Durov Lost Two-Thirds of His Fortune Due to Telegram's Value Collapse
The fortune of Telegram messenger founder Pavel Durov has significantly decreased. According to Forbes magazine, his capital has shrunk from $17.1 billion to $6.6 billion, meaning by approximately 61%, writes The Moscow Times.
The main reason is the reduction in valuations of similar technology companies. Over the past year, Telegram has not made new public presentations to investors, which makes the company's possibility of going public (IPO) seem less likely now. Additionally, the messenger is blocked in some key markets, including Russia and Iran, which also affects the company's valuation.
Analysts suggest comparing Telegram to its closest competitor, the American messenger Snapchat. They are similar in terms of user count: Snapchat had about 946 million users by the end of 2025, while Telegram had over 1 billion. However, Snapchat's revenue in 2025 was $5.9 billion, almost three times more than Telegram's projected $2 billion. At the same time, Snapchat ended the year with losses of $460 million, while Telegram reported losses of $222 million for the first half of the year alone. Against this backdrop, Snapchat's capitalization nearly halved over the year to $8.7 billion, which also influenced Telegram's revaluation.
Additional pressure on the company's finances may come from the need to repay bonds. Telegram's first bond issue, designed for five years with a 7% coupon, is due for repayment on March 22, 2026. The company has already partially refinanced the debt, but still needs to pay about $1.1 billion. In June, Telegram issued new bonds worth $1.7 billion with a higher yield of 9%, indicating increased risks for investors.
Pavel Durov first appeared in the Forbes ranking in 2016, when his fortune was estimated at $600 million. In 2018, he became a billionaire. His capital received its highest valuation — around $17.2 billion — in 2021, when Telegram issued its first bonds with the possibility of exchange for shares after a future IPO. At that time, investors valued the company at approximately $30-35 billion.
Some analysts suggest that Durov might partially settle with investors using Telegram shares without conducting an IPO. Among the investors who bought the latest bond issue are major funds, including BlackRock, Abu Dhabi, and Mubadala. It's possible they were promised a stake in the company.
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Comments
...як кажуць канапныя экспэрты, са спасылкамі ні на што канкрэтна )
У телеграма часткова закрыты код і адсутнічае шыфраванне by default.
У кошжнага карыстальніка есць ID які нельга памяняць, а яшчэ ен перадае MAC адрас прылады з якой карыстаюцца. Рэгістрацыя па нумары телкфону і тое што Дураў блакаваў каналы Навальнага, але не блакуе каналы Zтнікаў і беларускіх прапагандыстаў. Тое што Телеграм выкарыстоўваецца ўсімі дзяржаўнымі расейскімі ўстановамі - нават калі мессанджар быў "нібыта" заблакаваны на тэрыторыі РФ.
Яшчэ пытаннечкі ёсць?