Russian businesses are actively seeking alternative options amid issues with the Telegram messenger. According to the Association of Professional Social Media Users, demand for domestic corporate messengers increased fivefold in March 2026. Ixbt.com reports on this.
Currently, one-third of Russian companies use a hybrid format for work correspondence. While only 15 percent have fully implemented corporate platforms, more than half of businesses continue to operate via VPNs and proxy servers.
Regular users are primarily testing foreign applications, including Turkey's "BiP," Korea's "KakaoTalk," China's "WeChat," and the American service "IMO." However, entrepreneurs are focusing more on domestic solutions where the risk of blocking is nearly zero.
Experts note that companies prefer platforms designed exclusively for work communication, free from news channels and bots. "Yandex Messenger" and "eXpress" are leading as alternative options, though some platforms still lack full trust due to concerns over the risk of correspondence monitoring.
For reference, Telegram's mobile traffic in Russia decreased by 18 percent in March 2026. Specialists predict that most corporate clients will eventually transition to domestic systems for reasons of security and stability.
Read “Zamin” on Telegram!
