Reference
Clear definitions of private equity, venture capital, and fund industry terms — curated for investors and advisers operating in Southeast Asia and Australia.
78 terms defined
The more granular classification within an Allocation Type, specifying the strategy or instrument used (e.g. Venture Capital, Growth Equity, Mezzanine).
Read definition →The top-level classification of a capital deployment — Equity, Debt, Commitment, or Fund — used to categorise deals and investor activity on the platform.
Read definition →Amortization
The scheduled repayment of a loan's principal over its life, expressed in months or as a repayment profile.
Read definition →A prominent early investor in a fund who provides credibility and often negotiates preferential terms.
Read definition →AUM
The total market value of investments that a fund manager manages on behalf of its clients at a given point in time.
Read definition →Bridge Loan · Bridge Round
Short-term capital provided to a company to sustain operations until a larger financing round or exit event closes.
Read definition →The operating model by which a company creates, delivers, and captures value — such as Subscription, Marketplace, Transactional, or Asset-Heavy.
Read definition →Control Buyout
The acquisition of a controlling stake in a company, typically financed with a combination of equity and debt.
Read definition →Capitalization Table
A spreadsheet or ledger showing the ownership stakes, equity dilution, and value of equity in a company across all securities.
Read definition →Any entity — institutional or individual — that deploys capital into investments on behalf of itself or third parties.
Read definition →The classification of an investor entity by its organisational structure and mandate — such as Sovereign Wealth Fund, Family Office, Pension Fund, or Corporate VC.
Read definition →Drawdown · Capital Drawdown
A request from a fund manager to limited partners to transfer a portion of their committed capital when an investment is ready to close.
Read definition →Carry · Performance Fee
The share of a fund's profits paid to the general partner as performance-based compensation, typically 20% of gains above the hurdle rate.
Read definition →Co-invest · Direct Co-investment
A direct investment made by a limited partner alongside a fund into a specific portfolio company, typically with reduced or zero fees.
Read definition →Total Commitments · Fund Size
The total amount of capital that limited partners have legally agreed to contribute to a fund upon request.
Read definition →Convertible Debt · Convertible Loan
A short-term debt instrument that converts into equity — typically at a discount — upon a qualified financing round.
Read definition →COGS · Cost of Revenue · Cost of Sales
The direct costs attributable to producing the goods or services sold by a company — the primary deduction from revenue to arrive at gross profit.
Read definition →The actual percentage or amount of a portfolio currently deployed into a specific strategy, asset class, or deal type.
Read definition →The rate and volume of investment opportunities that a fund or investor receives and evaluates over a given period.
Read definition →Leveraged Finance · Credit
Capital raised by borrowing, where the issuer commits to repay principal and interest regardless of business performance.
Read definition →The sub-classification of a debt investment, indicating the instrument and seniority (e.g. Senior Secured, Mezzanine, Venture Debt).
Read definition →Distressed Investing · Special Situations Debt
Debt securities of companies facing financial difficulties, trading below par value, purchased by investors seeking outsized returns.
Read definition →DPI · Distributions to Paid-In
Cash or stock returned to limited partners from a fund, representing realised returns from exits and income events.
Read definition →Country of Domicile · Legal Domicile
The jurisdiction in which a company or fund is legally incorporated or registered, which may differ from where it primarily operates.
Read definition →A fundraising round where a company raises capital at a lower valuation than its previous round.
Read definition →Committed but uncalled capital available to a fund manager for future investments.
Read definition →DD
The comprehensive appraisal of a potential investment, covering financial, legal, commercial, operational, and ESG dimensions.
Read definition →EBT · Profit Before Tax · PBT
A company's profit after all operating costs and interest but before income tax is deducted — a measure of pre-tax profitability.
Read definition →Raising capital by issuing ownership stakes in a company, without the obligation to repay principal or interest.
Read definition →The sub-classification of an equity investment, indicating the stage and strategy of the deal (e.g. Venture Capital, Growth Equity, Buyout).
Read definition →Liquidity Event · Realisation
The sale or listing of a portfolio company through which an investor realises their investment and crystallises returns.
Read definition →An indicator of how far along the exit process an investment has progressed — Full, Partial, or No Exit.
Read definition →Single-Family Office · Multi-Family Office · SFO · MFO
A private wealth management organisation that manages the investments and financial affairs of one (single-family) or multiple (multi-family) wealthy families.
Read definition →FoF
A pooled investment vehicle that allocates capital across multiple underlying private market funds rather than directly into companies.
Read definition →Funding Stage · Latest Funding Status
The most senior financing stage a company has reached, ranked Unfunded < VC < PE < Public — not a chronological 'most recent event'.
Read definition →GP
The fund manager responsible for investment decisions, portfolio management, and fund administration — with unlimited liability for fund obligations.
Read definition →Gross Margin
Revenue minus the direct cost of goods or services sold, representing the profit generated before operating expenses.
Read definition →Growth Capital · Expansion Capital
Minority equity investment in established, profitable companies seeking capital to scale operations without ceding control.
Read definition →Cross-cutting business categories that describe how a company goes to market or who it serves — such as B2B SaaS, Consumer, or Marketplace — independent of the specific industry.
Read definition →Preferred Return · Minimum Return Threshold
The minimum annual return that limited partners must receive before the general partner begins earning carried interest.
Read definition →IPO · Listing · Float
The first sale of a company's shares to the public on a stock exchange, enabling private investors to realise returns and the company to raise public capital.
Read definition →Annual Interest Rate · Coupon Rate
The annual percentage rate of interest charged on a debt instrument, applied to the outstanding principal balance.
Read definition →IRR · Net IRR
The annualised effective compounded return rate that makes the net present value of all cash flows from an investment equal to zero.
Read definition →LBO
The acquisition of a company using a significant proportion of borrowed funds, with the target company's assets and cash flows used as collateral.
Read definition →The total financial obligations owed by a company to creditors, including debt, accounts payable, and other obligations.
Read definition →LP
A passive investor in a private fund who contributes capital but has no role in investment decisions and has limited liability.
Read definition →The annual fee paid by limited partners to the general partner to cover fund operating costs, typically 1.5–2.5% of committed capital.
Read definition →M&A
Transactions involving the consolidation of companies or assets through various financial agreements, including mergers, acquisitions, and takeovers.
Read definition →Mezzanine Debt · Mezz
A hybrid of debt and equity financing ranking between senior debt and equity, typically unsecured and carrying equity upside features.
Read definition →MOIC · Investment Multiple · Money-on-Money Multiple
A simple ratio measuring total value returned relative to capital invested, without accounting for the time dimension.
Read definition →SIC Code · Standard Industrial Classification
A standardised numerical code assigned by national regulators to classify a company's primary business activity.
Read definition →A description of how a debt obligation was discharged — for example, Fully Satisfied, Partially Satisfied, or via multiple repayment events.
Read definition →NAV · Fund NAV
The current fair value of a fund's portfolio holdings minus liabilities, representing the aggregate unrealised value of investments.
Read definition →Preferred Stock · Preference Shares
An equity class that holds seniority over common stock in liquidation, often carrying additional rights such as dividends and anti-dilution protection.
Read definition →A classification of whether an investment is made into a new issuance of shares (primary) or involves the purchase of existing shares from a current holder (secondary).
Read definition →PE
Capital raised by funds to acquire equity in private companies, generating returns through operational improvement, financial engineering, and eventual exit.
Read definition →Provenance of Transaction · Data Provenance
The origin or source of a deal or transaction record — describing how and where the data was obtained.
Read definition →The status of a deal as reported by the original data source, which may differ from independently verified platform data.
Read definition →RVPI
The unrealised portion of a fund's total value, expressed as a multiple of capital invested to date.
Read definition →Secondaries · LP Secondary · GP-Led Secondary
A market where investors buy and sell existing interests in private funds or portfolio companies from existing holders rather than from the issuer.
Read definition →Preference Shares · Common Stock
A specific category of equity in a company, each carrying distinct rights, preferences, and economic terms (e.g. Common, Series A Preferred, Series B Preferred).
Read definition →SAFE
An investment contract giving investors the right to future equity at a discount, without interest or a maturity date, commonly used in seed rounds.
Read definition →The category of original source from which a data record was obtained — such as a public filing, press release, fund report, or proprietary research.
Read definition →SWF
A state-owned investment fund managing a country's surplus reserves, commodity revenues, or national savings for long-term wealth preservation and return generation.
Read definition →Allocation Target
The desired or stated percentage of a portfolio or fund that an investor intends to deploy into a specific strategy, asset class, or deal type.
Read definition →Technology Focus
The specific technology stack or technical domain that underpins a company's product — such as AI/ML, Blockchain, IoT, or Cloud Infrastructure.
Read definition →Letter of Intent · LOI · Indicative Offer
A non-binding document outlining the key terms and conditions of a proposed investment or acquisition before a full legal agreement is drafted.
Read definition →Broad investment focus areas that cut across industries — such as Fintech, Climate Tech, or Digital Health — used to classify deals, funds, and investor mandates.
Read definition →TVPI · Investment Multiple
A fund performance metric showing total value (realised + unrealised) as a multiple of total capital invested.
Read definition →The current operational status of a company — such as Active, Acquired, Wound Up, or Listed — indicating whether it is still independently operating.
Read definition →Company Valuation · Pre-money Valuation · Post-money Valuation
The process or result of determining the current or projected worth of a company or asset.
Read definition →VC
A form of private equity focused on early-stage, high-growth companies, providing capital and strategic support in exchange for equity stakes.
Read definition →The year in which a private fund makes its first investment or receives its first capital call, used as a benchmark for comparing fund performance.
Read definition →Securities giving the holder the right to purchase equity at a fixed price before a specified expiry date, commonly attached to debt instruments as a sweetener.
Read definition →Distribution Waterfall · Profit Waterfall
The contractual order in which a fund distributes proceeds from investments to limited partners and the general partner.
Read definition →