Distributions to Paid-In

DPI is sometimes called the "cash-on-cash" multiple because it counts only money that has genuinely landed in investors' accounts. Paid-in capital is the total cash investors have sent to a fund; distributions are the proceeds actually wired back from exits, dividends, or other realizations. A DPI of 1.0x means investors have gotten back exactly what they put in — no more, no less — in real cash.

For families reviewing fund managers during due diligence or manager selection, DPI is often the most trusted metric precisely because it cannot be inflated by optimistic valuations. Early in a fund's life, DPI is typically low or zero — capital has been deployed but exits have not occurred. As a fund matures, rising DPI signals that paper gains are converting into actual liquidity. Families with near-term spending or philanthropic needs pay particular attention to DPI when assessing TVPI alongside it.

Consider a hypothetical family office that committed an illustrative $10 million to a private equity fund. After several years, $6 million has been distributed back. DPI is 0.6x — meaning 60 cents of every dollar contributed has been returned in cash. The fund might show a healthy TVPI of 1.5x, but a DPI of 0.6x tells the family that significant value remains unrealized and illiquid.

The common confusion is assuming a high MOIC or TVPI guarantees meaningful DPI. Unrealized value can evaporate before an exit occurs. DPI is sometimes described as the metric that separates actual performance from projected performance.