Telegram founder Pavel Durov given permission to leave France
Pavel Durov, founder of the popular messaging app Telegram, has left France and relocated to Dubai following approval from a French court.
On March 13, Durov reportedly received permission from the French court to depart the country, allowing him to travel to Dubai — a city known for its business-friendly environment and lack of extradition agreements with many nations — according to a Barron’s report citing unknown sources.
The exact terms of the court’s decision remain unclear, but Durov’s relocation has reignited debates about jurisdiction, privacy, and the responsibilities of tech leaders in combating illegal activities on their platforms.
Citing unnamed sources, AFP reported that “He (Durov) departed France this morning,” adding that he left with the authorities’ approval. Another source stated that he had been granted permission to leave France for “several weeks.”
The Telegram founder’s legal issues began on Aug. 24, when he was temporarily arrested at Le Bourget airport in Paris.
French prosecutors accused Durov of running a platform that allegedly enables illegal activities, according to charges announced on Aug. 28, 2024.
Daily price chart of Toncoin. Source: TradingView
The crypto market reacted positively to the news of Durov departing from France. Toncoin (TON), the native cryptocurrency of The Open Network (TON), spiked over 18% in market price, according to data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView.
First report on Durov’s case in France since late 2024
The unconfirmed reports suggest that Durov has either settled his case in France or received permission to leave the country while the court case is ongoing.
Durov did not confirm his departure on social media by publishing time, while the French government officials are yet to issue a public statement, should the news be the case.
As previously reported, Durov was abruptly arrested by French authorities at Le Bourget airport in Paris in August 2024.
France’s Prosecutor’s Office, or Parquet de Paris, promptly issued a statement on preliminary charges to Durov on Aug. 28, accusing the Telegram founder of facilitating a platform that enables illicit transactions.
The prosecutors claimed that Durov was facing up to 10 years of prison time in addition to a 500,000 euros ($550,000) fine.
Durov was released from French custody on Aug. 28 after posting a $6 million bail. However, French authorities required him to remain in the country and mandated his court appearance only upon the completion of the investigation.
Vinnik’s release came just a month ago
Durov, now 40, is a citizen of Russia who also holds French and United Arab Emirates passports.
Shortly after his arrest in France, the Russian government publicly expressed the willingness to provide assistance in his case, highlighting the complexity of the matter due to Durov being not only a Russian citizen but also a French citizen.
If confirmed, Durov’s departure from France would mark another important event in the timeline of Russian programmers’ releases by governments worldwide.
Alexander Vinnik exits from the plane in Moscow. Source: The Moscow Times
Alexander Vinnik, operator of the now-defunct cryptocurrency exchange BTC-e, finally returned to Russia just a month ago following long-running disputes over his custody and indictment since his arrest in 2017.
According to a Wall Street Journal report, Vinnik’s prison release from the United States came as part of a US-Russia prisoner swap amid the countries seeking to mend diplomatic ties following Donald Trump’s presidential return in January.
Additional reporting by Helen Partz.
Prediction markets Polymarket and Kalshi view Kevin Hassett, US President Donald Trump’s National Economic Council director, as the favorite to replace Jerome Powell as the next Federal Reserve chair.
The odds of Hassett filling the seat have spiked to 66% on Polymarket and 74% on Kalshi at the time of writing. Hassett is widely viewed as crypto‑friendly thanks to his past role on Coinbase’s advisory council, a disclosed seven‑figure stake in the exchange and his leadership of the White House digital asset working group.
Founder and CEO of Wyoming-based Custodia Bank, and a prominent advocate for crypto-friendly regulations, Caitlin Long, commented on X:
“If this comes true & Hassett does become Fed chairman, anti-#crypto people at the Fed who still hold positions of power will finally be out (well, most of them anyway). BIG changes will be coming to the Fed.”
Related: Crypto-friendly Trump adviser Hassett top pick for Fed chair: Report
Kevin Hassett’s crypto credentials
Hassett is a long-time Republican policy economist who returned to Washington as Trump’s top economic adviser and has now emerged as the market-implied frontrunner to lead the Fed.
His financial disclosure reveals at least a seven‑figure Coinbase stake and compensation for serving on the exchange’s Academic and Regulatory Advisory Council, placing him unusually close to the crypto industry for a potential Fed chair.
Still, crypto has been burned before by reading too much into “crypto‑literate” resumes. Gary Gensler arrived at the Securities and Exchange Commission with MIT blockchain courses under his belt, but went on to preside over a wave of high‑profile enforcement actions, some of which critics branded as “Operation Chokepoint 2.0.”
A Hassett-led Fed might be more open to experimentation and less reflexively hostile to bank‑crypto activity. Still, the institution’s mandate on financial stability means markets should not assume a one‑way bet on deregulation.
Related: Caitlin Long’s crypto bank loses appeal over Fed master account
Supervision pushback inside the Fed
The Hassett odds have jumped just as the Fed’s own approach to bank supervision has received pushback from veterans like Fed Governor Michael Barr, who earned his reputation as one of Operation Chokepoint 2.0’s key architects.
According to Caitlin Long, while he Barr “was Vice Chairman of Supervision & Regulation he did Warren’s bidding,” and he “has made it clear he will oppose changes made by Trump & his appointees.”
On Nov. 18, the Fed released new Supervisory Operating Principles that shift examiners toward a “risk‑first” framework, directing staff to focus on material safety‑and‑soundness risks rather than procedural or documentation issues.
In a speech the same day, Barr warned that narrowing oversight, weakening ratings frameworks and making it harder to issue enforcement actions or matters requiring attention could leave supervisors slower to act on emerging risks, arguing that gutting those tools may repeat pre‑crisis mistakes.
Days later, in Consumer Affairs Letter 25‑1, the Fed clarified that the new Supervisory Operating Principles do not apply to its Consumer Affairs supervision program (an area under Barr’s committee as a governor).
If prediction markets are right and a crypto‑friendly Hassett inherits this landscape, his Fed would not be writing on a blank slate but stepping into an institution already mid‑pivot on how hard (and where) it leans on banks.
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HashKey Holdings, the parent company of one of Hong Kong’s biggest licensed crypto exchanges, moved a step closer to a public listing, according to new filings from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX).
On Monday, the HKEX published a 633-page post-hearing information pack for HashKey Holdings. The document was published at the request of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited and the local financial regulator, the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC).
A post-hearing information pack is only published after HKEX’s listing committee formally clears an applicant at the listing hearing. In other words, without explicitly stating it, this document indicates that HashKey has moved closer to listing on the exchange and is progressing toward its initial public offering (IPO).
At the same time, the document stressed that the deal is not yet finalized. “The listing application referred to in this document has not yet been approved; the HKEX and the SFC may accept, return, or reject the public offering and/or listing application.”
This is standard HKEX disclaimer language and does not contradict HashKey’s approval. Instead, it refers to the listing being dependent on completing the offering documents.
Related: Bitkub exchange eyes Hong Kong IPO as Thai markets slump to 5-year lows: Report
HashKey’s IPO is likely to attract significant attention
The news follows early October reports that HashKey was aiming for an IPO and a listing in Hong Kong this year. At the time, the report was largely based on rumors, citing anonymous sources with purported knowledge of the matter.
HashKey is Hong Kong’s top crypto exchange with a 24-hour volume of nearly $108 million at the time of writing, according to CoinGecko data. The information pack also listed the world’s top bank, JPMorgan, and local financial institutions Guotai Junan International and Haitong International as joint sponsors for the listing.
Interest in the offering is likely high, considering that in mid-February, China-based Gaorong Ventures reportedly invested $30 million in HashKey, granting it unicorn status. The pre-money valuation of the investment was purportedly almost $1.5 billion, but reports cited unidentified sources that could not be independently verified.
The platform is also looking to expand its reach. In early January, its subsidiary HashKey Europe received approval for a virtual asset service provider license from the Central Bank of Ireland.
Related: Crypto bank AMINA gets Hong Kong license to launch institutional trading
China quarantines Hong Kong’s crypto industry
Hong Kong’s growing crypto industry is not well-received by mainland Chinese authorities. Hong Kong began accepting applications from stablecoin issuers in August after introducing a dedicated regulatory framework.
The introduction of the stablecoin licenses in Hong Kong attracted the interest of Chinese technology giants, including Ant Group and JD.com. At the time, reports suggested that HSBC and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) planned to apply for stablecoin licenses in Hong Kong.
However, Chinese authorities told local firms to stop publishing research or holding seminars related to stablecoins in early August. In September, a now-deleted report by Chinese financial outlet Caixin claimed that mainland Chinese companies operating in Hong Kong may be forced to withdraw from cryptocurrency-related activities.
This was followed by reports in late October that Chinese technology giants, including Ant Group and JD.com, had reportedly suspended plans to issue stablecoins in Hong Kong due to regulatory concerns. On Saturday, the People’s Bank of China — mainland China’s central bank — said after a meeting with 12 other agencies that “virtual currency speculation has resurfaced,” reiterating that “virtual currency-related business activities constitute illegal financial activities,” in line with its 2021 ban on crypto trading and mining.
Magazine: Hong Kong isn’t the loophole Chinese crypto firms think it is
Sony Bank, the online lending subsidiary of Sony Financial Group, is reportedly preparing to launch a stablecoin that will enable payments across the Sony ecosystem in the US.
Sony is planning to issue a US dollar-pegged stablecoin in 2026 and expects it to be used for purchases of PlayStation games, subscriptions and anime content, Nikkei reported on Monday.
Targeting US customers — who make up roughly 30% of Sony Group’s external sales — the stablecoin is expected to work alongside existing payment options such as credit cards, helping reduce fees paid to card networks, the report said.
Sony Bank applied in October for a banking license in the US to establish a stablecoin-focused subsidiary and has partnered with the US stablecoin issuer Bastion. Sony’s venture arm also joined Bastion’s $14.6 million raise, led by Coinbase Ventures.
Sony Bank has been actively venturing into Web3
Sony Bank’s stablecoin push in the US comes amid the company’s active venture into Web3, with the bank establishing a dedicated Web3 subsidiary in June.
“Digital assets utilizing blockchain technology are incorporated into a diverse range of services and business models,” Sony Bank said in a statement in May.
“Financial services, such as wallets, which store NFT (non-fungible tokens) and cryptocurrency assets, and crypto exchange providers are becoming increasingly important,” it added.
The Web3 unit, later named BlockBloom, aims to build an ecosystem that blends fans, artists, NFTs, digital and physical experiences, and both fiat and digital currencies.
Related: Animoca eyes stablecoins, AI, DePIN as it expands focus in 2026: Exec
Sony Bank’s stablecoin initiative follows the recent spin-off of its parent, Sony Financial Group, which was separated from Sony Group and listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in September.
The move was intended to decouple the financial arm’s balance sheet and operations from the broader Sony conglomerate, allowing each to sharpen its strategic focus.
Cointelegraph reached out to Sony Bank for comment regarding its potential US stablecoin launch, but had not received a response by the time of publication.
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