Who is Telegram founder Pavel Durov? Why was he arrested in France? – Firstpost

Technology entrepreneur Pavel Durov has founded hugely popular social networks and a cryptocurrency, amassed a multi-billion dollar fortune, and taken on authorities not only in Russia but around the world.

Just months before his 40th birthday, the man once dubbed the “Russian Zuckerberg” is now under arrest in France after being sensationally detained at a Paris airport this weekend, local French media reported, citing unnamed sources.

Here's everything we know about him.

About Pavel Durov

Durov, 39, is an entrepreneur originally from Russia.

He is the co-founder and owner of the messaging app Telegram, a free platform that competes with other social media platforms such as Facebook's WhatsApp, Instagram, TikTok and WeChat.

The platform's goal is to reach more than one billion active monthly users within a year.

Accordingly The business newspaperThe tech billionaire is a graduate of Saint Petersburg State University, where he earned a first-class degree in philology.

Always dressed in black, he resembles the actor Keanu Reeves in the film matrix.

In 2006, at the age of 22, Durov launched VKontakte (VK), attracting users even though its founder was still a shady figure. The social network served the needs of Russian-speaking users and outperformed Facebook across the former USSR, a study found. AFP.

He currently lives in Dubai and holds citizenship of France and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The Guardian reported. He recently said he tried to settle in Berlin, London, Singapore and San Francisco before settling on Dubai, which he praised for its business environment and “neutrality.”

Accordingly Forbes Durov's fortune is estimated at $15.5 billion, according to the magazine's latest estimate. But Toncoin, the cryptocurrency he created, has fallen by more than 15 percent since his arrest was announced.

Why Durov left Russia

Durov left Russia in 2014 after, according to several media reports, he refused to comply with government demands to close opposition communities on VKontakte and hand over users' personal data to the Russian secret service FSB.

He then sold the social media platform, posted a picture of dolphins and the slogan “Bye and thanks for the fish”, a title in the famous The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Science fiction series.

“I would rather be free than take orders from anyone,” Durov told US journalist Tucker Carlson in April about his departure from Russia.

In the same interview, Durov said that he does not own any major assets such as real estate, jets or yachts other than money or bitcoins because he wants to be free.

Durov then developed Telegram along with his brother Nikolai, a senior developer and programmer, while traveling from country to country, and launched the service in 2013.

He settled in Dubai and obtained citizenship of the Caribbean archipelago of Saint Kitts and Nevis, then obtained French citizenship in August 2021 following a process that remains very discreet in Paris. AFP.

Durov remained a moody and sometimes mysterious figure, rarely giving interviews and limiting himself to sometimes enigmatic statements on Telegram. An avowed libertarian, he advocated internet confidentiality and message encryption. He defiantly refused to allow message moderation on Telegram, where users can post videos, pictures and comments on “channels” that anyone can follow.

The controversial role of Telegram in the war between Russia and Ukraine

Telegram enjoyed tremendous success because it presented itself as a champion of individual freedoms, rejected “censorship” and protected the confidentiality of its users.

This angered the authorities, especially in his home country, and in 2018 a Moscow court ordered the application to be blocked. But the implementation of the measure was chaotic, and three days later, ironically, protesters bombed the FSB headquarters with paper airplanes, the symbol of Telegram, according to AFP.

Since then, Russia has abandoned its efforts to block Telegram. The messaging service is used by both the Russian government and the opposition; some channels have several hundred thousand subscribers.

Telegram also plays a key role in Russia's war against Ukraine. This is documented by bloggers on both sides who publish their analyses and videos of the fighting.

The pro-Moscow channels of the so-called “Z-bloggers”, who support the war, have proven to be extremely influential and are sometimes critical of Russian military strategy.

The app is particularly popular in the former Soviet Union, where it is widely used by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and other politicians to spread information about the war. It is one of the few places where people can get unfiltered information about the military operation, especially after the Kremlin tightened media controls.

However, Telegram has also become a safe haven for extremists and conspiracy theorists.

Investigative journalists on the central European news site VSquare say the social media platform has become the “most popular tool of Russian propagandists, both left-wing and right-wing radicals, American QAnon and conspiracy theorists,” and conclude that it is an “ecosystem for radicalizing opinion.”

He “loves privacy”

Durov avoids traditional media interviews, but in April he met with ultra-conservative US journalist Tucker Carlson for an extensive conversation.

People “love the independence. They also love the privacy, the freedom. There are many reasons why someone would switch to Telegram,” Durov told Carlson.

He is also not afraid to post messages on his own Telegram channel, claiming to lead a solitary life and abstain from meat, alcohol and even coffee.

In July, he boasted of being the biological father of over 100 children in a dozen countries thanks to his sperm donations, calling it a “civic duty” and an attitude toward child-rearing similar to that of another tech mogul, “X” and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

The arrest

Durov was arrested on Saturday at Le Bourget airport outside Paris on suspicion of Telegram-related offenses. The Guardian.

He was stopped after arriving in Paris on Saturday evening on his private jet from Baku.

His pre-trial detention was extended beyond Sunday night by the investigating judge handling the case, the report quoted a source close to the investigation as saying. In particular, the first pre-trial detention can last up to 96 hours.

Once this phase is completed, the judge will decide whether to release him or to press charges and continue to hold him in custody.

French investigators issued an arrest warrant for the 39-year-old as part of an investigation into fraud, drug trafficking, organized crime, promoting terrorism and cyberbullying. Telegram allows groups of up to 200,000 members, which has led to allegations that it facilitates the viral spread of false information. Its app Telegram allegedly spreads neo-Nazi, pedophile, conspiracy theory and terrorist content.

The tech mogul is accused of not taking action against the criminal use of his platform.

“End Telegram’s impunity,” said an investigator, according to The Guardianwho expressed his surprise that Durov had flown to Paris, even though he knew he was a wanted man.

In a statement on Sunday evening, Telegram said: “Telegram complies with EU laws, including the Digital Services Act – its moderation is in line with industry standards and is constantly improving.”

“Telegram's CEO Pavel Durov has nothing to hide and travels frequently throughout Europe. It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner is responsible for the misuse of that platform. We await a speedy resolution of this situation.”

The Russian authorities accused France of “refusing to cooperate”. The Russian embassy in Paris has requested access to Durov and said that France has so far “stayed out of the matter”.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said it was taking steps to “clarify” the situation and questioned whether Western non-governmental organizations (NGOs) would call for his release.

Telegram has been in the sights of European judicial authorities for some time now because the company is accused of spreading conspiracy theories, sharing calls for murder and operating platforms for the sale of drugs.

However, Durov insists that he responds to any request to remove content that incites violence or murder.

With contributions from agencies