Bitcoin, Ether and Most Altcoins Log Losses Following Telegram Co-Founder’s Arrest

Over the weekend, Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov was reportedly arrested in France over charges linked to the operation of the messaging app. Following the development, all popular cryptocurrencies recorded price drops. Bitcoin, for instance, saw losses of nearly two percent on national and international exchanges over the last day. The asset is trading at $66,428 (roughly Rs. 55.6 lakh) on national exchanges and at $64,077 (roughly Rs. 53.6 lakh) internationally after incurring price dips of around two percent on Monday, August 26.

As per Edul Patel, the CEO of Mudrex, Bitcoin, despite minor losses and market volatility, may reach the mark of $69,000 (roughly Rs. 57.8 lakh) now that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has expressed support for Donald Trump in the US, pledging a crypto-friendly stance. But this does not make the situation better for the crypto chart overall given Durov's arrest.

Durov, who co-founded Telegram in 2013, conceived the TON blockchain in 2018. His arrest comes as a matter of concern to leaders in the global Web3 circle.

“Durov's arrest in France has caused Toncoin, developed by Telegram, to lose more than $3 billion (roughly Rs. 25,146 crore). Famous play to earn coin NOT, too, lost 20 percent in quick time and now trading below one cent (roughly Rs. 0.007958),” the CoinSwitch markets desk told Gadgets360.

Affected by market volatility, Ether reflected losses similar to Bitcoin on both national and international exchanges on Monday. At the time of writing, ETH was trading at $2,877 (roughly Rs. 2.41 lakh) on Indian exchanges like CoinSwitch, whereas its price stood at $2,745 (roughly Rs. 2.30 lakh) on international exchanges, as per CoinMarketCap.

Solana, Dogecoin, Cardano, Avalanche, Shiba Inu, and Polkadot also joined BTC and ETH on the loss-making side of the price chart on Monday.

Polygon, Uniswap, Cronos, Cosmos, and Bitcon SV also reflected price drops alongside most other altcoins.

The overall crypto market cap slipped by 0.40 percent in the last 24 hours to come to the valuation of $2.25 trillion (roughly Rs. 1,88,64,528 crore), as per CoinMarketCap.

The altcoins that managed to hold on to profits amid the ongoing market chaos on Monday include USD Coin, Ripple, Tron, Leo, Near Protocol, and Litecoin.

Market analysts predict that in the coming days, Bitcoin may see profits setting the tone for other cryptocurrencies.

In conversation with Gadgets360, Avinash Shekhar, Co-founder & CEO, Pi42, said Bitcoin ETFs had demonstrated significant resilience, rebounding strongly from early August losses and attracting over $500 million (roughly Rs. 4,191 crore) in just the past week.

“This impressive streak underscores Bitcoin's established role as a trusted digital asset, drawing sustained investor interest even amidst market fluctuations. The influx of capital, particularly into industry giants like BlackRock's IBIT, further solidifies Bitcoin's status as digital gold, capturing the confidence of both retail and institutional investors,” Shekhar noted. “While Bitcoin continues to be seen as a safe haven, Ethereum's path to commanding similar market trust is still unfolding, marked by the need for broader adoption and greater investor confidence."