DPI: What Distributions to Paid-In Means in Venture Capital
DPI (Distributions to Paid-In) is the only VC fund metric that measures real, returned cash. Here's what it means, how it's calculated, why LPs prioritize it over TVPI, and what strong DPI looks like.
Quick Answer
DPI (Distributions to Paid-In) is the only VC fund metric that measures real, returned cash. Here's what it means, how it's calculated, why LPs prioritize it over TVPI, and what strong DPI looks like.
DPI: What Distributions to Paid-In Means in Venture Capital
DPI stands for Distributions to Paid-In. It is the ratio of total cash and liquid assets distributed to limited partners (LPs) to the total capital those LPs have contributed to the fund. DPI measures only realized returns — money that has actually been returned to investors through exits, not paper gains from marked-up portfolio valuations.
DPI is sometimes called the "cash-on-cash" multiple. A DPI of 1.0× means LPs have received back exactly what they put in. A DPI of 2.5× means every dollar invested has returned $2.50 in actual cash. This is the metric that separates real performance from paper performance.
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