Telegram boss Pavel Durov says his $13.9B wealth will be shared among over 100 kids.
Telegram founder Pavel Durov has shocked the world with a bold declaration—his vast $13.9 billion fortune will one day be inherited by over 100 children, he says are his. Speaking to Le Point, the Russian-born tech mogul explained that while he has six children with three women, the rest were born from his donations to fertility clinics.
“They are all my children, and I want them to have equal rights,” Durov said, adding he hopes to avoid future fights over inheritance.
But there’s a twist. The billionaire said none of his kids will touch a coin of the inheritance for the next 30 years. He insists they need to learn life the hard way, build themselves up, and not grow up spoiled by wealth.
“I want them to trust themselves, not a bank account,” he explained.
Durov believes struggles build character, and he doesn’t want money to ruin their motivation to succeed on their own.
Now 40, Durov lives in self-imposed exile, far from Russia. He says this lifestyle isn’t by choice, but because protecting people’s freedoms, especially digital privacy, comes with risks.
“When you fight for freedoms, you create enemies—even in the most powerful governments,” he said.
Telegram, the messaging app he created, now has over 1 billion monthly users, loved for its privacy and encryption.
Despite the app’s global popularity, Durov isn’t without drama. French police arrested him last year, accusing Telegram of failing to block illegal content like drug sales and child exploitation.
But Durov has pushed back, calling the claims baseless and misleading.
“You can’t blame the builder of a road if someone uses it for a crime,” he argued, standing firm on Telegram’s neutral role as a platform.
Through it all, Durov says he’s not shaken. He remains focused on his mission—giving people freedom through technology, and defending privacy in a world where it’s under threat.
And when the day comes for him to step down, he hopes the next generation of more than 100 heirs will continue that fight, with independence, principles, and not just money.
