Telegram has raised $210 million through bond sales this week from a number of investors, including its founder and chief executive Pavel Durov, as it navigates the slowing economy that has evaporated public markets' appetite for listings.

The messaging app, that serves more than 800 million monthly users, raised the money through bonds worth $270 million. "Because interest rates have gone up significantly since 2021, the bonds have a different issue price," John Hyman, Telegram Chief Investment Adviser told TechCrunch.

Telegram is still unprofitable and the new financing is meant to bring it closer to the "break-even" point, Durov said, adding that his app was "closer to profitability in absolute numbers" than competitors including Twitter and Snap.

A number of "well-known funds with stellar reputations" bought the bonds, Durov said without naming them. Telegram's Hyman told TechCrunch that those investors are "highly sophisticated global funds who specialize in bonds.

Durov claimed in the post that he "personally bought" a quarter of the new Telegram bonds, investing "tens of millions into Telegram's growth." Over the last 10 years, Durov said he has spent hundreds of millions on the app to keep it operational.

Telegram has grown fast in recent years even as new social offerings continue to mushroom. The app has added over 300 million users in the past two and a half years and is attracting 2.5 million new signups each day.

For the Dubai-headquartered firm, the bigger challenge is to improve finances and become self-sufficient. Telegram — which has kick-started its monetization engine in recent years, including launch of a subscription service — raised over $1 billion in debt financing by selling 5-year pre-IPO convertible bonds more than two years ago.

Telegram has wanted to go public for years, having even attempted a token sale which the SEC blocked; nevertheless, an ongoing weakening of global market condition compels the company to have to depend on private investors in bankrolling its operation.

Several other social media startups have witnessed their valuations roll back by mutual fund investors after Meta and Snap shed tens of billions of dollars in value in the public market.