On June 8, right after the WWDC 2026 presentation, Apple released the first iOS 27 developer beta. iOS 27 can already be installed, but first it’s important to understand which apps work and which don’t. And the main question that concerns everyone in Russia isn’t “what does the updated Liquid Glass look like.” The question is different: will my bank app work. Let’s clarify right away: what we have is the first developer build, the rawest of them all. The public beta will come out in July, and the final release — only in September.
Popular app compatibility has already been tested
List of Working Apps on iOS 27
Good news: most familiar apps launch successfully. At the beta’s start, the following work without critical issues:
- Raiffeisenbank app
- Luna browser
- Sber app
- Alfa-Bank apps
- VTB app
- VK app
- MAX messenger
- Telegram — but there’s a catch: users report the keyboard occasionally disappears
- Instagram* and WhatsApp* (owned by Meta, recognized as extremist and banned in Russia)
- YouTube
- X
- MegaFon and MTS apps
- Mail.ru Mail app
- Yandex services
- Pyaterochka, Magnit, Perekrestok
- VkusVill
- Wildberries and OZON
- Pixelmator
Luna, removed from the App Store, works as expected. Image: vedomosti.ru
No issues with the latest version of MAX either. Image: vedomosti.ru
So the basic everyday toolkit — banks, delivery, marketplaces, messengers — is generally alive. Sberbank, VTB, and Alfa-Bank all launch, although their official versions have long been installed under different names on everyone’s phones. This is an important point we’ll return to. But keep in mind that this applies to the latest versions of these bank apps. If you have something older, issues and crashes are possible.
Which Apps Crash on iOS 27 Beta 1
The list of problems is short so far, but painful. According to initial reports, the current versions of T-Bank don’t launch on iOS 27, and neither does the Samokat app.
Unfortunately, Samokat and T-Bank apps couldn’t be made to work with iOS 27
Samokat will most likely be fixed quickly: the developer can simply release an update on the App Store, and compatibility will catch up by the public beta. But T-Bank is a different story, and it’s not about lazy programmers.
How Sanctions Prevent Updating Bank Apps on iPhone
A quick explainer is needed here. Apps from banks under blocking sanctions have long been removed from the App Store. Apple complies with the sanctions regime, so Sber, VTB, Alfa-Bank, T-Bank, and others can’t simply sit in the store under their real names.
Banks work around this cleverly: they release apps through third-party developers under neutral names — sometimes a fitness tracker, sometimes an audio player, sometimes something else innocuous. T-Bank over the past couple of years has been VibroGym App, Clanstrix, and EasyCatch Sounder. Apple regularly detects these disguises and removes them, after which the bank rolls out a new clone.
I have 4 different Alfa-Bank apps on my iPhone and none of them will receive an update
Because of this, updating the app properly is impossible. When a new iOS comes out, a regular app developer just needs to build an update with support for the new system and submit it to the App Store. A sanctioned bank doesn’t have that option: its version is either already removed or lives in the store for just a few days. An old build might not launch on iOS 27, and there’s simply nowhere to get a new compatible one until the bank releases another disguised version.
The conclusion is simple: if you use T-Bank or a similar app, updating your firmware right now is risky. You could lose access to your money for weeks — exactly until the bank releases a new compatible version under a new name.
Why You Shouldn’t Install the First iOS 27 Beta
The first developer beta is made for testing, not for daily use. An overheating body, battery drain, and sudden crashes are the norm for such a build, not the exception. That’s exactly why the first builds should be avoided.
Personally, I never install the first developer beta on my main iPhone. The risk of being left without a bank app at the worst possible moment is too high. If you really want to try iOS 27, install it on a spare device and explore the new features at your leisure.
Everyone else would be wiser to wait for the public beta in July: it’s more stable, and by that time most developers will have released compatible versions. And if you value your nerves and money — wait for the final release in September.
* Meta is recognized as an extremist organization in Russia and is banned.
