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VC Fund Economics

Management Fee Model

See how management fees reduce investable capital and break down annual fee budgets.

Fund Structure

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Annual Budget Breakdown

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Fee Analysis

Total fees over fund life

$8.75M

17.5% of fund — $41.25M investable

Investment period fees$5.00M

2% × 5 years

Post-period fees$3.75M

1.5% × 5 years

Investable capital$41.25M
Annual fee (investment period)$1.00M
GP salaries (total)$600,000

2 GPs × $300,000

Operating budget$300,000

30% of annual fee

Remaining after salaries + opex$100,000

Year-by-year fees

YearRateFee
Year 12%$1.00M
Year 22%$1.00M
Year 32%$1.00M
Year 42%$1.00M
Year 52%$1.00M
Year 61.5%$750,000
Year 71.5%$750,000
Year 81.5%$750,000
Year 91.5%$750,000
Year 101.5%$750,000

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How to Use This Tool

Enter your fund size, management fee percentage, and fund life. The calculator shows your total fee income over the fund's lifetime and how much capital remains for actual investments.

Management Fees

Annual Fee = Fund Size × Fee % | Investable Capital = Fund Size - Total Fees

A $50,000,000 fund at 2% generates $1,000,000/year. Over 10 years, that's $10,000,000 in fees — meaning only $40,000,000 is available for investments. Most funds step down fees after the investment period.

Why This Matters

Management fees are your operating budget. They need to cover salaries, rent, travel, legal, fund admin, and everything else for 10+ years. Most first-time fund managers are shocked at how tight the budget is. A $25,000,000 fund at 2% only generates $500,000/year — barely enough for one person plus overhead.

What to Do With Your Results

  1. 1Build a 10-year operating budget — can management fees cover your planned team size?
  2. 2Model fee step-downs — how does your budget change when fees drop from committed to invested capital?
  3. 3Consider the impact on investable capital — every dollar in fees is a dollar not invested in startups.

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