The Guide
Koi
Sets up the question, walks through the numbers and closes with Koi’s Take.
Private markets education/Courses open 12 Jan 2027
How private markets really work, from both sides of the table.
Short animated lessons on private equity, venture capital and private credit funds: who pays, who decides and where the money goes. Every figure is sourced. Read a free lesson now; Foundations, our US$49 entry course, opens on 12 January 2027 with free previews.
- 3 free lessons and 9 previews
- 8–9 minutes each
- US, Europe and Asia
- Education, not advice
“Two per cent of what?”Koi, the Guide
KaiThe GP
LeoThe LP
KoiThe Guide
Who it’s for
Wealth advisers and private bankers
Explain evergreen and semi-liquid funds to clients with confidence.
Finance people moving to the buy side
Learn the fund economics behind the deal before day one.
Family-office teams and private investors
Read a fund deck the way an LP does.
Founders and students
See how investors get paid, and why it shapes what they ask.
Meet the cast
Three seats at the table
Every fund has a manager, an investor and someone keeping score. Our folded-paper cast plays those parts, so you hear each side make its case.
The GP
Kai
Raises the fund, runs the deals and explains the manager’s side, incentives included.
The LP
Leo
Puts the money in and asks the awkward questions. “Net, please. Not gross.”
Foundations/Entry course
Start here: Foundations
Sixteen short lessons that take you from “what is a private market?” to reading a fund one-pager on your own. No finance degree needed. Try before you buy: three lessons are free in full, and nine have free previews.
First
The basics
- What private markets arePreview
- The private markets mapFree
- Who’s who: GPs, LPs and the restPreview
- How a closed-end fund worksPreview
Then
Money in, money out
- The fund lifecycle and the J-curvePreview
- Fees and carry in plain EnglishPreview
- Reading performance: IRR, TVPI, DPIPreview
- Benchmarking: is “top quartile” true?Course
Next
Value, liquidity and risk
- What NAV means and who sets itCourse
- Evergreen funds: what “semi-liquid” meansPreview
- The risks, and what to askPreview
- Why investors allocate, and the case againstPreview
Finally
Putting it together
- A short history of private marketsFree
- Following one fund, start to finishCourse
- Reading a fund one-pagerCourse
- Careers: the map of seatsFree
US$49one-off · all 16 lessons
Opens 12 Jan 2027 Read a free lesson nowNot on sale yet: there is no checkout and nothing to pay. When Foundations opens, the free previews go up on YouTube and the course adds every full lesson, quizzes, worksheets and a certificate of completion.
Courses/After Foundations
Go deeper, at your own pace
Self-paced courses built around what you can do afterwards, with worked examples, worksheets and a capstone. Same rule as every lesson: if a number can’t be sourced, it doesn’t go on screen.
Core course
Investing in private markets: the LP’s toolkit
Choose a way in, judge a manager and monitor a portfolio the way an institutional LP does. Ends with a five-year programme you build yourself.
US$199
- Modules
- 16
- Runtime
- ~2 h 45 min
Core course
Private equity and venture deals
From the paper LBO and the deal process to term sheets, cap tables and exits. Ends with an investment memo.
US$199
- Modules
- 17
- Runtime
- ~2 h 50 min
Core course · Planned
Private credit and real assets
Direct lending, real estate and infrastructure funds, compared by return driver, risk and liquidity.
US$149
- Modules
- 11
- Status
- In development
Expert series
Specialist modules
- GP economics and fund terms (first)
- Secondaries and continuation funds
- Fund structuring and regulation
- Fundraising and emerging managers
US$79–99each
- Pass
- US$299, all modules
None of these courses is on sale yet, and there is no checkout. Foundations opens on 12 January 2027 and the core courses follow. Prices are planned and may change; an all-access option is planned at US$499.
The Carry & Compound newsletter/Launching soon
One lesson, one chart, one take
The new lesson when it’s out, a sourced chart worth keeping and Koi’s Take. Plain English. No tips, no live deals.
- Free for subscribers: the fund one-pager checklist
- Also free: a private-markets glossary, both sides of the table
Newsletter launching soon
FAQ
Questions, answered
Is this investment advice?
No. Everything here is general education about how private markets work. We don’t recommend any fund, manager, security or strategy, and nothing takes your circumstances into account. Speak to a licensed adviser before making decisions.
Do I need a finance background?
No. Foundations assumes no prior knowledge. The other courses build on it and suit people who already work in or around finance.
What is free, and what is paid?
The lesson on who pays the GP commitment is free now. From 12 January 2027, three Foundations lessons will be free in full, nine will have free previews on YouTube, and the newsletter will be free. Foundations will be a US$49 one-off course with every full lesson, quizzes, worksheets and a certificate of completion.
Who is behind Carry & Compound?
An independent education brand. The presenters are characters by design, so the focus stays on the material. Every lesson is researched, sourced and checked before it is published.
Are Koi, Kai and Leo AI?
They are folded-paper characters with synthetic voices. The scripts are written for each lesson and checked against the cited sources.
How current are the numbers?
Each figure is dated and linked to its source. Markets move, so check the date on the source line before relying on a number.