# Deal flow

> Deal flow is the stream of investment opportunities a fund sees: inbound applications, referrals from founders and co-investors, outbound research, accelerator demo days and deals other funds share. Funds judge deal flow by volume and by quality, and manage it as a pipeline with stages from first look to decision. Most of it ends in a pass, so how a fund records and answers each deal matters.

Source: https://delsivo.com/glossary/deal-flow · Updated 2026-11-06

## Key takeaways

- Deal flow is the input; sourcing is the work that creates it.
- Funds manage it as a pipeline: new, screening, meeting, diligence, decision.
- Most deals end in a pass. A clear, recorded reason helps if the company comes back.

## Where deal flow comes from

- Inbound: founders apply through a form, email or the fund's website.
- Referrals: portfolio founders, angels, lawyers and other funds introduce companies.
- Outbound: the team researches a market and contacts companies first.
- Programmes and events: accelerator cohorts, demo days and pitch competitions.

## The stages of a deal flow pipeline

| Stage | What happens | Typical owner |
| --- | --- | --- |
| New | Deck and basic facts arrive and are logged once | Analyst |
| Screening | Checked against the thesis; gaps listed as questions | Analyst or associate |
| First meeting | Call or interview with the founders | Associate or partner |
| Diligence | Claims checked against documents, customers and references | Deal team |
| Decision | Invest, pass or revisit later, with the reason recorded | Partners or committee |

## How deal flow shows up day to day

For a small team the hard part is rarely finding deals. It is reading every deck, spotting the same company arriving twice, replying to founders in reasonable time and remembering why a company was passed. Many lean funds still run this in a shared inbox and a spreadsheet.

Delsivo is designed to bring inbound deal flow through the fund's own [branded portal](https://delsivo.com/white-label-portals), suggest duplicates for an analyst to confirm and queue each deal with its thesis screening, all planned for the Pilot release.

## Common confusions

- Deal flow versus [deal sourcing](https://delsivo.com/glossary/deal-sourcing): sourcing is the activity, deal flow is what it produces.
- "Proprietary" deal flow usually means deals a fund sees before others, not deals nobody else could see.
- More deal flow is not better if the team cannot review it properly.

## Frequently asked questions

### What is good deal flow?

Deal flow where a meaningful share of companies fit the fund's thesis and the team can review each one properly. Volume alone says little.

### Is deal flow the same as a pipeline?

Close. Deal flow is the stream of opportunities; the pipeline is how the fund organises them into stages up to a decision.

### How do small funds manage deal flow?

Usually with a form, an inbox and a spreadsheet or CRM. The common gaps are duplicates, slow replies and pass reasons that were never written down.

## Related pages

- [VC deal flow software](https://delsivo.com/venture-capital-deal-flow-software)
- [Deal sourcing](https://delsivo.com/glossary/deal-sourcing)
- [VC application form template](https://delsivo.com/templates/vc-application-form-template)
- [How Delsivo works](https://delsivo.com/how-it-works)