What we know about Max, the Kremlin-backed messenger that could replace WhatsApp
Russia is looking to create a ‘national messaging app’ where citizens can chat, pay bills and shop. But will it also make it easier for the state to assert control and monitor dissent?
By Sergei Kagermazov & Svetlana Reiter.
Russia is looking to create a “national messenger” - a government-approved alternative to messaging apps like WhatsApp and Telegram. The basis for this service looks likely to be Max, released earlier this year by tech giant VK and already backed by state media campaigns.
With signs that WhatsApp might soon be banned in the country as the Kremlin seeks ever greater control of the online sphere, the BBC asks: what exactly is Max, who is behind it, is it safe and could it really replace the apps Russians rely on every day?
What is Max?
"Friends, hello! I recently downloaded the Max app. And you know what, I was just amazed," said Russian singer and influencer Instasamka in a promotional video to her millions of followers.
Max was launched in March 2025 by VK, the Russian social media giant best known for VKontakte, which is similar to Facebook.
The app combines features that will be familiar to users of WhatsApp and Telegram. It supports business accounts and is testing channels - like those seen in Telegram - while aiming to become more than just a chat platform.
Max is pitched as a digital “super app” - a single window into government and commercial services. The Russian bank VTB has already integrated a digital banking platform, and users can book trips through the travel wing of e-commerce giant Ozon.
Gosuslugi, Russia’s portal for public services, is expected to be added in 2026, along with access to the Central Bank’s Fast Payment System.
“It is unclear whether Telegram or WhatsApp will be shut down because of this,” a source at VK told the BBC. “Visually, it will be one-to-one with Telegram, most likely. In terms of quality, it is a typical VK product.”
But another source in the company said: “Max does not replicate the functionality of Telegram, since it is being developed with a completely different concept.”
Russian journalists have described the app as “the Russian WeChat,” a reference to the one-stop, Chinese state-backed app that is seen by critics as a tool of social control.
Despite the hype, Max has a long way to go.
VK claims a million people have signed up. By comparison, both Telegram and VK itself each have monthly Russian user bases nearing 100 million, according to the technology research company MediaScope.
The app’s early reviews are mixed. As of July, Max held a 2.4 rating on Google Play and 4.2 on the App Store.
Who’s behind Max?
Max is owned by a firm called “Communication Platform,” located in the same Moscow business center as VK. Russian business paper Vedomosti has reported that the two companies are affiliated.
VK is ultimately controlled by state energy giant Gazprom.
The tech company is led by Vladimir Kiriyenko, son of the first deputy head of the Presidential Administration, Sergei Kiriyenko.
VKontakte, VK’s flagship social network, is overseen by Stepan Kovalchuk - a relative of billionaire Yuri Kovalchuk, whom the US has called Vladimir Putin’s “personal banker.”
In other words, Max is developed by a company with deep ties to the Kremlin.
Why does Russia want a ‘national messenger’, and how is it promoting the app?
The Kremlin has long sought to reduce Russia’s reliance on foreign and private tech companies - an impulse that has grown stronger since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
In 2015, then–media regulator Aleksandr Zharov floated the need for such a national messaging service. Ten years later, on June 10, 2025, the State Duma passed a law to formally create one.
Just days before, a new rule came into force barring government agencies, telecom firms, and banks from using foreign messengers to contact customers - a role WhatsApp has long played in Russia.
Communications Minister Maksut Shadayev announced plans for Max to serve as the basis of a national messenger. To encourage uptake of the existing app, the government is leaning heavily on advertising.
Alongside Instasamka, other influencers like Valya Karnaval and comedian Denis Dorokhov have promoted the app. At VK Fest, a major summer music festival, users with Max installed were fast-tracked through entry gates. The event also featured a branded Max stand with free Wi-Fi.
Some officials have already made the switch. On June 17, the mayor of Novosibirsk, Maksim Kudryavtsev, announced that the mayor’s office would adopt Max for internal communications starting June 23.
The government has also shown a willingness to throttle or ban foreign platforms. Instagram was officially blocked in 2022 - though many Russians work around this ban with VPNs - and YouTube has faced ongoing traffic slowdowns.
How secure is Max?
Technology experts and privacy advocates have flagged several concerns.
Max collects user data including IP addresses and behavioural metrics, and crucially its privacy policy openly states that data may be shared with third parties and state agencies.
Unlike WhatsApp, Signal, and Telegram’s “secret chats,” Max does not appear to use end-to-end encryption - a technology that ensures only the sender and recipient can read messages.
“Apparently, the Max encryption system is encryption of the channel from the user to the server, which excludes third parties from accessing the data,” said one cybersecurity expert. “Telegram encryption works on a similar principle.”
However, this method still gives the server access to fully decrypted messages - unlike true end-to-end encryption, where even the platform itself can't access message contents.
Another issue: parts of Max rely on open-source code developed in “unfriendly” countries - including Ukraine, according to the independent new site The Bell.
A source familiar with the app told the BBC: “Max uses open source technologies, as all leading global IT companies do, with thorough audits and security checks.”
Will Whatsapp be blocked?
Anton Gorelkin, deputy chairman of the State Duma’s Information Policy Committee, told Reuters in July that “WhatsApp should prepare to leave the Russian market”.
Kremlin sources told the independent news site Meduza there was a very high likelihood that the messaging service would be blocked.
However it remains unclear if and when this ban will go ahead.
Despite being labeled an "extremist organization" along with parent company Meta, WhatsApp has continued to operate in Russia - unlike Meta’s other products Facebook and Instagram.
What about Telegram?
Telegram seems to be playing a balancing act to avoid being banned. On 17 July, the Russian media outlet Hi-Tech Mail reported that the app may be preparing to open a representative office in Russia, in compliance with the country’s laws for foreign IT firms.
But a government source told The Bell that they had not heard anything about plans to open a representative office.
When the BBC contacted Telegram for comment, a representative sent an earlier statement by founder Pavel Durov, which said: “It is possible that we are not dealing with harmless mistakes by journalists, but with a targeted campaign to discredit Telegram.”
The messenger, however, has fulfilled two of the three legal requirements to continue operating in the country: it has submitted a contact form and registered with Roskomnadzor, Russia’s media watchdog.
In June, the investigative outlet Vazhnye Istorii [Important Stories] reported that one of Telegram’s contractors had also worked for the FSB and might have access to the company’s servers. Telegram denied any unauthorised access or data breaches.
Which other countries have a ‘national messenger’?
Several Asian countries have national or quasi-official messengers: China’s WeChat, Japan’s Line, South Korea’s KakaoTalk, Vietnam’s Zalo, and India’s Sandes.
Bloomberg has pointed out that the Russian legislation backing Max strongly mirrors China's WeChat model.
The Wall Street Journal has described WeChat as “a powerful surveillance tool” that the government increasingly uses to “monitor and suppress dissenting views”.
Max declined to respond to questions from the BBC.
Read this story in Russian here.
Russian editor: Olga Shamina.
English editor: Theo Merz.