Durov was born in Saint Petersburg, Russia, where he attended and graduated from Saint Petersburg State University in 2006. In that same year, he founded the social networking website Vkontakte with his older brother Nikolai. Later known as just VK, the social media platform quickly became known as the Russian Facebook, with its founder being described as the Russian counterpart to Mark Zuckerberg.

Who’s the richest Rolling Stones member? The band’s net worths, ranked

Though he has since left the social network and gone on to create messaging app Telegram, while he was involved with VK, it was said to have been valued at some US$3 billion. According to Visual Capitalist, as of 2021, VK is the 19th most visited website on the planet used by about 1.8 billion active users every month.

2. He was fired as CEO and fled his homeland

One of the things Durov is arguably most famous for is his clear focus on the security and privacy of his users’ data. In fact, his unshakeable commitment to protecting user privacy ultimately led to his being forced to leave his position at VK and having to flee Russia.

Back in 2013, while still VK’s CEO, Durov refused to give the Russian security agency the personal and private data of Ukrainian VK users.

In a recent post on his personal Telegram channel, in which he expressed his support for the victims of the conflict in Ukraine (his maternal heritage is of Ukrainian descent), Durov recounted what happened:

“ … the Russian security agency FSB demanded that I provide them the private data of the Ukrainian users of VK who were protesting against a pro-Russian president. I refused to comply with these demands, because it would have meant a betrayal of our Ukrainian users. After that, I was fired from the company I founded and was forced to leave Russia. I lost my company and my home, but would do it again – without hesitation.”

Who is billionaire Tyler Perry, one of the richest men in entertainment?

3. He’s a global citizen who follows an ascetic lifestyle

After fleeing the country of his birth, through an investment of US$250,000, Durov secured citizenship of the Caribbean island nation Saint Kitts and Nevis. This allowed him to focus on his next project and saw the tech entrepreneur live a relatively nomadic lifestyle, eventually landing in Dubai, which as per Forbes is his current residence.

Not only did Durov obtain Kittitian citizenship, but it was announced in 2021 that the Russian-born billionaire had also been granted French citizenship.

In addition to his status as a global citizen, Durov is also known for touting his ascetic lifestyle. In 2017, on his 33rd birthday, the VK founder shared on his personal page a list of all the things he’d given up to benefit his physical, mental and spiritual health and wellness. These include alcohol, nicotine, drugs, caffeine, fast food, sugar and television.

4. He built Telegram, the most downloaded app of 2021

After he was forced to leave both the company he built and the country in which he was living, Durov turned his attention to a new project, the encrypted messaging app Telegram.

Meet Harry and William’s step-siblings, Laura Lopes and Tom Parker Bowles

First launched in 2013, Telegram is well known for its unwavering pledge to protect the privacy and integrity of its users’ data. Since its inception almost a decade ago, Telegram has flourished, successfully evolving into one of the biggest messaging services worldwide.

The last two years have been especially notable in Telegram’s lifespan, with the service being named the fastest growing app of 2021. It also saw an impressive milestone of having 70 million new users join the service on a single day in October 2021.

5. He’s worth US$15 billion

Largely due to the phenomenal success of Telegram, Durov’s net worth is listed by Forbes at some US$15.1 billion. This staggering personal fortune makes the app developer and tech pioneer the 112th wealthiest person on earth in 2021.

Additional accolades include being named by Fortune magazine as one of 2018’s most influential people in business under the age of 40 and being selected to join the World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leaders programme.