General partner (GP)

The people who run a venture fund, make the investment decisions and sit on boards.

Example

The partner who leads your round and joins your board.

Important

A GP can write a cheque; an associate usually cannot. Knowing who in the room can actually decide changes how you run the meeting.

Related terms

• Limited partner (LP) — The investors IN a venture fund — pension funds, endowments, family offices, wealthy individuals.
• Venture capital (VC) — Professional investors who manage a fund of other people's money and invest it in high-growth startups in exchange for equity.
• Investment committee — The group inside a fund that formally approves an investment, usually the partners.

Lessons that explain it

• How a VC fund actually works — A VC is not a person with money. They manage a fund with its own investors, and that single fact explains almost everything they do. (15 min)

All 176 terms in the Founder glossary