Exits are taking longer, distributions have slowed and many venture funds are still holding valuable assets that may need years before a traditional exit becomes realistic.
Based on an EUVC Academy masterclass with Kristaps Ronis, Partner at Ion Pacific, our new VC fund liquidity playbook gives GPs a practical framework for understanding the options available when fund timelines, LP expectations and portfolio realities no longer align.
Why this matters
Venture depends on capital being returned to LPs and reinvested into future funds. When exits slow, that liquidity flywheel slows with them.
The challenge is that not every fund needs the same solution. Some managers need DPI. Some need more time for strong assets to mature. Some need to provide liquidity to individual LPs, while others need a clean path to close an older vehicle.
What’s inside
The playbook breaks down six fund-level liquidity structures:
Asset sales and fund wind-downs
Continuation vehicles
Strip sales
Fund life extensions and LPA amendments
LP tender offers
Fund recapitalisations
These structures are not interchangeable.
Some generate DPI at fund level. Some provide liquidity to individual LPs. Others give strong assets more time to realise value. Each changes ownership, economics, governance and exposure to future upside in a different way.
What you’ll learn
What each structure is designed to solve
The difference between an LP liquidity issue and a fund-level DPI issue
How liquidity can be created without necessarily selling the underlying assets
When more time may preserve more value than an immediate exit
How to assess the trade-offs between distributions today and future upside
Why timing, pricing, LP communication and governance can shape the outcome
The playbook also includes a decision map for matching different liquidity needs with the most relevant structures, alongside the common mistakes that can weaken a secondary process.
The core principle is simple: diagnose the liquidity need before choosing the structure.
Who this is for
GPs managing mature or ageing venture funds
CFOs, COOs and finance leaders at venture firms
LPs evaluating fund-level liquidity options
Investment professionals working across secondaries, fund strategy and portfolio management
