Cash receipts and the collections curve
Sales to cash, week by week.
By Surojit Chakraverti, founder of L3VLUP and an investor running a long-short healthcare and technology equities strategy.
On this subject: cash receipts and the collections curve.Updated 30 September 2026
Part of credit and restructuring models, with the models, labs and guides around it.
What it does
Cash in, not revenue. Each week’s sales are collected through a curve (a share in the week of invoice, more in the weeks after); the receivables already on the books are collected on their own schedule; and a downside reduction in collections stands in for customers who pay late or not at all. The receivables roll-forward (opening plus sales less collections) ties the whole thing back to the balance sheet, and eligible receivables feed the borrowing base.
Where it lives
The same schedule in each model that carries it, with the rows to open. Open a model in the browser, go to the sheet, and click the lines.
- Assumptions, rows 12–18: Sales invoiced, Collected in week of invoice, Collected 1 week after invoice, Collected 2 weeks after invoice…
- Receipts, rows 6–10: Sales invoiced, Collections from forecast sales, Collections of opening receivables, Collections before downside reduction…
- Receipts, rows 13–16: Opening receivables, Closing receivables, Eligible receivables, Check: collection curve - 100%
What a reviewer looks for
- Receipts equal to sales.
- An opening book collected in week one in full.
- A curve that sums to more than one.
Learn it, then build it
Vocabulary: 13-Week Cash Flow, Working Capital.