Pavel Durov: preference

Transcript context

…And mini apps include games, they include tools, services of any kind. It’s an app within the ecosystem of Telegram. Let me ask you about crypto in general. So you’ve been an early supporter of cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin. You’ve bought in into Bitcoin early on. You kept buying. Maybe you could speak to the reasoning why you kept buying Bitcoin. Do you think Bitcoin will go to a million dollars? Do you think it’ll keep increasing, Bitcoin and all the other cryptocurrencies? I was a big believer in Bitcoins since more or less the start of it. I got to buy my first few thousands of Bitcoin in 2013, and I didn’t care much. I think I bought at the local maximum, it’s something like $700 per Bitcoin and I just threw a couple of millions there. A lot of people after Bitcoin later next year, went down somewhere close to 300, 200. Started to express their sympathy to me. So, “Poor Pavel. You made this horrible mistake investing in this new thing, but don’t feel bad about it. We still have some respect for you.” And my response to them were, “I don’t care. I’m not going to sell it. I believe in this thing. I think this is the way money should work. Nobody can confiscate your Bitcoin from you. Nobody can censor you for political reasons.” This is the ultimate means of exchange. And again, I’m now talking about Bitcoin, but it relates to cryptocurrencies in general. So I have been able to fund my lifestyle, so to say, from my Bitcoin investment. Some people think if I’m able to rent nice locations or fly private, it’s because I somehow extract money from Telegram. Like I said, Telegram is a money losing operation for me personally. Bitcoin is something that allowed me to stay afloat. And I believe it will come to a point when Bitcoin is worth $1 million. Just look at the trends. The governments keep printing money like no tomorrow. Nobody’s printing Bitcoin. There is a predictable inflation and then it stops at a certain point. Bitcoin is here to stay. All the fiat currencies, remains to be seen. Let me ask you a deeply philosophical serious question. In your first Telco interview, you had two interesting chairs in the background. I think they reference a now legendary meme. The choice is Пики точёные или хуи дрочёные (Russian: “Sharpened pikes or jerked-off cocks.”) What is the philosophical wisdom in the dilemma that these two chairs present? Have you had to face the dilemma yourself personally?…

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