Crypto Gloss

TON / The Open Network

TON (The Open Network) is a blockchain with one of the most unusual histories in crypto: designed by Telegram’s Nikolai Durov in 2018, abandoned after an SEC lawsuit in 2020, then revived by external developers and re-energized when Telegram’s CEO Pavel Durov quietly embraced the community project. By 2023, Telegram began integrating TON payments natively into the app — and with 900M+ monthly active users, the distribution opportunity became one of the most-discussed in crypto. The July 2024 arrest of Pavel Durov in France sent shockwaves through TON’s price but also intensified debate about Telegram’s role in the protocol.

Stat Value
Ticker TON
Price $1.42
Market Cap $3.53B
24h Change +2.8%
Circulating Supply 2.48B TON
All-Time High $8.25
Contract (The Open Network) EQAAAA...AM9c
Contract (Ethereum) 0x582d...def1
Contract (Binance Smart Chain) 0x76a7...220f

via ChangeNow · T&CsPrice data from CoinGecko as of 2026-04-15. Not financial advice.

The Origin: Telegram’s Failed ICO

2018-2019:

Telegram’s Nikolai Durov (Telegram’s CTO and co-founder of Telegram with his brother Pavel) designed TON — a scalable blockchain with sharding, fast finality, and deep Telegram integration. Telegram raised $1.7 billion from private investors in one of the largest token pre-sales in history (GRAM tokens).

SEC intervention:

  • October 2019: SEC filed for emergency injunction halting GRAM token distribution
  • Alleged: GRAM tokens were unregistered securities sold to 39 US investors
  • May 2020: Telegram settled with SEC — paid $18.5M fine and agreed NOT to distribute GRAM tokens
  • June 2020: Telegram officially abandoned the TON project

Community Revival

After Telegram’s abandonment:

  • Open-source TON code was forked by community developers
  • Several competing forks emerged (Free TON, NewTON)
  • Free TON eventually became the canonical continuation → renamed The Open Network (TON) → native token called Toncoin
  • Telegram had no official role until 2022-2023

Telegram’s return:

Without announcement, Telegram began integrating TON-based functionality:

  • Telegram Wallet bot (@wallet): In-chat TON and USDT (TON-based) transfers
  • TON Space: Non-custodial TON wallet embedded in Telegram
  • Fragment: Telegram’s TON-powered anonymous number marketplace

Telegram Integration Stack

TON’s key advantage is Telegram integration at scale:

Telegram Stars:

  • In-app purchase currency for digital goods in bots and mini-apps
  • Powered by TON infrastructure behind the scenes for cross-border monetization

Telegram Mini Apps:

  • Web apps running inside Telegram chats (like WeChat mini-programs)
  • Developers build games, DeFi apps, e-commerce using Telegram’s 900M user base
  • TON for payment rails within mini apps

@wallet bot:

  • Send/receive TON and USDT-TON peer-to-peer within Telegram DMs
  • No CEX required; self-custodial via TON Space integration

Notcoin and the Mini-App Gaming Wave

Notcoin (NOT) — February-May 2024:

  • A simple Telegram mini-app game: tap a coin to earn “notcoin” credits
  • Over 35 million users played before token launch
  • May 2024: NOT token airdropped to players via TON blockchain
  • Notcoin demonstrated mass-market crypto distribution via Telegram game mechanics

The narrative shift:

Notcoin proved the Telegram-to-crypto funnel works at scale. Dozens of copycat “tap-to-earn” games launched (Hamster Kombat, Blum, X Empire). Hamster Kombat reached 300M+ users before its token launch. The pattern: free Telegram game → earn tokens → list on exchanges. Critics called it the “tap-to-earn bubble” — most tokens dumped heavily post-airdrop.

TON Technical Architecture

Designed for scale:

  • Infinite sharding: TON can split into sub-shardchains dynamically as load increases — theoretically scalable to millions of TPS
  • BFT consensus (Byzantine Fault Tolerant): Modified PBFT with validator pools
  • Account abstraction native: All accounts are smart contracts
  • Fast finality: ~5 second block times; instant finality for direct transfers
  • Smart contract language: FunC (older, lower-level) and Tact (newer, TypeScript-like)

Limitations:

  • Developer ecosystem smaller than Ethereum/Solana
  • Smart contract model differs significantly from EVM — porting Solidity contracts isn’t straightforward

Pavel Durov Arrest (2024)

August 2024: Pavel Durov arrested at Le Bourget airport (Paris) by French authorities:

  • Charges: Complicity in crimes facilitated via Telegram (drug trafficking, CSAM, fraud)
  • French investigation: Telegram’s insufficient moderation allegedly enabled criminal use
  • Durov released weeks later but under judicial supervision in France

Impact on TON:

  • Short-term: TON price dropped ~15-20% on arrest news
  • Medium-term: Many argued the arrest would push Telegram toward more censorship → contrary to crypto/free speech ethos → user flight
  • Long-term uncertain: Telegram/TON remained operationally unaffected

How to Get and Use TON

Buy TON:

  • Major CEXes: Binance, OKX, Bybit, KuCoin, Gate.io
  • In-app: @wallet bot in Telegram

Use TON wallet:

  1. Open Telegram
  2. Search @wallet and open the bot
  3. Create wallet → receive TON address
  4. Or: Open “TON Space” in Telegram settings for non-custodial option

Purchase initial crypto via . For larger holdings, use with TON supported via third-party wallet Ledger integration.

Social Media Sentiment

TON has one of the most unusual sentiment profiles in crypto: a dedicated base of believers who see Telegram distribution as a once-in-a-decade adoption opportunity, paired with deep skepticism about decentralization (how independent is TON really from Telegram/Pavel Durov?). The Notcoin/Hamster Kombat wave attracted massive attention and new users but also generated “tap-to-earn scam” criticism as most tokens dumped post-airdrop. Pavel Durov’s arrest added both legitimacy concerns and privacy-advocate sympathy simultaneously. The fundamental question remains: can Telegram’s 900M users convert to on-chain TON users, or is the integration just a marketing story?

Last updated: 2026-04

Related Terms

Sources

Durov, N. (2019). Telegram Open Network (TON) Whitepaper.

Rogers, E. M. (2003). Diffusion of Innovations (5th ed.). Free Press.

Narayanan, A., Bonneau, J., Felten, E., Miller, A., & Goldfeder, S. (2016). Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency Technologies. Princeton University Press.

van der Berg, R., & Sabelfeld, A. (2023). Decentralization and Its Discontents: Platform Dependence in Blockchain Networks. Journal of Cybersecurity.

SEC. (2020). In the Matter of Telegram Group Inc.: Final Judgment. SEC.gov.