Our latest Fund Performance Report covering Q1 2026 just dropped! Median TVPI has trended upward for most VC vintages this year thanks to valuation markups and a few successful exits, but distributions mostly remain elusive.
As the above chart shows, few funds from the analyzed vintages have achieved 1x DPI—even those from 2017, which are approaching their 10-year mark. Even at the 90th percentile, DPI is only 1.18x for 2017 funds and 1.12x for 2018 funds. Consequently, many of these funds will have to extend their term lengths to return cash to their LPs.
The pressure for liquidity continues to mount, especially as many LPs are eager to recycle capital into the new wave of AI startups lighting up Silicon Valley. But at least on the IPO front, only the top-tier funds invested in the "trillion-dollar titans" of SpaceX, Anthropic, and OpenAI are likely to celebrate major exits in 2026.
Public investors are reserving massive pools of capital to buy into this trio when they debut. Other IPO-ready tech companies may get crowded out in terms of investor appetite (and media publicity) until mid- to late-2027.
This means further delays in DPI for most VC funds that aren't on the cap tables of the three titans, even if they're invested in solid companies otherwise. Those funds will likely rely on M&A from private equity or large corporations, as well as GP-led secondaries, to issue distributions until the stage is clear for other public listings.
Ultimately, these developments highlight the major trends in private markets we've observed lately: concentration of capital, prolonged exit timelines, and diversified exit strategies. Check out the full report for more data on how VC funds are performing in 2026!
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