A fund-level gate applies the cap across all investors pro rata; an investor-level gate limits what each holder can take out. Either way, requests above the cap roll into the next period.
Gates protect remaining holders from being left with the least saleable assets after early redeemers take the liquid ones. That protection is real, but it also means the investors who most want out are the ones most affected, and gating is often read as a distress signal that triggers further requests.
Gates were used widely in 2008 and again during the 2020 liquidity squeeze in property funds. Read the gate provisions, the notice period and the suspension powers together; they define the actual liquidity of the investment. See lock-up-period-portfolio and side-pocket.
Related: side-pocket, liquidity, interval-fund, open-end-fund, money-market-fund