Pavel Durov spoke about Telegram's market valuation and the company's preparation for the IPO
In an interview with the media, Pavel Durov commented on the rumors about the Telegram IPO. According to him, investors offered more than $30 billion for the company.
Telegram's potential market valuation exceeds $30 billion. At the same time, the messenger's user base has grown by 400 million people over the past three years. Pavel Durov, the founder of the company, said this in an interview with the FT.
According to him, after the launch of advertising in the messenger, the company's revenue grew to "hundreds of millions of dollars." This affected the potential valuation of the firm, which eventually exceeded $30 billion, he added.
However, Durov ruled out the possibility of selling the company:
"The main reason why we started monetization is the desire to maintain independence. As a matter of fact, we consider this option [IPO] as a means of democratizing access to Telegram's value."
The sources of the publication added that the company is preparing an IPO in the United States. This will happen after it reaches a consistently high yield, which, according to Durov's estimate, will happen in 2024-2025.
He did not comment on information from other sources. However, the owner of the company stressed that the management is considering several options.
Durov also noted that Telegram is exploring options for implementing an AI-based chatbot. However, at the same time, messenger plans to strengthen content moderation on the platform. However, the owner of the company promised to keep the main idea of the application:
"I don't think we should control people in the way they express their thoughts. I believe in the competition of ideas. I believe that any opinion should be challenged. Otherwise, we risk slipping into authoritarianism."
