Data sourced from Dakota Private Markets, the private fund performance platform powered by Dakota. Learn More | Request Access
Distributions have become one of the most closely watched measures in private markets. Net IRR and TVPI show how a fund is performing on paper, but DPI answers a more immediate question: how much capital has actually been returned to investors?
Dakota's private markets benchmarks as of the first quarter of 2026 show meaningful differences in the pace of distributions across asset classes. Private credit has generated the highest median DPI in most recent comparable vintages, while private equity, venture capital, private real estate, and real assets and infrastructure have generally returned capital more slowly.
Median DPI by Asset Class and Vintage
|
Vintage
|
Private Equity
|
Venture Capital
|
Private Credit
|
Private Real Estate
|
Real Assets & Infrastructure
|
|
2023
|
0.07x
|
0.07x
|
0.10x
|
0.07x
|
0.10x
|
|
2022
|
0.09x
|
0.17x
|
0.28x
|
0.10x
|
0.11x
|
|
2021
|
0.16x
|
0.28x
|
0.34x
|
0.22x
|
0.12x
|
|
2020
|
0.30x
|
0.20x
|
0.47x
|
0.12x
|
0.16x
|
|
2019
|
0.48x
|
0.32x
|
0.59x
|
0.24x
|
0.49x
|
|
2018
|
0.58x
|
0.15x
|
0.88x
|
0.57x
|
0.55x
|
|
2017
|
0.79x
|
0.65x
|
0.95x
|
0.58x
|
0.86x
|
|
2016
|
1.21x
|
0.93x
|
1.02x
|
1.06x
|
0.57x
|
|
2015
|
1.23x
|
1.20x
|
1.07x
|
0.93x
|
1.06x
|
What the Data Shows
Private credit has returned capital faster in recent vintages
Private credit posted the highest median DPI among the five asset classes in the 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022 vintages. The gap is clearest in 2020: the median private credit fund had distributed 0.47x paid-in capital, compared with 0.30x for private equity, 0.20x for venture capital, 0.12x for private real estate, and 0.16x for real assets and infrastructure.
This reflects the contractual cash yield and shorter duration of many credit strategies. It also helps explain why private credit has remained attractive to investors seeking current income and more predictable distributions during a slower exit environment.
Private equity distributions remain limited for post-2019 vintages
Median private equity DPI falls from 0.48x for 2019 funds to 0.30x for 2020 funds and 0.16x for 2021 funds. The 2022 median stands at just 0.09x. These figures show how little of the value reported by newer private equity funds has reached investors as cash.
That does not mean the funds are necessarily underperforming. Recent vintages are still developing, and DPI should be considered alongside TVPI and Net IRR. Still, the data highlights the liquidity challenge facing investors that committed heavily during the 2020-2022 fundraising cycle.
Venture capital has produced strong mature-vintage distributions, but the path is uneven
Venture capital shows the greatest variation by vintage. The 2014 median reached 2.09x, the highest median DPI recorded across the five asset classes for that vintage, while the 2018 median was only 0.15x. Venture outcomes depend heavily on the timing of exits and a smaller number of large realizations, making vintage selection especially important.
Real estate and real assets show slower, asset-dependent realization patterns
Private real estate and real assets and infrastructure generally sit between private credit and venture capital in recent vintages, although results vary by year. For 2019 funds, median DPI was 0.24x in private real estate and 0.49x in real assets and infrastructure. By 2021, those figures were 0.22x and 0.12x, respectively.
The difference reflects the timing and structure of realizations across property, infrastructure, energy, and other real asset strategies. Income may support interim distributions, but full capital return often depends on asset sales or refinancing activity.
The Takeaway
For investors managing private market liquidity, DPI provides a useful reality check. Dakota’s private markets benchmark data shows that private credit has delivered more capital back to investors across most recent vintages, while distributions from private equity and several real asset strategies remain modest. Venture capital continues to offer meaningful upside in mature vintages, but with a less consistent distribution pattern.
No single metric tells the full story. DPI should be evaluated alongside TVPI, Net IRR, fund age, strategy, and the quality of the remaining portfolio. But in a market where realized proceeds matter more than they did a few years ago, the pace of distributions has become an increasingly important part of manager and portfolio assessment.
How to Use These Benchmarks
Investors can use these benchmarks to compare a fund's DPI with peers from the same asset class, strategy, and vintage year. This helps determine whether reported value is translating into cash distributions and whether a manager is returning capital faster or slower than comparable funds.
DPI should be reviewed alongside Net IRR and TVPI. A fund with strong TVPI but below-median DPI may still hold meaningful unrealized value, while a fund with above-median DPI has returned more capital but may have less remaining upside. Looking at all three measures provides a clearer view of performance, liquidity, and portfolio maturity.
Dakota's benchmarks allow investors and managers to compare performance across asset classes, strategies, and vintage years using Net IRR, TVPI, and DPI.
