Harsh Goenka, a well-known businessman with an active social media presence, recently posted an interesting update on X. In his post, Mr Goenka emphasised the efficiency of Telegram's operations, noting: "Telegram, led by recently arrested founder Pavel Durov, has around 1 billion users, a $30 billion market cap, no ads, only 30 employees, and no HR (Durov manages everything himself, recruiting top talent through contests). That's what you call lean!"
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Pavel Durov, the co-founder and CEO of Telegram, was arrested on August 24 at Le Bourget airport near Paris by French authorities. The arrest is linked to a preliminary police investigation concerning allegations that Telegram has facilitated criminal activities due to insufficient content moderation and a lack of cooperation with law enforcement. According to a Reuters source, Durov's arrest is connected to these issues.
In response, Telegram's official X account dismissed the accusations as "absurd," denying any responsibility for the misuse of the platform. In a related statement, French President Emmanuel Macron addressed the situation on X, clarifying that Durov's arrest was not a "political decision." Macron reaffirmed France's commitment to freedom of expression while stressing that such freedoms are maintained within a legal framework designed to protect citizens.
Pavel Durov, 39, is the founder and CEO of Telegram, a leading social media app. Born in the former Soviet Union, Durov studied at St. Petersburg University in Russia. He co-founded VKontakte, a popular social media platform in Russia, before leaving the country due to government pressure to hand over user data. "It was difficult because my first company was like my child," Durov said in a 2024 interview. "But I realized I valued my freedom more and didn't want to take orders from anyone," he added.
In 2013, Durov and his brother Nikolai launched Telegram, focusing on user privacy and enabling large groups of up to 200,000 members. Telegram's features, such as multi-device syncing, have distinguished it from competitors like WhatsApp. The app now has over 900 million users and has contributed to Durov's billionaire status. He holds citizenship in France and the UAE, in addition to retaining his Russian citizenship.
Durov is currently only being detained, and it remains to be seen what, if anything, will happen to him in the coming days.
But if he is charged and successfully prosecuted, it could lay the groundwork for France to take wider actions against not only tech platforms but also their owners. It could also embolden nations around the world - in the West and beyond - to undertake their investigations.
