Sanctions against russia freeze Telegram bonds worth $500 million

This is reported by the Financial Times.

We are talking about Telegram bonds held in russia's National Settlement Depository, an institution through which securities transactions are processed. After russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the EU, the US and the UK froze its assets.

Telegram has been issuing bonds in recent years. In May, the company raised $1.7 billion to pay off old debts.

Telegram has already redeemed most of the bonds maturing in 2026. The company tells investors that the frozen $500 will be returned when the debt matures. But whether they will reach russian owners will be decided by the paying agent and the depository.

Pavel Durov has repeatedly stated that he has no ties to the Kremlin and has called contrary claims ‘conspiracy theories.’ Despite this, Telegram declined to comment on the freezing of bonds, the FT writes.

Durov left russia in 2014 after a conflict with the authorities over his refusal to hand over data on Ukrainian users of the social network VKontakte. He then founded Telegram and moved the company to Dubai, promising freedom of speech and independence from governments.

Telegram is now preparing for a possible IPO, but its plans are being hampered by a criminal investigation in France, where authorities suspect that the app is not doing enough to combat illegal content, including material depicting child abuse.

Despite this, the company's financial performance is growing. In the first half of 2025, Telegram's revenue grew by more than 65% to $870 million. The main sources of income are advertising, paid subscriptions and cryptocurrency integrated into the app.

Source: Babel, Financial Times