Home Glossary
Private-Market Terms, Explained.
Plain definitions of the terms you’ll meet when selling or acquiring private-company shares and fund interests.
Terms, a to Z
Accredited Investor
An investor who meets the SEC’s income, net worth or professional criteria to invest in private securities. Buyers working with Sell Side Securities™ must be accredited investors.
Buy Side and Sell Side
The sell side represents those selling an asset; the buy side represents those acquiring it. In our work, sell-side advisory means representing the holder of private shares or a fund interest.
Direct Secondary
The sale of shares a fund or individual holds in a private company to another investor. See Direct secondaries for funds.
DPI (Distributions to Paid-In Capital)
Cash a fund has returned to its limited partners, divided by the capital they paid in.
Enterprise Value
A measure of a company’s total value. Our secondary work focuses on companies valued at $500 million or more.
GP Consent
The general partner’s approval required, in most funds, before a limited partner can transfer an interest.
LP Stake Sale
The transfer of a limited partner’s interest in a private fund to a new investor. See LP stake sales.
MOIC (Multiple on Invested Capital)
The total value of a fund’s investments, realized and unrealized, divided by the capital invested.
Private Marks
The values a private company’s shares are carried at between priced rounds or transactions.
Qualified Purchaser
A higher investor standard than accredited investor, generally individuals with $5 million or more in investments, or entities with $25 million or more. We prefer qualified purchasers as buyers.
Right of First Refusal (ROFR)
A company’s right, or its investors’ right, to buy shares on the same terms before a holder can sell them to someone else.
Secondary Sale
The sale of existing shares by a current holder, rather than new shares issued by the company. See Selling private shares.
Sell Side Order
A trading term for an order to sell a publicly traded security. Sell Side Securities™ doesn’t handle public-market orders; our work is in private-company shares and fund interests.
Transfer Restrictions
Rules in a company’s documents that limit when and to whom shares can be sold.
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