Battle of millionaires: Telegram founder Durov wanted to buy a premium number for a car, but someone turned out to be richer
On April 8, 2023, Pavel Durov took part in a Dubai charity auction, where he tried to purchase a car number consisting of only one seven. The initial price for this lot was 15 million dirhams (331 million rubles), but the next step doubled it. And then Durov entered the game, who offered 35 million dirhams for a car number. However, there was a buyer with a more solid wallet. As a result, the winning bet was 55 million dirhams (about 1.2 billion rubles). Durov did not dare to interrupt her and was left without the desired number.
The auction was for charity. It was hosted by the UAE Ministry of Transport. It is known that the proceeds from it will be spent on urban infrastructure, as well as to finance the 1 Billion Meals fund, which distributes free food to those in need around the world.
The winner of the auction chose to remain anonymous.
It is known that the price of the lot has become the maximum for auctions held by the UAE Ministry of Transport. The current auction broke the record of 2008 - then UAE businessman Said Abdul Ghafar Khoury bought a license plate with the number 1 for 52.2 million dirhams.
