Telegram’s founder, Pavel Durov, announced on Monday that the instant messaging platform has become profitable, with revenue surpassing $1 billion in 2024.
The company, which introduced its premium subscription service in 2022, saw the number of it Premium subscribers triple, exceeding 12 million.
Durov revealed that Telegram is closing the year with over $500 million in cash reserves, excluding its crypto assets.
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Sharing this milestone on his X handle, he wrote,
“This year, the number of Telegram Premium subscribers tripled, exceeding 12 million. Our ad revenue also increased a few times. Telegram’s total revenue in 2024 surpassed $1 billion, and we are closing the year with more than $500 million in cash reserves, not including crypto assets. Over the past four years, Telegram has issued about $2 billion in debt. We repaid a meaningful share of it this Fall, taking advantage of favorable prices for the Telegram bonds.
“But there’s a lot of work ahead. Our innovations in monetization this year (Stars, Gifts, Giveaways, Mini Apps, the Affiliate Platform, Telegram Business, and Telegram Gateway) demonstrate that social media platforms can achieve financial sustainability while staying independent and respecting users’ rights.”
Telegram’s profitability attracted accolade from X and Tesla CEO Elon Musk who commended the platform for achieving such a significant milestone. Musk wrote on X, “Well Done”.
Telegram has evolved to stand out as a uniquely powerful social media platform, unparalleled in its ability to fuel social movements. Large channels on the platform enable the widespread dissemination of information, allowing movements to rapidly grow and mobilize supporters. Also, groups provide a dedicated space for coordinated action within movements, facilitating collaboration and strategy.
Telegram’s monetization model seamlessly integrates with the user experience, generating revenue without relying on exploitative data practices. With the introduction of Telegram Mini Apps on the TON blockchain, the platform is poised to revolutionize crypto adoption. This integration exposes hundreds of millions of Telegram users to the world of cryptocurrency for the very first time.
Notably, the launch of Telegram Mini Apps presents a lucrative opportunity for developers, with many already achieving significant financial success by building on the platform. This version maintains the core message while removing the subtitles and streamlining the presentation.
It is worth noting that due to heavy criticism the platform faced over alleged poor content moderation, that led to the arrest of its founder Pavel Durov in France in 2024, it has intensified its crackdown on harmful content. Early this month, the platform said it blocked 15.4 million groups and channels in 2024 as part of an intensified crackdown on harmful content, including fraud, terrorism, and child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
Telegram credited its progress to the deployment of cutting-edge Al moderation tools. According to the moderation report, the platform now blocks tens of thousands of groups and channels daily, removing millions of pieces of content that violate its Terms of Service. These include materials that incite violence, promote terrorism, or facilitate illegal trade.