An analysis of differences in the capital structure and yield of public and nonpublic Russian companies is presented in the article, along with an analysis of the effect of corporate finance concepts – namely, of the capital structure and the relationship between risk and yield in the Russian reality. The concept of the interrelation of risk and yield is widely used in the Russian practice of valuation of business and investment decisions by using CAPM (Capital Assets Pricing Model) to find the value of the discount rate. How customary for the Russian reality is the understanding of the need to account for additional risks for nonpublic companies compared to public ones, common in the theory of corporate finance? This and some other questions are answered in this article. The results of the study have practical significance for investors interested in acquiring Russian assets