Is Telegram CEO Pavel Durov’s Arrest Putting a TON of Pressure on the Network?
It’s not every day that a community rallies behind a founder in the Web3 space. However, the recent arrest of Telegram’s CEO saw many communities pledging their support.
Telegram CEO Pavel Durov was detained in France on Friday after arriving on a private jet at Le Bourget Airport. His arrest came as Telegram was accused of being under-moderated and allowing for the proliferation of illegal activity.
Specifically, there are claims that Telegram is being utilized for the trafficking of drugs and sharing child sexual abuse images.
India Takes Heed
It’s not just France that is concerned about Telegram. India has recently involved their Cybercrime Coordination Centre along with Information Technology to conduct a thorough investigation into the messaging app.
India may even consider an outright ban of Telegram depending on the outcome of the investigation.
“We are monitoring the situation closely. We need to understand if there’s a pattern of negligence here.” said a senior official, according to a report by Cryptopolitan.
The lack of a physical office in India further adds to the difficulty of the investigation as locals cannot access user data for analysis.
In response to the arrest, the TON community has started a campaign by changing their profile pictures to a dog-themed mascot. Even sites like Coingecko updated their website to the mascot in support of the CEO.
Today, We stand with Pavel Durov - Creator of Telegram.
— TON Society 🆓 (@ton_society) August 25, 2024
In support of the #DigitalResistance, we are updating Toncoin’s logo and profile pictures across TON Community channels to the global symbol of Digital Resistance — the Resistance Dog. Pavel Durov started this movement… pic.twitter.com/Dle4dE5lGP
A TON of Pressure
TON's strong connection with Telegram places it in a crucial moment in the crypto industry's ongoing regulatory story, as any interference with Telegram's activities could have a major effect on its ecosystem.
“A lot of platforms are about to learn the lesson of platform risk,” said Joe McCann of Asymmetric. Developers in the TON network might be affected by the negative sentiment given the arrest. Trust may diminish in the ecosystem resulting in reduced investor confidence and a possible decrease in potential funding for TON-related projects.
.@Telegram founder Pavel Durov was arrested at Le Bourget Airport in France.
— ◢ J◎e McCann 🧊 (@joemccann) August 24, 2024
A lot of startups are about to learn the lesson of platform risk...
Additionally, pessimism may decrease the morale of developers, causing them to leave the network and hindering innovation.
One project in particular, DOGS saw its pre-market trading price plummet when the news was announced. Currently, DOGS is trading down 24% in the past 24 hours, trading at a market cap of $ 676 million with a Fully Diluted Valuation(FDV) according to Coingecko.
Some, however, took advantage of the sell-off to acquire TON tokens, including 3AC founder Su Zhu,
Court papers show that TerraForm Labs allegedly induced 3AC to purchase Terra (LUNA) by manipulating the market for these tokens, causing their prices to be artificially inflated.
Bought TON at 5.8
— 朱溯 🐂 (@zhusu) August 25, 2024
Holding TAO, SUI, POPCAT longs pic.twitter.com/JmeF2vjhuP
What’s Next for TON?
Users hoping for a quick solution to this legal matter might be let down, as these types of cases typically entail lengthy and complex processes.
One only has to look to the arrest of Binance’s executive, Tigran Gambaryan, in Nigeria to witness how these legal conflicts can prolong, causing instability and disturbance in the ecosystem.
The arrest of a central figure such as Durov in relation to the TON network might mark the start of a lengthy and intricate legal process, particularly considering the potential complexities stemming from his citizenship.
It remains to be seen if the TON blockchain will be resilient enough to survive without Telegram’s prominent CEO but French authorities only have until Wednesday to hold him.
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