The Abu Dhabi-based sovereign investor Mubadala has finally invested about $75M in 5-year pre-IPO convertible bonds of Telegram. Telegram is an open-source popular social media platform mainly known for its security-focused services over other popular social media.
The investment and partnership aimed at creating a new collaboration of opportunities between these two companies. The partnership between these companies is a strategic one to go forward and integrate into Abu Dhabi’s innovative and mostly tech-focused companies with a goal to enhance the technological ecosystem.
Telegram has evolved into a very popular social media platform since its founding back in 2013. Their global headquarters in the UAE. It was launched by two brothers, Pavel and Nikolai Durov, and it has been growing ever since. It already becomes one of the most downloaded apps in the world with roughly over 500M monthly active users.
“We recognize and admire Pavel’s vision for the company and the team’s execution in building an exceptional product and company. His unwavering focus on user experience and privacy, and how it is central to every business decision he makes, is one of the keys to Telegram’s popularity and success. Telegram’s user base has reached a critical mass that places it amongst global tech giants.
“We believe that Telegram is well-positioned for an inflection point that will transform it into a leading global technology company. The company represents a very promising investment opportunity for Mubadala and will sit well within our wider portfolio of pioneering companies looking to transform their respective industries. Our investment in Telegram establishes a strategic partnership for us to further strengthen Abu Dhabi’s technology ecosystem as well as bring new levels of tech skills and talent to the capital,” said Head of Mubadala’s Russia and CIS Investment Programme, Faris Sohail Faris Al Mazrui.
“We are honored by the $150M investment into Telegram from Mubadala and Abu Dubai Catalyst Partners. We look forward to developing this strategic partnership to continue our growth in the MENA region and globally,” said The CEO and Founder of Telegram, Pavel Durov.
“Over the past 7 years, Telegram usage has grown from zero to 500M monthly active users. This demonstrates the management team’s unshakeable dedication to building a platform centered around privacy and user experience. We believe this creates a strong value proposition and will be a focal point for social media platforms and a new era of messaging.
“ADCP strives to partner with businesses that demonstrate strong growth trajectories globally, and that can bolster an evolving technology ecosystem in Abu Dhabi and the ADGM. We aim to use our resources to work hand-in-hand with management teams towards catalyzing leading platforms in different industries at the cutting edge. We see a very attractive opportunity to do this with Telegram,” said CFO and COO of Abu Dhabi Catalyst Partners, James Munce.
Mubadala already is busy expanding and increasing its focus on technology sectors. Mostly via their sophisticated strategy on direct and fund-of-fund investing plans right from their early-stage venture capital growth. And they also have been investing in several global technology-based companies in category leaders. That includes some autonomous technology companies including AliExpress, Waymo, Jio platforms, and many more.
