Sanctions against Russia have frozen Telegramʼs $500 million in bonds, despite its founder Pavel Durov allegedly trying to distance himself from Russia.
The Financial Times writes about this.
These are Telegram bonds held at the National Settlement Depository of Russia, a structure through which securities transactions are processed. After Russiaʼs full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the EU, the US, and Britain froze its assets.
Telegram has been issuing bonds in recent years. In total, the company raised $1.7 billion in May to repay old debts.
Telegram has already redeemed most of the bonds due in 2026. The company tells investors that the blocked $500 will be returned when the debt is repaid. But whether it reaches the Russian owners will be decided by the paying agent and depository.
Pavel Durov has repeatedly stated that he has no ties to the Kremlin and called claims to the contrary “conspiracy theories”. Despite this, Telegram has refused to comment on the bond freeze, the FT reports.
Durov left Russia in 2014 after a conflict with the authorities over his refusal to hand over data of Ukrainian users from the social network VKontakte. He then founded Telegram and moved the company to Dubai, promising freedom of speech and independence from governments.
Telegram is currently preparing for a possible IPO, but plans are being hampered by a criminal investigation in France, where authorities suspect the app is not doing enough to combat illegal content, including child abuse material.
Despite this, the companyʼs financial performance is growing. In the first half of 2025, Telegramʼs revenue increased by more than 65% to $870 million. The main sources of income are advertising, paid subscriptions, and cryptocurrency integrated into the application.
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