A general partner commitment is the capital that the manager of a private equity or other private fund, acting as general partner, agrees to contribute to the fund from its own resources. It sits alongside each limited partner commitment and is drawn down in the same way, through each capital call. Investors treat it as evidence that the manager shares in losses as well as gains.
The amount is negotiated and stated in the fund's partnership agreement, commonly as a percentage of total commitments; figures of one to a few per cent are typical, and some managers commit much more. It is usually funded in cash by the firm's partners and senior staff, although some funds allow part to be met by waiving management fees, an arrangement investors scrutinise. The commitment is separate from carried interest, which is a share of profit and requires no equivalent investment.