Telegram CEO Pavel Durov was arrested in France over the weekend, causing Toncoin (TON) to fall by 19%. Despite the price decline, open interest (OI) in TON surged by 32%.
On August 24, Pavel Durov, Founder and CEO of Telegram, was arrested at Le Bourget Airport in France. According to a report in The Washington Post, Parisian authorities will file formal charges on August 26.
Durov was reportedly detained on a number of charges related to his management of Telegram. In particular, French newspaper Le Monde reported that the CEO is accused of failing to moderate content in the messenger. French authorities claim this alleged negligence allowed the platform to facilitate criminal activities, including pornography, drug trafficking, cyber fraud, and organized crime.
Durov’s arrest sparked an uproar among both Telegram users and the cryptocurrency community. The hashtags #FreePavel and #FREEDUROV are trending on X. In particular, Durov was supported by Elon Musk, Executive Chairman of X. Some users believe that Durov is being targeted because he created a platform that no state can control.
Vitalik Buterin, Co-Founder of Ethereum, noted that while he isn’t a huge fan of Telegram’s encryption standards, the charges against Durov could have a long-term negative impact on the freedom of communication and tighten the regulation of the software sector in Europe. The Open Network (TON) community also officially supported Durov, stressing that the arrest of Telegram CEO wouldn’t affect the ecosystem.
Toncoin (TON) reacted to Durov’s arrest with a 19% drop within a few hours. According to CoinGecko, on August 25, the asset fell from $6.8 to $5.68. Currently, it’s trading below $5.31. As of 13:00 (GMT+3) on August 26, TON’s price is $5.69. Meanwhile, interest in Toncoin among futures traders spiked. Thus, CoinGlass data shows that open interest (OI) in TON increased by 32%, reaching $303.62 million on August 25.
In April, Pavel Durov announced the integration of The Open Network (TON) blockchain into Telegram, enabling users to exchange fiat for cryptocurrency directly in the app, monetize traffic, and use a built-in Web3 browser.
