MOIC: What Multiple on Invested Capital Means in Venture Capital

MOIC stands for Multiple on Invested Capital. It is the ratio of the total value returned from an investment to the total capital originally invested. MOIC is the most direct, intuitive measure of how much an investment has grown — often described as "how many times your money back."

If a VC fund invests $10 million and ultimately receives $40 million in proceeds, the MOIC is 4×. No time adjustment, no discounting — just how many times did the invested capital multiply.

What MOIC Actually Measures

MOIC answers the most basic investment question: did we get our money back, and by how much? It is an absolute return metric, which makes it immediately intuitive for founders, LPs, and investors at all levels of sophistication. A 3× MOIC means you tripled your money. A 0.5× MOIC means you lost half.

MOIC can be measured at the individual deal level or at the fund level. At the deal level, it captures how a single investment performed. At the fund level, it reflects the blended performance across all investments — accounting for both winners and losers.

VCs often refer to MOIC alongside its denominator distinctions: gross MOIC reflects returns before fees and carry, while net MOIC reflects what LPs actually received after the GP took their 2% management fee and 20% carried interest. The gap between gross and net MOIC matters significantly over a fund's life, and LPs should always clarify which is being quoted.

MOIC is also split by realized vs. unrealized value. A realized MOIC reflects actual exits — cash in hand. An unrealized MOIC (or paper MOIC) reflects current portfolio markings on investments not yet exited. Only realized MOIC represents money that has definitively been made.