TON Ventures picked an unusual time to launch its newest $2.5 million accelerator program.
Designed to attract developers to build on the $12 billion TON blockchain, first developed by the messaging app Telegram, the cohort will last three months and consist of five startups.
The launch comes as the broader TON ecosystem is embroiled in turmoil.
The arrest of Telegram CEO Pavel Durov in France sent Toncoin’s price down over 22% from its August high, and TON’s total value locked has fallen 56% to $348 million since the start of August. On August 28, a French court charged Durov with allegedly failing to prevent criminals from using Telegram to commit crimes ranging from fraud to child sex abuse to narcotics sales.
Still, VCs told DL News that they’re not bailing on Toncoin, with CoinFund among backers who say the fundamental case for TON is still “compelling.”
Social media app Telegram originally developed the TON blockchain and its cryptocurrency Toncoin, but it spun out into a separate entity after a settlement with the US Securities and Exchange Commission in 2020.
The TON Foundation now oversees the development of the blockchain, the cryptocurrency, and associated projects. TON Ventures is a separate entity from TON Foundation and is not a subsidiary, but ex-TON Foundation executives run it, a spokesperson told DL News.
950 million users
The entities may now be distinct, but Telegram is becoming a key growth lever for the TON network.
“TON Blockchain’s growth so far this year has only shown a tiny percentage of Telegram’s potential as a distribution channel,” Sophia Rusconi, Head of TON Accelerator, said in a statement. “Projects building on TON have an audience of 950 million ready and waiting to engage with their product.”
TON has enjoyed several milestones recently.
On Tuesday, it announced that it had reached over 1 billion transactions. TON accounts also passed the 50 million mark for the first time in August, according to Matthew Graham, founder and CEO of crypto venture firm Ryze Labs.
So-called tap-to-earn games are key to that growth. Those games reward users for tapping on their screens to earn coins and upgrade gameplay. One of the most popular games is called Hamster Combat, and counts more than 200 million users in June, according to the project.
“The tap-to-earn craze has opened many people’s eyes to the powerful combination of TON and the Telegram Mini Apps platform,” Ian W, managing partner of TON Ventures, said in a statement, adding that it “is simply the first phase of TON ecosystem’s growth.”
The TON Foundation and TON Ventures did not return requests for comment about how much tap-to-earn games have contributed to the growth nor what the arrest of Durov means for TON’s future.
Eric Johansson is DL News’ News Editor. Got a tip? Email at eric@dlnews.com.
