Business is about growth. Capital is about resilience.

Are you a successful entrepreneur? Good. That means you have already proven that you know how to generate money — build products, structure teams and processes, take risks, and deliver results. Investors often forget this. A significant share of large private fortunes, both in Russia and globally, has been built not in public markets or real estate, but in business.

This is indirectly confirmed by global studies (BCG Global Wealth, UBS Global Wealth Report). Almost all names on the Russian Forbes list are owners of real businesses: commodities, finance, IT, development, logistics. Business provides leverage and direct control over outcomes: in strong years, it can deliver returns unavailable to most private investors.

But the key is not to confuse stages. Building capital and managing it are different tasks. While capital is being accumulated, business is the most effective tool. At a later stage, structure becomes more important than the source.

Capital is created through concentration, but preserved through diversification.

Business in Russia is not a “walk in the park”

Without illusions, the picture is less romantic. As of April 2026, there are around 6.9 million small and medium-sized enterprises registered in Russia. The average age of a company is about 7.5 years.

At the same time:

• according to an estimate by Igor Fatyanov, CEO of Zetta Insurance Group, presented at SPIEF 2023, real three-year survival rates for SMEs in some industries may be as low as 5–10%;
• in 2019, the revenue of the 50 largest companies in Russia was comparable to half of the country’s GDP, as reported by Kommersant citing ACRA data;
• the vast majority of Russian companies barely keep up with inflation, and many shut down within the first few years — as shown in a large-scale study by Emerson Consulting.

T-Bank offers a more optimistic view: about 20–30% of SMEs survive to the fifth year. In recent years, survival rates have improved.

But taken together, the data points to one conclusion: running a business in Russia is far from easy. Statistically, a stable and profitable enterprise is not the median — it is closer to the tail of the distribution.

Revenue is not capital

Surprisingly, many entrepreneurs, experienced and successful people, confuse revenue with personal capital. Half-billion project here, a few billion there, government contracts and subcontractors all around, yet there is no money available for investment — everything is tied up in operations.

A business can show revenue growth without generating comparable free cash flow. Funds get trapped:

• in inventory;
• in receivables;
• in supplier prepayments;
• and in continuous reinvestment.

A paradox: the business is there, revenues are solid, yet the owner isn’t getting richer.

This isn’t theory. Corporate finance advisers and auditors deal with cases like this on a regular basis. Consider the story of a retail furniture chain that struggled with inventory management. Or cases involving a manufacturing company, an IT business, and a nationwide coffee chain — all moving from one cash shortfall to the next.

Risk concentration

The typical capital structure of a Russian entrepreneur looks like this:

• most of the wealth is tied to the business;
• the rest is in one or two apartments or commercial real estate “just in case”;
• a liquid financial portfolio is either very small or absent altogether;
• and almost everything is denominated in rubles.

Research on Russian HNWIs and private banking clients shows that a significant share of wealth is concentrated in business and real estate, while diversified financial assets represent a much smaller portion.

At the stage of active capital accumulation, such imbalance may be acceptable. But from a wealth management perspective, it becomes a vulnerability. In practice, the entire capital base is tied to:

• one asset;
• one market;
• one jurisdiction;
• and often one person — the entrepreneur himself.

This isn’t an argument against business — but capital structure deserves some thought too.

Especially given that the Russian economy is still classified as an emerging market. Conditions can change rapidly.

In fact we’re going through one of those shifts right now. Think back to a 21% policy rate at the end of 2024, SME loans at 27–35%, higher corporate taxes, sanctions constraints, mandatory product tracking — you’ve seen it all.

What about liquidity?

The perception of value between a business owner and a buyer often diverges significantly. Even stable companies are not sold instantly: according to estimates by business brokers, transactions can take several months to a year or more. Pricing is determined not by revenue, but by expected future cash flows and associated risks: the buyer pays for the present value of future profits, not past turnover.

Business is an illiquid asset — and this becomes apparent precisely when liquidity is most needed:

• during a sale;
• in a divorce;
• when dissolving a partnership;
• or when changing jurisdiction.

Conceptually, it is similar to real estate: the asset may appear valuable on paper, but achieving liquidity quickly and without a discount is often challenging.

Succession

Another challenge is succession. According to a study by the Skolkovo Wealth Transformation Center, among 117 individuals with assets exceeding $1 million, only 10% plan to transfer business control to family members. Most intend either to manage the business personally “to the end,” or to delegate operations to top managers while retaining key decisions.

The reasons are often the same:

• the business is founder-dependent;
• ownership structures are not properly designed;
• there are no prepared successors;
• and, perhaps surprisingly, the next generation may simply have no interest in continuing the family business (you’d think it’s all set up, just take it and run it — but no).

Transferring a business is complex, and without preparation it can easily become a source of conflict rather than a “family asset.”

Conclusion

Business is the best tool for building capital. But it is poorly suited for preserving it and transferring it to the next generation. At a certain point, scale begins to dictate conditions, family circumstances evolve, operational fatigue sets in, or regulatory and market risks become increasingly difficult to control. At that stage, managing capital requires a different logic: liquidity, diversification, and a clear succession framework become essential.

Business is the engine. Capital is the system:

• where the “financial cushion” is held;
• what can be quickly converted into cash;
• what generates passive income;
• and what is allocated to heirs, and how it is structured.

You can ignore this distinction for as long as you like, but the outcome is usually the same: decisions about selling stakes, restructuring, or changing jurisdiction end up being made under unfavorable conditions, with limited time and limited options. It is far better to think about capital structure in advance — while the business is growing, not when it needs to be rescued.

For Russian entrepreneurs, the natural next step is to gradually move part of profits out of operational risk and build a liquid, diversified portfolio in public markets: across geographies, sectors, currencies, and counterparties, with a long-term horizon and clear rules. A portfolio that can be used when needed — and passed on to the next generation.