#287: Inside RAISE Global 2025 — How Fund Models Are Evolving
The 10th Annual RAISE Global Summit brought together more than 100 General Partners (GPs) and 300+ Limited Partners (LPs) at the Presidio for a one-day, high-impact convening on the evolving architecture of venture capital.
Recognized as a premier community for forward-thinking LPs and emerging fund managers, RAISE has become the nexus where capital allocators, operators, and institutional investors exchange practical frameworks for building next-generation funds.
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🎯 A Precision Event for Capital Leaders
This year’s program was designed for depth over breadth — targeting the decision-makers who define capital flow: managing partners, foundation directors, institutional investors, and nonprofit capital stewards.
Conversations centered on fund structuring, liquidity management, and strategic deployment — topics that have grown increasingly complex as GPs navigate longer hold periods, slower exit markets, and higher LP scrutiny.
Panels and breakouts replaced generalist dialogue with tactical exchanges on what’s actually working: modeling reserves, pacing capital calls, and maintaining alignment through uncertain liquidity cycles.
📊 Fund Models Matter — Insights from RAISE GP Day
At RAISE GP Day, we explored what’s quickly becoming the most important differentiator in venture: fund modeling.
Fund models matter and are one of the new trust signals. In an environment where LPs review hundreds of decks but remember only a handful, the managers who stand out are those who can articulate their fund math clearly and confidently. We opened the session with a surprising stat:
There are over 5,000 active VCs in the U.S. today, but fewer than 500 maintain a working fund model.
That gap isn’t just operational — it’s strategic. LPs consistently shared that fewer than 10% of GPs they meet can walk through their model in under a minute. And yet, that one minute often defines whether a conversation turns into a commitment.
🔑 The Fund Math Every GP Should Know
Every GP should be able to answer a single question:
“What does it take for you to return the fund?”
A quick example from our session (yes the dilution assumption is too low, but bear with us - 50% is simple to model and understand and you can increase it!):
That’s the baseline math — simple, but powerful.
If you can’t explain your RTF logic without opening Excel, you’re missing the chance to build LP confidence in real time.
⚙️ Model Formats — From Napkin to Sheets
The sophistication of your model matters less than your fluency with it. We outlined two key levels of modeling maturity:
Back of napkin: pressure-test logic and outcome expectations.
Google Sheets / Excel: scenario-test dilution, reserves, and ownership.
📈 The Compounding Effect of Small Changes
One of our favorite moments from the workshop was showing how each fund model lever doubles / halves something (all else held equal):
Double your fund size, and you double the required outcome.
Halve your check size (i.e. ownership), double the exit value required.
Double your entry valuation, double the exit value required.
Small math shifts define fund outcomes — and LP trust. Note that the required outcomes / exit values can come from one or multiple companies! We’ve used one company driving returns for simplicity / modeling purposes.
The Playbook We’ve Built
Over the past year, we’ve published practical tools that echo the same themes raised at RAISE — frameworks any GP can integrate today:
Reserves Matter (#178) — Frameworks for sizing reserves so you can back winners without starving new bets.
Waterfall Models Simplified (#228) — A clear breakdown of how capital actually flows back to LPs and GPs.
DPI Forecast Template (#203) — A template for projecting DPI over the fund life, giving LPs a realistic view of cash timing.
These aren’t theoretical posts — they’re working tools built to make fund mechanics as transparent and LP-aligned as possible.
🔍 Strategic Takeaways for GPs and LPs
Timing matters: LPs need visibility into capital pacing and distributions to manage their own liquidity cycles.
Discipline signals trust: Reserve strategy shows how a manager balances conviction and prudence.
Transparency builds partnerships: Clear waterfalls and DPI projections turn fund communication into fund advantage.
🤝 Building Connections for Impact and Growth
Beyond fund mechanics, RAISE 2025 doubled as a collaboration hub — from deal-flow matchmaking to cross-sector capital initiatives in venture, philanthropy, and social impact.
In a year where fundraising has required sharper narratives and stronger systems, the Summit reaffirmed a core truth:
The next era of venture leadership will be defined not by fund size, but by how precisely capital is modeled, measured, and deployed.
🛠 Tools to Navigate Small Fund Strategy
To help you move from market headlines to actionable insights, we’ve included a premium section for subscribers. If you’re free-tier, here’s your nudge—this is where we break down the fund math that makes sense of the current venture playbook.
Here’s what’s inside this week’s premium drop:
