Telegram’s finances are increasingly being shaped by its deepening ties to crypto, even as legal pressure and geopolitical risks complicate the picture.
A Financial Times report showed an unaudited financial statement that the messaging platform registered a steep increase in operating revenue in the first half of 2025.
Telegram earned revenue of a total of 870 million during the first half of 2025, a 65% increase compared to the previous year’s 525 million.
Almost a third of that sum, approximately $300 million, was obtained by way of so-called exclusivity deals, which are strongly tied to Toncoin, the cryptocurrency of the Telegram ecosystem.
The figures show how revenue tied to TON-related activity is now rivaling more traditional income streams such as advertising and subscriptions.
The revenue growth came despite Telegram posting a net loss of roughly $222 million for the period.
That compares with a net profit of $334 million in the first half of 2024. The swing was largely driven by a write-down in the value of the company’s Toncoin holdings after the token lost about 69% of its value during 2025, data from CoinGecko shows.
Telegram still achieved an operating profit of nearly $400 million, indicating that the underlying business remained profitable before accounting for crypto-related losses.
Toncoin’s role in Telegram’s finances has expanded steadily over the past two years.
Premium subscriptions, which reached $223 million in revenue in the first half of 2025, and various in-app purchases through Telegram’s Fragment marketplace rely heavily on TON for settlement.
Advertising revenue rose more modestly to $125 million over the same period as Telegram told investors that it sold more than $450 million worth of Toncoin during the year to date.
At the time of reporting, that amount represented roughly 10% of TON’s total market capitalization, which stands near $4.6 billion.
At the end of June, the total holdings of digital assets of the company decreased to $787 million against $1.3 billion a year ago, due to the sale volumes and the reduction in token prices.
Toncoin also trades at an approximate of $1.93, which is low compared to its all-time high of $8.25 but is still up over 60% over the last year.
