Telegram Collects Funding Worth IDR 5.19 Trillion Through Bond Sales

JAKARTA - Telegram's founder and CEO, Pavel Durov announced that today the company obtained an investment of US$330 million (Rp5.19 trillion), through the sale of bonds last week.

Durov also said that the offer experienced excess demand with favorable requirements for the company.

"This bond offering is overdemense, and we are delighted to have the highest-caliber global fund with a perfect reputation as a participant," Durov wrote on his Telegram channel.

But unfortunately, he did not disclose which institution invested in his company. However, he said that the increasing demand for their bonds shows that global financial institutions value the growth of Telegram audiences and monetization.

"I'm proud that every time we issue bonds, we get better in this process. This will further strengthen our position as an independent platform capable of challenging our industrial 'Goliat'," he concluded.

In an interview with the Financial Times last week, Durov said that his company aims to make a profit next year. He also mentioned that Telegram is exploring options for going public.

"The main reason we started monetizing is because we wanted to remain independent. In general, we see the value in [IPO] as a means to democratize access to Telegram values," he told the Financial Times, citing TechCrunch.

The messaging platform, which has more than 900 million users, has made various monetization efforts in recent years, both through advertising, NFT launches, and also paid subscriptions.