General Partner (GP)
The individual or entity that manages a venture fund, makes investment decisions, and bears unlimited liability for the fund.
The general partner is the manager of a venture capital fund, responsible for sourcing deals, making investment decisions, sitting on portfolio company boards, and ultimately returning capital to the fund's limited partner investors. GPs earn a management fee to cover operating costs and carried interest as their share of profits once the fund performs.
Unlike limited partners, general partners have unlimited liability for the fund's obligations (in practice mitigated through the fund's legal structure) and full control over investment decisions — LPs are passive capital providers with essentially no say in individual deals.
GPs typically also invest their own capital into the fund (the GP commitment), aligning their financial incentives with LPs beyond just the carry they'll earn if the fund performs well.
When evaluating a fund as an LP, weigh the GP's track record on realized returns (DPI), not just paper markups — plenty of GPs post strong TVPI on unrealized positions that never actually convert into cash back to investors.
What's the difference between a GP and an LP?
The GP actively manages the fund and makes investment decisions; the LP is a passive capital investor with no control over individual deals but limited liability capped at their committed capital.
Related terms
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