> mezz)
- Beginning-balance interest — no circular references, no iterative calculation
- Sponsor returns as MoIC, annualized IRR, and a dated XIRR
- All inputs and outputs in $ millions
- Arithmetic-only — Excel and Google Sheets; no macros, no VBA, no add-ins
**See it working**
Pre-loaded with a complete deal (all figures in $M): entry EV $1,250 (10x on $125 EBITDA), funded $625 debt (senior $375 / mezz $187.5 / PIK $62.5) and $660 sponsor equity; the waterfall amortizes and sweeps senior from $375 to $86.5 while PIK accretes; net debt at exit is $374. Exit equity reaches $1,462.5 = a 2.22x MoIC, a 17.3% annualized IRR, and a 17.2% dated XIRR. Replace the inputs with your own deal and every output re-prices.
**Technical specifications**
- Format: .xlsx (Excel edition) + .xlsx (Google-Sheets-safe edition) + .pdf (methodology)
- Compatibility: Excel 2019, 2021, Microsoft 365 (Windows and Mac) and Google Sheets
- No macros, no VBA, no add-ins
- No circular references — beginning-balance interest
- Pre-filled worked deal; replace with your own
- 7 tabs · all inputs in $ millions · 5-year multi-tranche debt waterfall
- Delivery: instant digital download · single-user license
────────────────── ABOUT THE AUTHOR ──────────────────
Built by Hoda Elmorshidy — Financial Controller & Fractional CFO, 9+ years in
IFRS reporting, FP&A, commodity trading, CFO/board reporting, UAE VAT & Corporate
Tax, and finance automation. Practitioner-grade tools, not generic templates.
────────────────── DISCLAIMER ──────────────────
This template is an analytical and educational tool, not professional financial,
investment, tax, accounting, or legal advice, and its use creates no professional
relationship. All assumptions and figures are illustrative — verify against your
own data and current standards (IFRS/GAAP, tax rates) before relying on any
output. Past or modeled returns do not predict actual results.
Last reviewed: July 2026.
────────────────── LICENSE & LIABILITY ──────────────────
• License grant: Single-user license for your own or your organization's internal
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