Telegram founder Pavel Durov said today that the service has over 1 billion active users. This number is up from the reported 950 million monthly active users last year.
Durov also said the company registered a profit of $547 million last year. He announced the company's profitability in December, but at the time it offered nothing.
The founder, who recently returned to Dubai after a clearance from France, took a jab on meta-owned rival WhatsApp, calling it a cheap imitation.
“WhatsApp is posted before us. It's a copy of a cheap, watering telegram. For years, they tried desperately to copy our innovations, burning billions with lobbying and PR campaigns to slow us down. They failed. They grew.
Durov was investigating in France in connection with alleged criminal conduct, including promoting organized fraud, illegal trade and sharing of CSAM (child sex abuse material). He also spent several days in police custody in August.
Outside of China, WhatsApp is gaining high in terms of leads on popular chat platforms with over 2 billion active users per month. The two companies are also competing to gain mind share for their businesses and creators through a variety of features, such as business accounts and channels.
Telegram has further appealed to crypto enthusiasts by unlocking content, untips from creators, and integrating Ton blockchain, wallets and a decentralized app ecosystem for in-app purchases of Mini-Apps and games. The company also deployed a distributed verification system in January through a network of third-party accounts.