A huge chunk of the revenue generated by the messaging app Telegram reportedly came from crypto assets.
A new report from The Financial Times shows that in 2023, over 40% of the revenue generated by the company was derived from its integrated wallet and sales of collectibles.
Telegram sells collectibles and provides integrated wallet services in exchange for Toncoin (TON), the token of the layer-1 blockchain The Open Network that the platform originally created in 2018 but is now being operated by an open-source community of developers.
The firm’s financial statement shows that the platform’s wallet generated $130 million in revenue while the sales of collectibles amounted to $17.8 million. Furthermore, it was found that Telegram booked $342.5 million worth of revenue but suffered an operating loss of $108 million.
Telegram also holds nearly $400 million in digital assets or more than half of the $774.2 million recorded under non-current assets.
According to the report, Telegram invests in digital assets over a long-term time frame with the intention of selling them after making significant gains.
Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov was recently detained in France but is now out on bail, reports CNN.
He is under investigation over allegations of failing to curb the spread of illicit content on the messaging platform, including those related to drug trafficking and other illegal activity.