Telegram Founder Pavel Durov Arrested In France, TON Slides Over 18%

Key Points:

• Telegram founder Pavel Durov was arrested in France on August 24 over allegations of failing to prevent criminal activities on the app.
• Following Durov’s arrest, the price of TON fell sharply by over 18%.

On August 24, Pavel Durov, the billionaire founder and CEO of the messaging app Telegram, was arrested in France. There are growing concerns that this app may be playing a role in criminal activities.

Read more: Telegram Founder Reveals New Investments In Toncoin

French Police Arrest Telegram Founder Pavel Durov for Alleged Misuse of App

Telegram founder Pavel Durov was taken into custody on arrival at Paris-Le Bourget airport by a flight from Azerbaijan. He was accompanied by a woman and his bodyguard. According to sources, he is being detained regarding alleged failures to monitor illegal activities on Telegram’s platform.

Durov, who obtained French citizenship in 2021, is also a citizen of Russia, the United Arab Emirates, and Saint Kitts and Nevis. The entrepreneur left Russia in 2014 after refusing a government request to close access to opposition groups on his then-social media project, VK.

Since then, Telegram founder Pavel Durov has directed his attention to Telegram, which is very popular in Russia, Ukraine, and other former Soviet republics. Telegram has about 900 million active users today, with the target of reaching one billion users next year.

This may have wide ramifications in general, mainly given Durov’s arrest in the context of his ties to Russia amid the ongoing war in Ukraine. There are reports that Telegram is the primary communication channel on both sides—Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky and the Kremlin alike use it to share news and, more often than not, misinformation related to the war.

Toncoin Price Registers Sharp Drop Following Durov’s Arrest

The Russian embassy in France declared it is seeking clarification regarding Durov’s detention. The arrest also sent ripples through the crypto market, with Toncoin, a token linked to Telegram, tumbling more than 18%.

Although Telegram had chosen to back off and stop any direct involvement with the TON blockchain in 2020 because of regulatory hurdles, the project was never really closed under community development, and Telegram has been on the lookout for ways to integrate the blockchain network into its ecosystem.