Telegram | Crypto

Telegram-based dark markets rapidly filled the gap left by Huione Guarantee after the $27 billion marketplace disappeared on May 13, according to a June 23 Elliptic report. Elliptic noted that Telegram banned thousands of Huione Guarantee channels and usernames once researchers traced billions of USDT-denominated sales to pig-butchering scams. However, data shows that merchants immediately […] The post Dark market activity on Telegram persists despite $27B Huione ban – Elliptic appeared first on CryptoSlate.

The Telegram founder will once again be allowed to travel to Dubai for a short period before returning to France, where his case is ongoing. Telegram founder Pavel Durov gained court approval to leave France for up to 14 days to travel to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, where the company is headquartered. Durov will be allowed to leave France on July 10 after having a travel request denied by French officials in May, according to French news outlet Le Monde. The executive had requested permission to travel to Oslo, Norway, to deliver a keynote address at the Human Rights Foundation’s Oslo Freedom Forum, which was presented remotely after French officials rejected his travel application. Read more

[PRESS RELEASE – New York, USA, June 18th, 2025] TAC, a purpose-built blockchain for EVM dApps to access TON and Telegram ecosystem, has raised a total of $11.5 million across its seed and strategic rounds. The newly closed $5 million strategic round, led by Hack VC, reinforces institutional belief in TAC’s mission to enhance blockchain […]

In an interview with Tucker Carlson, Pavel Durov’s first since being indicted on six charges in 2024, said his company did nothing wrong. Telegram founder Pavel Durov is still trying to figure out why he was detained in France last August, though the motives may have been political and tied to authorities’ efforts to crack down on alleged illicit activity on the messaging platform. That was one of the key takeaways from Durov’s interview with Tucker Carlson, which premiered Tuesday on YouTube.  In his first interview since his Aug. 24, 2024, arrest at Bourget Airport outside Paris, Durov said French authorities appeared primarily interested in how Telegram works — “as if it’s some kind of mystery,” he quipped. Read more

Elon Musk stated on May 28 that xAI had not signed an agreement with Telegram to distribute the Grok large language model, despite Telegram founder Pavel Duvov’s announcement earlier on the same day. Durov wrote that he and Musk “agreed to a one-year partnership” that would place Grok inside all Telegram applications and give the […] The post Musk says no deal signed with Telegram despite Grok integration announcement appeared first on CryptoSlate.

The messaging platform will use most of the proceeds to repay existing bondholders, with the remainder allocated as working capital to support ongoing operations. Telegram, a messaging platform, raised $1.7 billion from investors in a recent bond offering featuring a 9% coupon that closed on May 28. According to Bloomberg, the company will use a portion of the proceeds to pay $955 million in debt from a previous bond issue set to mature in 2026. The remaining $745 million is fresh capital for growth and operational costs. Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov wrote in a Telegram post: Read more

Telegram is no longer just a privacy-first chat app for crypto bros. With a dramatic one-two punch, a $300 million alliance with Elon Musk’s xAI and a $1.5 billion high-yield bond raise, Telegram has moved from insurgent platform to profit engine. TON jumped 15% after Durov confirmed the collaboration. Yet its future, including IPO prospects, […] The post TON jumps 16% as Telegram gets $300M plus xAI equity to integrate Grok appeared first on CryptoSlate.

xAI’s Grok could soon be accessible in Telegram and will offer chats, text editing, chat and document summaries, inbox agents, group chat moderation and more. Update (May 28, 11:12 pm UTC): This article has been updated to add X posts from Elon Musk and Pavel Durov regarding the deal. Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company xAI has “agreed in principle“ to integrate its AI chatbot Grok across Telegram, says the messaging platform’s CEO, Pavel Durov. Durov said in a May 28 X post that he and Musk agreed to a one-year partnership for Telegram to distribute Grok across Telegram and integrate it into its apps. Read more

Social media platform Telegram founder Pavel Durov said he “flatly refused” the request of a Western European government to censor conservative political content. In a Telegram post on May 18, Durove wrote: “Telegram will not restrict the freedoms of Romanian users or block their political channels.” The demand for censorship came ahead of today’s scheduled […] The post Telegram founder ‘flatly refused’ to censor political content ahead of Romanian election appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Telegram’s founder Pavel Durov has taken direct aim at Meta-owned WhatsApp, calling it a “cheap copycat” and accusing it of launching smear campaigns against his platform. His May 15 comments accompanied the announcement of a new $50,000 contest to showcase Telegram’s features. The competition will run until May 26. ‘Watered-down’ Durov said the contest will showcase […] The post Pavel Durov calls WhatsApp ‘cheap copycat,’ launches $50K contest to showcase Telegram’s superiority appeared first on CryptoSlate.

With 72M+ users and addictively simple gameplay, TapSwap is more than just a crypto fad — it’s evolving into a full-scale blockchain gaming platform. TapSwap is a tap-to-earn Web3 application that lives inside Telegram — no separate download required. Are your crypto friends obsessed with tapping their phones all the time? Welcome to the world of TapSwap. TapSwap is a tap-to-earn game released in mid-2024 in the Telegram Mini Apps ecosystem. The game quickly catches your attention: one minute you’re just curious… the next, you’re tapping away at 2 am trying to squeeze out one more energy boost.  Read more