The messaging service and social-media platform owes creditors roughly $700 million by the end of April, according to people briefed on the companyβs plans and loan documents viewed by The Wall Street Journal. At the same time, Telegram Group Inc. must cover rising equipment and bandwidth expenses because of its rapid growth, despite going years without attempting to generate revenue.
Mr. Durov launched Telegram in late 2013 with his brother, Nikolai, just months before he was pushed out of VK, the Russian social-media platform he founded. Mr. Durov pitched his new appβfunded with the proceeds from the VK saleβless as a business than as a way for people to send messages while avoiding government surveillance and censorship.
