RVPI (residual value to paid-in capital)
Also called Residual value multiple, Unrealised multiple.
RVPI, residual value to paid-in capital, is the current net asset value of a fund's remaining holdings divided by the capital limited partners have contributed. It is the unrealised component of the fund multiple: TVPI equals DPI plus RVPI.
Example
A fund has paid-in capital of $40M, distributions to date of $28M and a residual NAV of $60M. RVPI is 60 / 40, or 1.5x. DPI is 28 / 40, or 0.7x. TVPI is the sum, 2.2x. Six years later the fund has distributed a further $70M and holds two positions marked at $4M. DPI is now 98 / 40, or 2.45x, and RVPI has fallen to 4 / 40, or 0.1x. That is the normal path: RVPI rises in the early years as positions are marked up, then drains into DPI as they are sold.
Confused with
TVPI. TVPI is the whole multiple, realised and unrealised together. RVPI is only the unrealised piece.
NAV. NAV is a dollar figure, the sum of all capital accounts. RVPI is that figure expressed as a multiple of what LPs paid in.
In practice
LPs read RVPI against fund age. A fund in year nine with RVPI well above DPI is carrying marks that have not been tested by a sale, and secondary buyers price those marks at a discount. Auditors spend most of their valuation time on the positions behind RVPI, because a change in one mark moves the whole multiple.