In Durov’s absence, Telegram’s future seems uncertain to some: “I’m in shock, and everyone close to Pavel feels the same,” says Georgy Lobushkin, former head of PR at VK, a social network Durov co-founded, which he still maintains regular contacts with Durov. “No one was prepared for this situation.” Asked if he worries about the future of Telegram and who could run the company in Durov’s absence, Lobushkin says: “[I] worry a lot.”
TF1Info, which first broke the news in France of Durov’s arrest, reported that it was “beyond doubt” that Durov would remain in custody during the investigation. “Pavel Durov will be placed in pre-trial detention, that’s for sure,” an unnamed investigator told reporters.
“No one at Telegram was prepared for such a scenario,” says Anton Rosenberg, who worked with Durov from the early days of VK in 2007 before working for Telegram from 2016 to 2017. Rosenberg predicted that Durov would acquire the best legal protection money could buy. “But without him, the messenger can have huge problems with management, all important decisions and even payments,” he added, given Durov’s personal involvement in the company’s management. Rosenberg did not see an obvious replacement for Durov, who makes key decisions on almost all issues at Telegram – funding, development strategies, product design, monetization and content moderation policy.
For now, everything can be expected to continue as usual, says Elies Campo, who led Telegram’s growth, business and partnerships from 2015 to 2021. “Depending on how long this goes on, it’s like a government, right? It has this structure, it has its own momentum. Campo adds that the company’s staff is small enough – about 60 employees – that infrastructure will not be affected.
The challenge, Campo admits, would be if Durov had to be physically present to pay suppliers — something Rosenberg also noted.
“As far as I know, Pavel made the payments,” says Campo. “So what’s going to happen when there’s got to be some payments for infrastructure providers or providers in terms of connectivity – and he’s still under arrest?”
