Telegram Eyes IPO as It Aims to Become Profitable in 2025

Instant messaging app Telegram is planning an IPO as it expects to become profitable next year.

The company’s founder, Pavel Durov, revealed in an interview with the Financial Times (FT) that Telegram makes “hundreds of millions of dollars” through ads and subscriptions.

Exclusive: Telegram has hit 900mn users and is nearing profitability, as the company moves closer to a potential blockbuster stock market listing https://t.co/DvqLw6918i pic.twitter.com/vgf3M0oNJY

— Financial Times (@FT) March 11, 2024

The chat app recently crossed the 900 million user mark, a remarkable leap from its 500 million users in 2021. Global investors valued Telegram at more than $30 billion. However, Durov has ruled out selling his app. He added that the company aims to go public in the future.

Like other chat apps, Telegram found a way to inject some revenue-generating features into its app. In the last few years, Durov’s project has concentrated on expanding its business via premium subscriptions, crypto wallets, and premium usernames.

Last month, the app unveiled its advertising platform running on TON Blockchain. It features a revenue-sharing scheme where Telegram channel owners will be paid 50% of all advertising revenue generated in their channels.

“The main reason why we started to monetize is because we wanted to remain independent. Generally speaking, we see value in [an IPO] as a means to democratize access to Telegram’s value,” Durov told FT.

900 million user base is quite solid for sustainable profitability. Still, it’s way off the mark compared to WhatsApp, a competitor in the instant messaging space and a subsidiary of Meta, which boasts 1.8 billion users.

Durov stated that the company might consider selling a portion of its stock to dedicated users in the event of an IPO. This move mirrors Reddit’s recent decision to allocate some of its shares to retail investors in anticipation of its New York listing later this year.