# Capital Calls — Overview

A **capital call** (also called a **drawdown notice**) is the mechanism by which a General Partner (GP) requests that Limited Partners (LPs) transfer a portion of their committed capital to the fund. Committed capital is a legal promise to invest — capital calls are how that promise is honoured, one drawdown at a time.

## Why capital calls exist

Private equity and private credit funds do not collect all committed capital upfront. They call capital as they need it — typically to fund a new portfolio investment, pay management fees, or cover fund expenses. This structure benefits LPs: money sits in their accounts earning a return until the GP has identified a specific use for it.

The downside is complexity: the fund must track how much each LP has been called, how much remains unfunded, whether any LP has been excused or has defaulted, and how late-joining LPs are brought to the same economic position as the founding LPs.

Gildi handles all of that bookkeeping automatically.

## A capital call from each side

**GP perspective.** The GP identifies a need (a new investment, a fee period). They set the call amount, choose the drawdown due date, and confirm the per-LP allocations. Gildi computes the allocation, generates the notice PDF, and distributes it to each LP. On the due date, Gildi reconciles incoming payments and flags shortfalls.

**LP perspective.** The LP receives an email notification with the notice PDF attached. The notice shows their individual call amount, why it is being called, the due date, and the payment instructions. The LP pays via the configured payment method (bank transfer or direct debit) and sees their portal update when funds are received.

## Key concepts

| Concept                                                                          | Where to learn more                                       |
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Unfunded commitment** — the portion of an LP's commitment not yet drawn        | [Allocation methodology](/methodology/_allocation.md)     |
| **Pro-rata allocation** — each LP's call is proportional to their commitment     | [Allocation methodology](/methodology/_allocation.md)     |
| **Equalization** — catching up LPs admitted after the first close                | [Equalization methodology](/methodology/_equalization.md) |
| **Management fee call** — capital drawn to pay the GP's fee                      | [Fees methodology](/methodology/_fees.md)                 |
| **Recallable distributions** — previously distributed capital the GP may re-draw | [Recallable methodology](/methodology/_recallable.md)     |

## The capital call lifecycle

```
GP creates call → allocations computed → notices sent
    → LPs pay → GP reconciles payments → call closes
```

1. **Draft** — GP enters call details; allocation preview shown.
2. **Approved** — GP confirms; notice PDFs generated; emails queued.
3. **Sent** — Notices delivered to each LP's inbox and portal.
4. **Due** — Drawdown due date passes; payment reconciliation begins.
5. **Partially paid** — Some but not all LPs have paid.
6. **Closed** — All payments received (or shortfalls escalated to default).

## How-to guides

### For GPs

* [Create a capital call](/for-general-partners/create-call.md)
* [Review and confirm allocations](/for-general-partners/allocate.md)
* [Send the notice to LPs](broken://pages/CmjVCu6ymJHsXVCdvj0b)
* [Reconcile payments](broken://pages/pgiNs6D1v3iTnby6tehD)

### For LPs

* [Understand your capital call notice](/for-limited-partners/receive-call.md)
* [View your allocation and commitment summary](/for-limited-partners/view-allocation.md)
* [Pay a capital call](/for-limited-partners/pay.md)

## Standards

Gildi's capital call notices conform to the **ILPA Capital Call Notice Standard 2.0**, which requires:

* Itemized fee vs. investment call amounts
* Per-LP allocation shown on the notice
* Clear drawdown due date
* Payment instructions

Every notice PDF Gildi generates includes all required ILPA fields.


---

# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.gildi.io/capital-calls/overview.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.