The Telegram messenger app of Russian internet guru Pavel Durov raised $1bn from the placement of exchange bonds yielding 7% annually, RBC business portal reported on March 15 citing unnamed investors that participated in the offering.

As covered in detail by bne IntelliNews, Durov had already raised $1.7bn from the biggest ICO (Initial Coin Offering) in history to fund the development of his Telegram Open Network (TON) blockchain. 

But he later abandoned the project due to objections by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which said the sale of its GRAM coins was the sale of an unregulated security. After that, Telegram was searching for debt financing for its development.

Reportedly, the latest bonds mature in 2026, with the minimum offering at $0.5mn. The bonds are exchangeable for equity in the case of a possible IPO at 10% discount.

The placement was reportedly organised by VTB Capital (VTBC) and Aton, as well as by Alfa Capital. However, given the small number of investors the placements were direct and involved no underwriting.

Previously Forbes claimed that the book for the bonds was oversubscribed two-fold, with the offering possibly expanded to $1.5bn. However, the analysts surveyed by RBC believe that the demand was moderate, given the final yield of 7%.

The analysts also agree that the possibility to participate in the future IPO of Telegram is the main driver of demand for the bonds, even without a clear monetisation strategy for the messenger.