DPI vs TVPI: The LP Metric That Actually Matters in 2026
    Alternative Investments

    DPI vs TVPI: The LP Metric That Actually Matters in 2026

    TVPI (Total Value to Paid-In) includes unrealized paper gains. In 2026, LPs are demanding DPI because distributions fell to 6% of AUM, the lowest recorded level, while nine consecutive vintages failed

    Jeff Barnes, MBA··8 min read
    DPI in Private Equity: The Metric That Tells You When You Actually Get Paid
    Alternative Investments

    DPI in Private Equity: The Metric That Tells You When You Actually Get Paid

    TL;DR: According to ILPA's formal definition , DPI (Distributed to Paid-In Capital) captures cumulative distributions at the fund level, net of fees and carry. It is the only private equity metric

    Jeff Barnes, MBA··8 min read
    DPI in Private Equity: The One Performance Metric That Actually Tells the Truth
    Alternative Investments

    DPI in Private Equity: The One Performance Metric That Actually Tells the Truth

    TL;DR: DPI (distributions to paid-in capital) is the only private equity metric that measures real cash in your pocket. TVPI looks better because it includes unrealized gains. GPs know this. That's

    Jeff Barnes, MBA··10 min read
    DPI Is the Only Private Equity Metric That Actually Matters
    Market Analysis

    DPI Is the Only Private Equity Metric That Actually Matters

    TL;DR: Distributions as a share of NAV hit 11% in 2024—a record low. Bain's 2026 report confirms the industry is sitting on $3.2 trillion in unrealized value across 29,000 unsold companies. Yet fund

    Jeff Barnes, MBA··8 min read
    DPI vs TVPI: The PE Metric That Pays Your Bills (One of Them Doesn't)
    Alternative Investments

    DPI vs TVPI: The PE Metric That Pays Your Bills (One of Them Doesn't)

    Here is the number that should keep every private equity LP up at night: half of all PE funds raised between 2015 and 2018 have still not returned investors’ initial capital, according to ILPA d

    Jeff Barnes, MBA··11 min read
    TVPI Tells You What a Fund Is Worth. It Doesn't Tell You What You'll Get Paid.
    Venture Capital

    TVPI Tells You What a Fund Is Worth. It Doesn't Tell You What You'll Get Paid.

    A 2019-vintage fund that was showing 3.2x TVPI in early 2022 looked brilliant. By mid-2023, that same fund was sitting at 1.4x. Not a single company had been sold. The GP hadn't made a bad decision in those 18 months....

    Jeff Barnes, MBA··10 min read