In March, the Russian audience of Asian messaging apps saw a notable increase. The most popular apps came from China, Turkey, and South Korea.

The Turkish service bip increased its monthly active user base in Russia by 105% in March, reaching 1,680,000 users. The app's total global user base is approximately 53 million.

The South Korean messenger KakaoTalk grew its Russian audience by 82%, reaching 436,000 users. KakaoTalk's total user base stands at 53.5 million.

China's leading messenger, WeChat, saw a 15% growth in Russia in March, reaching 1,150,000 users. WeChat's total global user base is estimated at 1.41–1.42 billion.

The core of the Russian audience for these Asian messengers (about 30%) consists of Russians aged 35–44. Geographic popularity also varies: WeChat is in demand in the Central, Far Eastern, and Northwestern federal districts, while KakaoTalk is popular in the Central, Northwestern, and Siberian districts.

Meanwhile, the global messenger Telegram maintains its leading position in Russia. Telegram's MAU in Russia saw a slight decline in March due to access issues (in Q1 2026, the audience decreased by 1.5% compared to Q4 2025), but this did not prevent the messenger from retaining its top spot. Overall, for the quarter, the messenger's audience exceeded 102 million users, up from 100 million a year earlier.

Sources 1, 2, 3