The messenger Telegram raised $1.7 billion as a result of the issuance of convertible bonds with a 9% coupon.
According to the American publication Bloomberg, the company uses part of the funds raised to repay a debt of $955 million from a previous bond issue, which matures in 2026. The remaining $745 million Telegram will spend on development and covering operational expenses.
The reaction of investors was phenomenal. We are deeply grateful to the investment funds that have supported us over the years. Due to high demand, we expanded the offering, issuing shares worth more than the initial $1.5 billion, but demand still far exceeded our capabilities, - wrote in Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov.
Among the investors in the messenger are many large companies, such as asset manager BlackRock and the investment company Mubadala from Abu Dhabi.
The announcement of fundraising came amidst information about a deal between Telegram and Elon Musk's xAI company, which developed the AI bot Grok. Durov wrote that messenger users will have access to the bot for one year. In addition, his company will receive $300 million in cash and shares from xAI, as well as '50% of the revenue from xAI subscriptions sold through Telegram.' Later, Musk denied information that the deal was signed, and Durov clarified that 'the formalities are not yet complete.'
Against the backdrop of the news, the price of the TON token rose by more than 20% to $3.69.
