Fund Economics Tool

What you'll do with it

Sketch the shape of a fund. Set fund size, average check, follow-on allocation, and expected gross return multiple, and see what that produces in fund-level metrics. Use it to test a thesis before committing to a full forecast, or to teach someone how fund economics actually work.

It does not forecast cash flows over time, model timing of capital calls and distributions, or build financial statements. For that, move up to the Venture Capital Model.

What you get

The Fund Economics Tool is one product on two surfaces, sold as a single pay-what-you-want purchase. Whatever you pay (or don't), you get access to:

• The spreadsheet template. Downloadable file, every cell open, runs offline in Excel or Google Sheets, integrates with anything that reads .xlsx.
• The hosted version. A live, in-browser model. Auto-save, multiple saved models, public and private share links, Monte Carlo simulation, return-the-fund analysis, and strategy and reserves allocation. See the demo.

The math is identical across both. The in-browser model handles strategy and reserves allocation more flexibly, and comes prebuilt for Monte Carlo simulation. Both are doable in the spreadsheet too: reserves allocation is straightforward to build in, and Monte Carlo takes a simulation add-in.

How to use

1. Sign in at hemrock.com using the email you paid with.
2. Open the Fund Economics Tool from your dashboard and either (a) download an Excel model, (b) copy the Google Sheets to your Google Drive, or (c) create a new web model.
3. In your spreadsheet software, use the documentation and AI tools (the Hemrock Skill, MCP server, and prompt guide) to edit the model however you want. On the web model, edit your inputs across the tabs and create scenarios or multiple versions. Use the Ask AI feature to ask questions about the model and make edits directly in the browser.
4. Switch between models, share read-only private or public links with LPs, or invite collaborators to use and edit the model with you.

Both the spreadsheet and web models are available as a single pay-what-you-want purchase. Collaborative multi-user editing is an optional add-on, priced at $49 for a one year license for the model owner to share the model with co-GPs, analysts, LPs, or fractional CFOs to access and edit a model alongside you. Building, saving, and read-only sharing are all part of the base Fund Economics Tool; the add-on is only needed for the team feature.

How the hosted-only features work, in depth: Share links, Collaboration, Saved models. The Outputs deep dives: Reserves and follow-ons, Scenarios and simulation, Return-the-fund.

Build it into your own product

The hosted version's engine is also published as a source-available npm package: @tdavidson/fund-economics-tool or on GitHub to allow you to build the core engine into your own tools. Install it, call computeFund(inputs) from a Node script, a serverless function, or your own React app. Build your own user interface, or use the optional UI prebuilt at @tdavidson/fund-economics-tool/ui. The Monte Carlo feature is an additional option, prebuilt at @tdavidson/fund-economics-tool/mc.

Free for a single fund management company applying it to your own funds, SPVs, and team. Service providers (fund administrators, outsourced CFOs running across clients) and any SaaS, white-label, or embedded distribution need a commercial license. See The fund economics engine for the install walkthrough and license summary.

Edit with AI

Every cell open. Documented row by row. Built to be edited.

1. Context primer. Paste it into Claude or ChatGPT before you make a change.
2. Prompt guide. Ready-made prompts for setup and quick scenarios.
3. Hemrock Skill. A drop-in Claude Agent Skill that loads this model's sheet map, prompts, and checks into any Claude Project. Free, with no connector to set up.
4. MCP server. On ChatGPT, Cursor, or another tool? The MCP server feeds the same context to any AI that speaks MCP.
5. Verify before you trust. The sanity-check prompts catch wrong references and confused metrics.

When to use this vs. the full model

Background reading: How to Model a Venture Capital Fund · Portfolio construction

Common questions

Why use this when AI can sketch fund economics for me?
AI will give you a TVPI number from a few inputs. Whether the multiple, IRR, and recycling logic behind it are right is the part you can't see. This is a small, transparent model where that math already holds, so the output is one you can defend to an LP.

Doesn't my fund administrator already do this?
A fund admin reports actuals once the fund is running. This is for the thinking before that: what size, check, and follow-on strategy produce what returns. It's a planning tool, not a reporting one.

Is this enough, or do I need the full model?
For sketching a thesis and testing fund shape, this is enough. When you need quarterly cash flows, capital-call timing, financial statements, and a detailed waterfall, move up to the Venture Capital Model. The comparison above lays out the line.

Documentation

• How to model a venture capital fund
• Portfolio construction
• Bring your own model