A new beta version of the Telegram messenger for Android with the number 7.8.0 was released yesterday. It received such innovations as animated backgrounds for chats, support for group video calls and a number of other features, which in the foreseeable future will migrate to the stable version of the application.
Participants in voice chats can now start broadcasting video from the camera or screen of their device. In order for this feature to become available, the #vid tag must be added to the name of the voice chat. Unfortunately, there is no need to talk about the full-fledged operation of the function yet – other participants in the conversation do not see the video stream.
The update also brought a gradient chat background to Telegram that changes when messages are sent. Other updates include animation when sending stickers, moving the search button to the chat header in the Favorites section, and the appearance of a list of active voice chats in the Calls section of the application side menu.
Gizchina News of the week
Telegram will go public within two years, if rumors are true
The Telegram messenger plans to hold an IPO (issue shares and go public) within the next two years. Some reports write bout this with reference to a source close to Telegram. We have confirmation of the information by many sources familiar with the company’s plans.
Now the platform is preparing an IPO: it conducts checks and selects an exchange for further share placement. The company is considering only two options. The Hong Kong Exchange (HK) and the Nasdaq. The first option is possible due to the fact that almost half of the messenger users live in Asia; and in the future this figure may exceed 50%.
In addition, according to one of the sources, Pavel Durov has not yet chosen the format for entering the market. Presumably, he can refuse the IPO in favor of two other options – direct listing (direct public offering) or through a SPAC company (raising funds with certain debt obligations from qualified investors).
Presumably, during the placement of shares, the company can be valued at $ 30-50 billion. Experts say the price will depend on the number of active monthly users, each valued at $ 50. In early January, the company announced that it had crossed the 500 million mark; and will grow to a billion by the time of the IPO.
Earlier, Telegram raised more than a billion dollars in investments by selling bonds. The cost of each security was $ 1000. The buyers were Arab funds Mubadala and Abu Dhabi CP.
