digital privacy

In a surprising revelation, it has come to light that Pavel Durov, the founder and CEO of Telegram, visited Russia more than 50 times between 2015 and 2021. Despite his self-imposed “exile” in 2014 following a dispute with the Russian authorities, Durov returned to his homeland on numerous occasions, often under the radar of public attention.

This information came to light after the investigative outlet Important Stories analysed data from a major leak of the Russian Federal Security Service’s (FSB) border control database. This database, named “Kordon,” was leaked in mid-August 2024 and briefly became publicly accessible before being taken offline.

Investigators cross-checked the database’s reliability by comparing it with travel records, confirming its accuracy. Additionally, Georgy Alburov, a member of Alexei Navalny’s investigative team, corroborated the authenticity of the data.

The Origins of Durov’s Exile

In 2014, Durov declared that he had refused demands from the FSB to hand over user data from communities supporting the Euromaidan protests in Ukraine. That same year, Durov sold his stake in the social media platform VKontakte and left Russia, publicly stating, “There is no way back. Especially after I publicly refused to cooperate with the authorities.”

Upon his departure, Durov penned a manifesto titled “Seven Reasons Not to Return to Russia,” in which he criticised the country’s judicial system, legislation, education system, and tax policies. His departure seemed permanent, with only one known return visit later in 2014 to finalise the sale of his data centre ICVA Ltd.

In subsequent interviews, including one with Tucker Carlson in 2024, Durov emphasised his commitment to avoiding countries that did not align with his values, such as Russia, China, and the United States, as part of his personal security strategy.

Frequent Visits to Russia

Despite his public stance, Important Stories uncovered that Durov made several trips to Russia between 2015 and 2021, specifically to Moscow and St. Petersburg. His brother, Nikolai, the lead developer behind Telegram, also travelled frequently to Russia during this time. From 2015 to 2017, Pavel Durov visited Russia over 40 times. His travels were often via flights with Aeroflot or by train from Helsinki. There were even instances when Durov crossed the border between Finland and Russia in his personal vehicle, sometimes returning to Russia just hours after having left.

Durov’s connection to Russia was also underscored by his relationship with Geneva-based Irina Bolgar, who gave birth to three of his children. Bolgar publicly confirmed that Durov had visited St. Petersburg in 2017 for the birth of their second child. The couple, although not officially married, have remained close, and their children have lived in Latvia and Switzerland at different times.

The Telegram Conflict and Legal Battles

One of the most notable periods in Durov’s recent history was his confrontation with the Russian authorities over Telegram. In 2017, the Russian State Duma passed the “Yarovaya Law,” which required communication services to provide the FSB with encryption keys for user data. Durov consistently maintained that it was technically impossible to hand over such keys, as Telegram’s encryption architecture ensured that only users had access to their own messages. Nevertheless, the Russian government initiated a campaign to block Telegram in the country, which eventually proved unsuccessful.

Despite these tensions, Durov remained in Russia for much of 2017, travelling occasionally to Finland, Latvia, and France. His opposition to Russian demands led to a court case filed by the FSB in October 2017. Durov left Russia just one day before the court hearing and returned briefly before moving to Dubai later that year.

The legal pressures on Telegram extended beyond Russia. In 2019, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) accused Telegram of attempting to sell unregistered securities through its cryptocurrency project, TON (Telegram Open Network). The project, which had raised $1.7 billion from investors, including high-profile Russian oligarchs such as Roman Abramovich and Yuri Milner, was halted by the SEC. In March 2020, a US court blocked the release of TON’s cryptocurrency, Gram, forcing Durov to abandon the project and return funds to investors.

Temporary Reconciliation with the Kremlin

After several years of conflict, there was a brief thaw in relations between Durov and the Russian authorities. In June 2020, Roskomnadzor, Russia’s media watchdog, announced that it was lifting the ban on Telegram after Durov had indicated his willingness to cooperate with Russian authorities on counter-terrorism efforts. Coincidentally, Durov was in Russia at the time, having travelled to St. Petersburg before flying to Belgrade. The specifics of his visit remain unclear, but court documents revealed that he was in Serbia to settle a legal dispute between Telegram and the SEC.

This marked Durov’s first visit to Russia since 2017, and he continued to travel between Russia, Europe, and the United Arab Emirates until October 2021, when he left Russia for the last time, heading to Ibiza.

Unanswered Questions

Despite these revelations, it remains unclear whether Durov met with Russian government officials during his visits. Important Stories reached out to Telegram LLC and Durov’s personal assistant for clarification but received no response. His assistant, however, was reportedly involved in preparing Durov’s trips to Russia and was seen accompanying him on visits to Azerbaijan and France.