Pavel Durov, founding father of the favored messaging app Telegram, has left France and relocated to Dubai following approval from a French court docket.
On March 13, Durov reportedly acquired permission from the French court docket to depart the nation, permitting him to journey to Dubai — a metropolis recognized for its business-friendly atmosphere and lack of extradition agreements with many countries — according to a Barron’s report citing unknown sources.
The precise phrases of the court docket’s choice stay unclear, however Durov’s relocation has reignited debates about jurisdiction, privateness, and the tasks of tech leaders in combating unlawful actions on their platforms.
Citing unnamed sources, AFP reported that “He (Durov) departed France this morning,” including that he left with the authorities’ approval. One other supply said that he had been granted permission to go away France for “a number of weeks.”
The Telegram founder’s authorized points started on Aug. 24, when he was briefly arrested at Le Bourget airport in Paris.
French prosecutors accused Durov of working a platform that allegedly allows unlawful actions, based on fees introduced on Aug. 28, 2024.
Day by day value chart of Toncoin. Supply: TradingView
The crypto market reacted positively to the information of Durov departing from France. Toncoin (TON), the native cryptocurrency of The Open Community (TON), spiked over 18% in market value, based on data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView.
First report on Durov’s case in France since late 2024
The unconfirmed experiences counsel that Durov has both settled his case in France or acquired permission to go away the nation whereas the court docket case is ongoing.
Durov didn’t affirm his departure on social media by publishing time, whereas the French authorities officers are but to difficulty a public assertion, ought to the information be the case.
As beforehand reported, Durov was abruptly arrested by French authorities at Le Bourget airport in Paris in August 2024.
France’s Prosecutor’s Workplace, or Parquet de Paris, promptly issued an announcement on preliminary fees to Durov on Aug. 28, accusing the Telegram founding father of facilitating a platform that allows illicit transactions.
The prosecutors claimed that Durov was facing up to 10 years of prison time along with a 500,000 euros ($550,000) positive.
Durov was released from French custody on Aug. 28 after posting a $6 million bail. Nonetheless, French authorities required him to stay within the nation and mandated his court docket look solely upon the completion of the investigation.
Vinnik’s launch got here only a month in the past
Durov, now 40, is a citizen of Russia who additionally holds French and United Arab Emirates passports.
Shortly after his arrest in France, the Russian authorities publicly expressed the willingness to supply help in his case, highlighting the complexity of the matter on account of Durov being not solely a Russian citizen but in addition a French citizen.
Durov’s departure from France marks one other vital occasion within the timeline of Russian programmers’ releases by governments worldwide.
Alexander Vinnik exits from the airplane in Moscow. Supply: The Moscow Occasions
Alexander Vinnik, operator of the now-defunct cryptocurrency alternate BTC-e, lastly returned to Russia just a month ago following long-running disputes over his custody and indictment since his arrest in 2017.
In line with a Wall Avenue Journal report, Vinnik’s jail launch from the USA got here as a part of a US-Russia prisoner swap amid the nations looking for to fix diplomatic ties following Donald Trump’s presidential return in January.
Extra reporting by Helen Partz.
