Pavel Durov
Russian business executive, entrepreneur, and investor who is a co-founder and the chief executive officer of Telegram From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Pavel Valeryevich Durov ( born 10 October 1984)[4] is a Russian-born French-Kittitian–Emirati entrepreneur. He started the social networking site VK and the app Telegram Messenger.[5] He is the younger brother of Nikolai Durov. In 2024 his net worth is estimated at $11.5bn billion. In 2022, he was the richest person in the United Arab Emirates, according to Forbes.[6] In February 2023, Arabian Business named him the most powerful entrepreneur in Dubai.[7]
He left St Petersburg after he refused to share the data of some Ukrainian users of VK with Russia’s security agency, the FSB. He has been called a freedom fighter with coding ingenuity.[8]
For some years after 2014, the Durov brothers travelled the world in self-imposed exile[9] as citizens of Saint Kitts and Nevis.
In 2017, Pavel joined the World Economic Forum Young Global Leaders as a representative of Finland.[10][11] Durov was naturalized as French in August 2021 and now has European Union citizenship.[2]
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2024 arrest
Durov was arrested on 24 August, 2024, in Paris, after landing at Le Bourget Airport by the French National Police.[12][13] Earlier it was reported that Durov and his brother Nikolai were targeted by France.[14]
One of the charges against Durov carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine of 500,000 euros.[15] After issuing formal charges, Durov was released on bail and barred from leaving French territory until the case was resolved.[16] It is said that Durov had previously avoided traveling to Europe due to potential legal risks.[17]
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References
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