The engine of interest: China has increased investments in advertising on Russian digital platforms

Russian digital platforms are becoming increasingly attractive to advertisers from China. In VK Advertising alone, the budgets of companies from China exceeded 2.5 billion rubles in the first half of 2026, and the number of customers increased by 62%. The trend is confirmed by other market participants. The gaming segment remains the leader in terms of investments — the cost of its promotion in VK Advertising increased 2.7 times compared to the same period in 2025. At the same time, Chinese businesses are increasing investments in advertising for e-commerce, consumer electronics, automobiles, the film industry and other industries.

Companies from China invest in game advertising

Mobile and video games remain the largest area of advertising investment by companies from China: in the first half of 2026, budgets for their promotion increased 2.7 times compared to the same period in 2025. In general, over the past six months, the volume of Chinese business advertising investments in VK Advertising has exceeded 2.5 billion rubles, and the number of customers has increased by 62%, the VK press service reported.

The most popular tool remains the universal ad, which automatically adapts creatives to various placement formats. At the same time, the demand for video advertising has increased significantly: expenses for this format have increased by 6.8 times. In addition, investors from China have significantly increased investments in the promotion of e-commerce and B2B projects.

— Chinese business is the growth driver of the Russian advertising market. Companies from the republic confidently retain the status of the main non-resident advertiser. At the same time, the gaming segment remains the largest in terms of budgets. VK covers all the needs of the gaming client, from payment solutions to attracting traffic," said Irina Sovik, Chief Operating Officer of VK's Ecosystem and Integrated Services business group.

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According to her, the interest of companies from China is gradually going far beyond the gaming industry. Growing budgets in the e-commerce and B2B segments confirm that Russian platforms provide high conversion efficiency for a wide variety of business categories. In addition, VK Advertising continues to adapt tools for customers: the advertising cabinet has already been translated into Chinese, and artificial intelligence-based services make it possible to create and optimize advertising campaigns faster, Irina Sovik said.

Representatives of the gaming industry also confirm the high activity of the companies. According to them, the cooperation is gradually moving beyond the promotion of games and covers new areas of the creative economy.

— The interest of partners from China is very high. They are one of the most open foreign players in our market and are not afraid to invest in it. Over the past few years, the volume of Chinese game content in the Russian Federation has grown significantly," said Alexander Mikheev, General Director of the Association of Game Management and Development Professionals (A PRIORI).

According to him, the next stage of cooperation may be the creation of joint projects in the field of games, cinema and animation. Russian developers are able to adapt Chinese products for the global market, and partners from China help domestic studios reach the audience of the republic. The organizations are already signing memoranda and agreements, forming the basis for long-term cooperation, he said.

— It is worth noting the segment of digital platforms and e—commerce - according to a study by T-Business, the largest share of registrations of Chinese companies in 2025 was in e-commerce — 50.88%. According to preliminary estimates, e-commerce within the Runet economy is showing growth of 14.8% in the first half of 2026," added Dmitry Gulyaev, CEO of the Association for Electronic Communications (RAEC).

He noted that Chinese businesses have a request for help in dealing with Russian regulation, and it is "sounding louder" as they expand their presence in our market. Thus, regulatory issues, local requirements, and law enforcement practices remain among the key factors for successful adaptation.

The Yandex press service also noted a trend towards the growth of Chinese investors' budgets - in the first half of 2026, investments by Chinese advertisers more than doubled compared to the same period last year. Businesses from the republic are actively investing in the promotion of applications, as well as games.

What other industries are Chinese businesses investing in?

The growth of Chinese advertising investments is noticeable far beyond digital advertising. Automakers, which have occupied the niches vacated after the departure of Western brands, as well as manufacturers of consumer electronics, are increasing their presence in the Russian market, said Karen Ghazaryan, director of the Institute for Internet Research.

According to market participants, companies from China are gradually moving from promoting individual products to fully developing their own brands in Russia.

— Today, Chinese businesses are already competing not so much with departed foreign retailers as with each other. Therefore, advertising budgets are growing: companies need to increase brand awareness, build audience loyalty and gain a foothold in the Russian market in the long term," said Anastasia Bezrukova, a leading expert at the Center for Strategic Support of Domestic Technologies.

According to her, advertising investments are increasing most rapidly in the automotive industry, consumer electronics, home appliances, e-commerce, mobile applications and the gaming industry. This dynamic is associated simultaneously with the departure of some Western brands, the expansion of the presence of Chinese manufacturers and increased competition between them, she added.

Oleg Volkosh, ACAR's Vice President for International Cooperation and president of the Mediaplus advertising group, agrees with this opinion. At the same time, he noted that despite the rapid growth in the advertising activity of companies from China, their share among the budgets of the 300 largest advertisers of the Russian Federation still does not exceed 5%, although the economic presence of investors from the republic is much larger.

"With the localization of production, the development of dealer networks and service infrastructure in our country, the advertising investments of Chinese businesses will continue to grow, gradually closing the gap between the scale of economic presence and marketing activity," he told Izvestia.

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According to a number of market participants, the potential for further growth of advertising investments by Chinese companies in Russia remains significant.

— So far, it is more correct to talk about the trend. The most noticeable effect may appear in the second half of 2026 or even in 2027," the editor-in-chief of the portal believes. Adpass.ru Timur Bordyug.

Another example of effective cooperation was joint filmmaking: the historical action film "Red Silk" (2025) became the first Russian-Chinese film to receive national status in both countries. Its sequel, "Black Silk," will be released in 2027, with a shooting volume in China more than twice that of the first film. Both projects are positioned as a tool for cultural diplomacy and strengthening dialogue, the experts interviewed said.

According to Denis Kuskov, CEO of TelecomDaily, it is not only China that is expanding investments in the Russian business. Our market is also being explored by companies from India and some countries in Africa and Southeast Asia.