Telegram is renowned as a privacy-focused messaging platform, but in the cryptocurrency world, its association with blockchain technology and the vision of its enigmatic founder, Pavel Durov, have taken center stage. The project that ties these together is TON (The Open Network), also referred to as TelegramLinked TON due to its origins tied closely to Durov and the Telegram team. This article dives deeply into what TON is, how it’s connected to Telegram and Pavel Durov, its innovative mechanisms, and how the project is positioned to influence the future of decentralized finance (DeFi) and Web3.
When Pavel Durov and his brother Nikolai first launched Telegram, they sought to create a messaging app with a focus on speed, security, and privacy. Yet, as blockchain technology matured, Durov’s ambition expanded toward creating an ecosystem where value could move as freely as messages. In 2018, Telegram unveiled the ambitious TON blockchain project, with its native currency Gram, drawing massive attention—and considerable funding—from the wider crypto world.
TON, designed as a highly scalable and user-friendly blockchain platform, had aims to process millions of transactions per second and integrate seamlessly with Telegram’s vast user base. However, the project’s journey was far from smooth. Despite raising over $1.7 billion in its initial coin offering (ICO), regulatory hurdles—chiefly from the US Securities and Exchange Commission—forced Telegram to halt official development in 2020. But the story was far from over: open-source TON development continued, community-led, keeping Durov’s vision alive and further enhancing the mass adoption potential of blockchain through Telegram-linked initiatives.
TON sets itself apart with a multi-chain architecture designed for scalability and decentralization. Here’s how it works:
TON’s primary innovation is its use of sharding across numerous blockchains. The TON network consists of a masterchain and multiple workchains, each of which can have up to 232 shardchains. This architecture enables the processing of millions of transactions per second—a leap ahead of first-generation blockchains like Bitcoin and Ethereum, addressing scalability bottlenecks.
TON supports sophisticated smart contracts, enabling the creation of decentralized applications (DApps) directly on its blockchain. This has opened the door for projects in areas such as decentralized finance (DeFi), NFT marketplaces, and social networks.
While Telegram had to officially step back from direct involvement, TON (now frequently called the Telegram Linked TON to acknowledge its roots) is still closely associated with Telegram’s ecosystem. This integration is a significant advantage, as users can potentially send crypto as easily as sending a message. The growing interest in Web3 wallets and blockchain-based messaging further amplifies this potential.
With over 700 million users, Telegram is a potent platform for driving blockchain adoption. The synergy between Telegram and TON means users can access financial services, DeFi, tokens, and digital assets directly within a familiar interface, lowering the entry barriers for both seasoned crypto enthusiasts and newcomers.
Pavel Durov’s philosophy has always centered on user privacy. TON’s robust cryptography and decentralized nature align perfectly with this ethos, offering a secure environment for personal and financial transactions.
One of the greatest challenges facing the blockchain industry is user onboarding. The familiarity of Telegram, when combined with user-friendly interfaces such as Bitget Wallet, makes it easier than ever for people to explore, store, and transact with tokens like TON. Bitget Wallet stands out for its security, intuitive design, and growing list of supported assets, making it a top choice for managing TON and other digital assets on the go.
Thanks to the high throughput enabled by TON’s innovative structure, transactions are fast and cost-effective. This efficiency unlocks new possibilities for micro-payments, DeFi protocols, tipping, and digital commerce—a stark contrast to the congestion and high fees on some older blockchains.
The community-driven continuation of TON development has led to an explosion of DeFi projects, NFT platforms, and novel Web3 experiments. By leveraging Telegram’s social graph and high degree of user engagement, these projects enjoy a fertile ground for viral growth.
The fusion of Pavel Durov’s privacy-first philosophy, Telegram’s vast user base, and the innovative TON blockchain is reshaping the landscape of blockchain and digital finance. Although regulatory setbacks initially threatened the project’s survival, the community has embraced and evolved the TelegramLinked TON vision, pushing it toward unforeseen heights.
The future could see even deeper integration between messaging apps and blockchain: instant peer-to-peer payments, on-chain digital identities, and decentralized marketplaces, all from a messaging interface. As both Web3 wallets like Bitget Wallet and exchanges such as Bitget Exchange make onboarding and trading even more seamless, the barriers to wide-scale adoption continue to diminish.
If TelegramLinked TON realizes its full potential, it might do for blockchain adoption what Telegram did for rapid, secure communication: bringing the power of digital assets into everyday life for hundreds of millions worldwide. The coming years are set to be exciting as this ecosystem matures, new avenues for decentralized interaction emerge, and mainstream users are welcomed into the future of finance—one message (or transaction) at a time.
I'm Crypto Linguist, a bilingual interpreter in the crypto space. With expertise in English and Japanese, I break down complex Web3 concepts, covering everything from global trends in the NFT art market to the technical logic of smart contract auditing and cross-regional blockchain game economies. Having contributed to multilingual whitepapers at a blockchain security firm in Singapore and studied the integration of NFTs with traditional art in Osaka, I aim to explore the limitless intersections of blockchain technology and culture through bilingual content.