原文标题：A look at TON and Toncoin's explosive growth, from ad revenue sharing to Hamster Kombat
Original author: Rebecca Stevens
Original source: The Block
Compiled by: Mars Finance, MK
Initially known as the Telegram Open Network, the open network was promoted by Telegram, a popular messaging app in the crypto space with over 900 million users. However, the network attracted the attention and displeasure of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, prompting the open source community to continue its development process while Telegram continues to support the network.
In February, Telegram announced plans to share advertising revenue with channel owners, with profits to be split 50/50. Crucially, these revenues will be paid in TON’s native token (toncoin) and settled through the network. Telegram’s CEO noted that despite Telegram channels generating one trillion views per month, only 10% of channels were profitable through advertising when the ad-sharing program was launched. Content creators can not only cash out the toncoins they earn, but also put them back to work by promoting or boosting their channels. The core goal of this strategy is to attract Telegram’s core user base to join the TON ecosystem.
Additionally, Tether launched the USDT stablecoin on the TON network in April, giving TON users access to the largest USD-pegged stablecoin on the market. This new initiative has been a huge success, with the supply of USDT on TON exceeding 500 million last week, a feat achieved just two months after the blockchain was launched.
The TON network has seen a sharp rise in activity and users recently as crypto-mini-games based on Telegram have become increasingly popular. Games such as “Notcoin,” “Hamster Kombat,” and “Catizen” allow users to earn in-game currency through play, which can eventually be exchanged for real airdrops. A similar phenomenon has been seen with the “Tapos” game on Aptos, highlighting the strong appeal of these clicker games for users eager to earn tokens.
As TON becomes more and more popular, the value of toncoin is also growing rapidly. Currently, toncoin is the ninth largest cryptocurrency in the world by market capitalization, with a market capitalization of $18 billion, more than doubling since the beginning of this year. At the same time, the total value locked in TON has also increased significantly, surging from $300 million to $600 million in the past three weeks alone.
TON is widely favored due to its large user base and its ability to be seamlessly integrated with the Telegram application. Cryptocurrency venture capital firm Pantera Capital made the largest investment in the TON network in history in May and has successfully raised the second TON fund.
From the usage indicators of TON, we can observe the explosive growth of its transaction volume. TON's 7-day moving average transaction volume increased from 645,000 at the beginning of the year to 5 million, and the 7-day moving average of active addresses also soared from 26,000 to more than 340,000.
Although these charts show fluctuations, the overall direction appears to be upward. While it is too early to tell whether this growth can be sustained, it is likely that TON has entered a new phase where activity levels will continue to be higher than before 2024.
