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Fund formation

Subscription agreement

Document the investor's commitment, identity, eligibility, authority and representations before accepting it into the fund.

Quick answer

A subscription agreement is the contract through which an investor applies to acquire a fund interest or other security and makes the required representations, warranties and covenants. It commonly records the commitment, investor identity, beneficial ownership, authority, eligibility, tax status, anti-money-laundering information, transfer restrictions and acceptance by the fund or manager.

Use the worked example

Meaning and transaction use

ILPA says its model subscription agreement aims to increase clarity and capital-formation efficiency and is modular and multi-jurisdictional for customisation to a fund and its investors. [S1]

A filed fund subscription form links purchase of an interest and admission as a limited partner to the partnership agreement, with investor information and representations supporting acceptance. [S2]

Proposed control method: use one closing checklist covering executed documents, signatory authority, investor classification, beneficial ownership, AML and tax evidence, side letters, commitment, acceptance and register update.

Worked example

Illustrative commitment record only. Assume an accepted USD 10 million commitment, USD 3 million of contributions credited to commitment and USD 500,000 distributed as recallable under the governing documents.

Scroll the table horizontally to view all columns.

MeasureCalculationResult
Initial unfunded commitment10 - 3USD 7 million
Recallable distributionAssumedUSD 0.5 million
Adjusted unfunded commitment7 + 0.5USD 7.5 million
Credited contribution rate3 / 1030.0%
Adjusted unfunded rate7.5 / 1075.0%

The recallable amount raises illustrative unfunded commitment to USD 7.5 million. The LPA and notices determine the actual balance.

Proposed transaction review process

Identify the investor

Verify legal name, form, address, beneficial ownership and authorised signatories.

Test eligibility

Complete applicable investor-status, suitability, AML, sanctions and tax checks.

Reconcile terms

Confirm commitment, class, closing, LPA, side letter and funding instructions.

Accept and record

Obtain fund acceptance, update registers and retain the closing evidence.

Evidence checklist

Identity evidence

Constitution, register, ownership and signatory authority.

Eligibility evidence

Investor questionnaires, classifications and supporting documents.

Compliance evidence

AML, sanctions, tax forms and source-of-funds records.

Closing evidence

Executed subscription, acceptance, side letter, register and funding notice.

Decision framework

SituationProposed action
Investor evidence is incompleteKeep the subscription unaccepted until required checks are complete.
The commitment changesAmend the execution package and reconcile every linked record.
A representation becomes inaccurateApply notice, cure, transfer and default provisions.
A nominee subscribesVerify principal, authority, beneficial ownership and recognition under the documents.

Common errors to check

  • Treating signature as fund acceptance.
  • Relying on stale eligibility or beneficial-ownership evidence.
  • Allowing the commitment to differ across records.
  • Ignoring LPA and side-letter interactions.

Control the subscription

Bring the investor file, subscription pack, LPA, side letter and closing checklist to a subscription review. Reconcile identity, eligibility, commitment and acceptance before admission.

Discuss the transaction

Primary references and editorial scope

  1. ILPA: Model Subscription Agreement
    Model subscription agreement purpose, modularity and multi-jurisdictional customisation. Reference checked 17 September 2026.
  2. SEC-filed form of fund subscription agreement
    Subscription for a fund interest, investor agreement and admission under the partnership agreement. Reference checked 17 September 2026.
Editorial qualification

General fund-formation education. Figures are hypothetical. Investor eligibility, AML, tax, securities and contractual requirements depend on the offering and jurisdictions.

General business information. Obtain advice appropriate to the legal, tax, accounting and financing facts. No offer, lender commitment or transaction outcome is represented. All worked examples use expressly assumed figures. Editorial draft date: 17 September 2026.

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