Enantioselective hydrogenation of -ketoesters with cinchona-modified platinum catalysts has been studied theoretically in order to rationalize the interaction between the chiral modifier and the substrate. The structure of the probable transition complex has been calculated for the system methyl pyruvate (substrate)-cinchonidine (modifier) using quantum chemistry techniques at both ab initio and semiempirical levels and molecular mechanics. The calculations indicate that crucial interaction occurs via hydrogen bonding of the quinuclidine nitrogen and the oxygen of the -carbonyl moiety of methyl pyruvate and confirm earlier experimental evidence that the quinuclidine nitrogen of the cinchonidine is involved in the interaction leading to enantiodifferentiation. The resulting complex, which resembles to a half-hydrogenated state of the substrate, is shown to be a possible transition state for the enantioselective hydrogenation of -ketoesters.