Telegram to Raise $1.5B Through Bond Sale Backed by BlackRock and Citadel: WSJ
Telegram, the popular messaging platform, is undertaking a significant fundraising initiative. The company is issuing at least $1.5 billion in five-year bonds, offering a 9% yield. This move has attracted a diverse range of investors, including both existing stakeholders and new entrants. Returning investors include BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, and Mubadala, Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund. Hedge fund Citadel is among the new investors participating in this bond offering.
The proceeds from this bond sale will primarily be used to repurchase debt from Telegram’s 2021 bond issuance, which matures next March. A key feature of these new bonds is their convertibility into Telegram equity at a discounted rate should the company decide to go public. This offers investors a potential path to equity ownership in a future IPO.
This fundraising round underscores Telegram’s robust financial performance and growth trajectory. The company, originally the creator of the layer-1 network TON (now operating independently), transitioned to profitability in 2024. After reporting a $173 million loss in 2023, Telegram achieved a $540 million profit on $1.4 billion in revenue. The company projects even greater profitability in 2025, forecasting profits exceeding $700 million.
This improved financial standing is attributed to several factors, including the expansion of Telegram’s advertising business and the introduction of new revenue-generating features. These features include in-app digital gifts and a platform enabling developers to create and deploy apps and bots within the Telegram ecosystem. This diversified revenue model contributes to Telegram’s financial strength and attractiveness to investors.
The substantial user base of over 1 billion monthly active users and 15 million paid subscribers (doubled in a single year) further solidifies Telegram’s position in the market. The company’s financial success, coupled with its significant user base and innovative features, makes this bond offering a compelling investment opportunity. While Telegram and Citadel have not yet commented publicly, the deal reflects investor confidence in Telegram’s future prospects and its ability to generate substantial returns. The involvement of Libre, which plans to tokenize $500 million of Telegram’s debt on TON as the Telegram Bond Fund (TBF), adds another layer of complexity and potential for growth.
