Telegram’s founder and billionaire, Pavel Durov, is reportedly leaving his $13.9 billion fortune to over 100 children he’s fathered, some he raised while others were conceived through sperm donation.
In an interview with Le Point, Durov revealed that while he’s officially the father of six kids with three partners, he began sperm donation 15 years ago.
As of now, more than 100 babies have reportedly been born through his donations. Telegram founder says he considers all of them equally his children, with the same rights to his fortune. However, there’s a twist that his wealth is locked away from them for 30 years.
According to the report, Durov mentioned that he recently wrote his will and wants his kids to live like normal people. The billionaire added that he wants “them to build themselves up alone, to learn to trust themselves, to be able to create, not to be dependent on a bank account.”
Durov had built VKontakte (Russia’s Facebook) before fleeing Russia in 2014. He now says that he’d rather die than betray his values. In his fight for freedom of expression, he refused to hand over data to Russian authorities. This decision had cost him his company, his country, and nearly his freedom.
Now living in France under legal fire, Durov faces 17 charges, which include child pornography, drug trafficking, and money laundering, linked to criminal activity on Telegram. Meanwhile, he calls the charges “totally absurd.”
The Telegram founder says that French authorities are punishing him before a real conviction is even possible. He’s been banned from leaving France while being locked away during interrogation, and reportedly separated from his newborn son and sick parents.
He stated that “I’ve been deprived of precious months with them.”
The report revealed that Durov met twice with the judge handling the case, in December 2024 and February 2025, and has another appointment in July.
Despite these restrictions, Durov remains defiant and stated that Telegram did cooperate with French police, but blames their mishandling of international procedure for the current standoff. His commitment to freedom of speech hasn’t wavered as he publicly criticized Europe’s Digital Services Act.
He raised a warning by calling out that it could backfire and undermine democracy: “Once you legitimize censorship, it’s difficult to go back,” he added.
Durov takes shots at Musk, Zuckerberg, and Altman.
Durov refuses to sell Telegram, and he’s already made plans to ensure it lives on beyond him through a non-profit foundation, free from corporate capture. The report highlighted that he doesn’t use a phone and manages Telegram through his iPad and shuns constant notifications.
When asked about Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg, Durov said Musk’s emotional intensity is both his strength and weakness, while Zuckerberg’s ability to adapt masks a lack of deeper principles. In Sam Altman’s case, he raised some doubts about whether the OpenAI boss still has the technical edge to lead in an increasingly competitive AI race.
In the meantime, Telegram is quickly becoming the crypto super app with over a billion active users. More and more DeFi protocols are now being built directly on the TON blockchain. This move has now brought crypto services like borrowing, staking, and yield generation right into the Telegram ecosystem.
Toncoin price has been on a decline since Durov’s episode. TON price is down by 47% on a year-to-date basis and is trading at an average price of $2.91 as of press time. It is the 18th largest crypto with a market cap of over $7.2 billion.
