DOGS Meme Coin Overloads TON Blockchain, Leading to Hours of Downtime

The Telegram Open Network (TON) has been facing a significant outage, with no new transactions validated or blocks produced for over six hours. The disruption, which began on August 28, has been attributed to an overwhelming surge in activity caused by the launch of the DOGS meme coin. 

TONK Inu Reports Network Instability Amid DOGS Hype

Tonk Inu, a community platform based on TON, reported the issue on X (formerly Twitter), pointing to the massive hype surrounding DOGS as the primary reason for the network's instability. DOGS launched on August 26, quickly gained traction and was traded on major exchanges like Binance and OKX. Within the first ten hours, the coin saw a trading volume of $1.7 billion, reaching a peak market cap of $891 million. However, its price soon fell from a high of $0.0018 to around $0.0012.

The last confirmed transaction on the TON blockchain occurred in block 45341899, with no new blocks generated since. This incident has raised serious concerns within the community about the network's ability to handle such a sudden spike in activity.

TON Society Rebrand Coincides with Network Turmoil

Adding to the turmoil, the TON Society had just undergone a rebrand on August 26, introducing the “Resistance Dog” as its new symbol, a nod to Telegram creator Pavel Durov’s stand for free speech in 2011. This rebrand coincided with Durov’s recent arrest in France, which has already caused Toncoin to drop by 24%, trading at $5.22, down 1.7% for the day.

TON Blockchain Instability Leads to Toncoin Price Drop

The TON blockchain's instability highlights the risks associated with rapid memecoin hype overwhelming blockchain infrastructure. The network’s failure to generate blocks for nearly six hours led to a 5% drop in Toncoin's value. Tonscan data revealed that the last block was generated at 06:11:46 UTC+8, disrupting the network's stability, causing transaction delays, and potentially posing security risks.

Bybit Suspends TON Deposits and Withdrawals Amid Network Issues

In response to the network issues, Bybit, a major cryptocurrency exchange, suspended all deposits and withdrawals through the TON network. As reported by Wu Blockchain, TON's infrastructure couldn't handle the stress caused by the DOGS airdrop, leading to slower processing times, higher fees, and overall instability. Justin, a member of the TON Foundation, mentioned that the network overload due to DOGS transactions caused many validators to lose consensus. To restore operations, validators will be required to restart the network at 4:00 UTC with specific flags.

As a result of the network disruption, Toncoin’s price took a sharp dive from $5.47 to $5.12. The token has been on a downward trend for several months, exacerbated by Durov’s arrest. TON’s 24-hour trading volume also dropped by 28.63%, standing at $701 million, with the token trading at an average price of $5.32. Despite the turmoil, Toncoin remains the 10th largest cryptocurrency, with a market cap of $13.49 billion.

Binance Acknowledges Delays in TON Upgrade Due to DOGS Airdrop

Binance reported on August 26 that its TON upgrade took longer than expected due to unforeseen issues. The platform assured users that it is working to restore normal service as quickly as possible. Since the DOGS community launched its on-chain claiming process, the processing speed of requests has surged to 150,000 times per minute. The network will be subjected to stress testing with up to 10 million users trading simultaneously.

Comparisons with Solana’s Similar Blockchain Disruption

This incident mirrors a similar disruption faced by Solana in February, where the blockchain stopped generating new blocks for more than five hours, triggering substantial selling pressure on its native token, SOL.

Telegram Wallet Faces Issues Amid DOGS Airdrop Chaos

In the midst of the chaos, Telegram Wallet announced that the release of DOGS had caused issues with  crypto exchanges and some wallet functions, rendering the wallet's exchange feature temporarily unavailable. 

Need for Stronger Scalability Measures on TON Blockchain

This incident underscores the need for stronger scalability measures on the TON blockchain to handle sudden spikes in activity, especially as the network continues to gain traction in the volatile world of memecoins.

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