At the end of 2023, Telegram had about four million premium users, which has grown to over five million.
Telegram, the widely used messaging app, reportedly held $400 million in digital assets at the end of last year, according to its 2023 financial statement.
This revelation comes amid news that the app’s CEO, Pavel Durov was arrested on August 24.
At the end of 2023, Telegram had about four million premium users, which has grown to over five million.
During the year ending December 31, 2023, Telegram reported an operating loss of $108 million while generating $342.5 million in revenue.
A Financial Times report states that approximately 40% of Telegram’s revenue came from digital asset-related activities, listed under “integrated wallet” and “sale of collectibles.”
Statista reports that Telegram earned $11.66 million in in-app revenue during the first two months of 2024, and the app has raised over $4 billion since its launch.
Telegram’s 2023 Financial Report Details Crypto Transactions
The Financial Times report, citing Telegram’s 2023 financial statements, noted that the “integrated wallet is a software program that allows users to store, send, receive and trade crypto assets.”
Regarding the “sale of collectibles,” Telegram’s financial statement mentioned that the company offers various types of collectibles to its users, such as usernames and virtual phone numbers.
The company also facilitates user transactions for these collectibles and charges a fee for this service.
According to Statista, India led the world in Telegram downloads in 2023, with 83.85 million users, while the United States was third with 29.92 million downloads.
Durov’s Arrest Triggers a Chain Reaction
On August 24, Durov was arrested when his plane landed at Le Bourget airport near Paris. He is allegedly facing charges of terrorism, trafficking, conspiracy, fraud, money laundering, and more. Durov was taken to court from custody on August 28.
Following Durov’s arrest, there was a notable increase in traders hedging their bets on Toncoin (TON), the native token of The Open Network, which was initially developed by the Telegram messaging app.
As of the time of publication, Toncoin was trading at around $5.30, down more than 21% from about $6.70 over the past seven days, based on data from CoinMarketCap.
At the same time, its market capitalization fell by almost 2% to $13.42 billion.
Despite the recent decline in price and a shift in market sentiment, various technical and market factors suggest that TON could be set for a rebound.
If the market views Durov’s arrest as an isolated event that does not fundamentally harm the Toncoin ecosystem, traders might see the price dip as a buying opportunity amid the panic.
