In the early 1990s, during the last days of the Soviet Union, entrepreneurship was legalized in Russia and many businessmen started to launch new ventures. Private property, nonexistent under the Communist regime, started to emerge along with the booming economy. In those turbulent days, Dmitry Zimin, the head of a secret radio-technical military institute in Moscow, sought opportunities to start his own business. Already 60 years old at the time, he was a highly respected and influential man. Nonetheless, he foresaw little future at the institute designing antiballistic missile equipment and anticipated only a limited pension payout in light of the ongoing collapse of the USSR and skyrocketing inflation. Zimin’s colleagues at the institute shared his prospects and sentiments. Zimin and his team considered several options, and the outstanding radio-technical skills they possessed were at the center of their business plan. What these brilliant minds needed was capital to launch their venture.