20.06.2025 14:42
Telegram's billionaire founder Pavel Durov has announced that he will leave his £17 billion fortune to his 106 children, who were born both naturally and through sperm donation. Durov has six children from three different partners. However, he is believed to be the father of around 100 more children, having donated sperm to dozens of couples in 12 different countries.
```html
The billionaire founder of the messaging platform Telegram, Pavel Durov, announced that he will leave his £17 billion fortune to over 100 children born both naturally and through sperm donation.
The 40-year-old tech billionaire Durov has six children from three different partners. However, it is believed that he is the father of about 100 more children by donating sperm to dozens of couples in 12 different countries.
In an interview with France's Le Point magazine, Durov stated that he sees no difference between the children born naturally and those born through donation:
"They are all my children, and I want them to have equal rights. I do not want them to fight each other after my death," he said.
However, the billionaire businessman also added that none of his children will receive any financial share for 30 years.
"Let them live like normal people, build their own lives, learn to be self-reliant, and be creative – I don't want them to live dependent on a bank account," he expressed.
Last year, it was revealed that Durov had many children through sperm donation after a Russian woman named Irina Bolgar, living in Switzerland, claimed to be the mother of three of Durov's children. Bolgar stated in an interview with Forbes Russia that Durov is the father of a girl and two boys born in St. Petersburg in 2013, 2016, and 2017.
Telegram has over a billion active users worldwide. Durov, who is referred to as "Mark Zuckerberg" or "Elon Musk" in Russia, is estimated to have a fortune of around £17 billion.
Born in Russia, Durov spent part of his childhood in Italy. He later returned to Russia when his father, an expert in ancient Roman literature, took a position at St. Petersburg University.
He is currently under judicial supervision in France for alleged organized crime activities conducted through Telegram. At the age of 21, he founded a social network called VK, known as Russia's Facebook. However, he was forced to give up his company after refusing to hand over information about Ukrainian protesters to Russian security forces and moved abroad in 2014.
Durov stated that he founded Telegram due to a lack of secure communication, expressing that his attempts to live in Berlin, London, and San Francisco failed due to bureaucratic obstacles, which is why he settled in Dubai.
Currently holding both French and UAE citizenship, Durov continues to be the sole owner of Telegram.
Last year, he was investigated and detained by French authorities for child pornography, drug trafficking, and fraudulent activities conducted through the app. However, Durov returned to Dubai in March, denying all charges.
```