TON: From Games to Serious DeFi? 🤔

The Open Network (TON), it must be confessed, has rather cleverly constructed a blockchain ecosystem of some promise, managing to blend a degree of accessibility to the common sort with infrastructure quite suitable for those engaged in more… substantial financial endeavours. Since its emergence as an independent entity in the year 2020, it has processed upwards of 2.6 billion transactions, all the while maintaining a remarkably close association with the ubiquitous Telegram platform. Today, it boasts a DeFi ecosystem attracting the attention of persons of consequence – institutional investors, you understand – though its ascent to such respectability has been anything but ordinary, a fact one might even deem… amusing.

The network’s progress, you see, is a tale of fortunate convergences: ingenious technical innovations, partnerships of a strategic nature, and, most surprisingly, games of a viral variety that managed to entice millions into its fold. A proper understanding of how these elements combine reveals why TON dares to present itself as a viable alternative to those long-established DeFi networks, despite adopting a rather *peculiar* approach to attracting users.

The Viral Gaming Catalyst

While TON was diligently establishing its technical foundations and DeFi protocols, an unforeseen development occurred, accelerating user adoption to a degree quite beyond anyone’s expectations. Those “tap-to-earn” games, Notcoin and Hamster Kombat, spread like wildfire across Telegram in the year 2024, creating an onboarding scheme that more traditional DeFi platforms could only dream of. Really, the simplicity was rather charming, in a vulgar sort of way.

The numbers were, one must admit, quite astounding. Hamster Kombat alone attracted over 300 million users at its zenith! Consequently, daily active addresses on TON swelled from a mere 20,000-30,000 in January of 2024 to around 500,000 in January of 2025-an increase of 1,900%, a rather significant leap, wouldn’t you agree? Peak numbers were even more impressive, exceeding 2 million daily active addresses in September of 2024. These games succeeded because they eliminated the usual complexities of cryptocurrency: no need for downloads, no intricate wallet setups, and, blessedly, no seed phrases to memorise. The appeal was straightforward-amusing, casual pastimes promising potential – and one suspects, often fanciful – returns. 🙄

Though the gaming narrative is undeniably appealing, one must observe, it is usually… fleeting. As initial enthusiasm waned, daily new wallet creation descended from approximately 700,000 at its peak to a more modest 30,000 – 40,000 in 2025 (Figure 1). The true test, therefore, wasn’t simply attracting users through games, but maintaining their interest as the ecosystem matured and turned its attention to more serious financial applications.

Figure 1: Wallet creation history on TON

The data regarding conversion is most instructive. Of TON’s 150 million total accounts, approximately 1.5 million remain actively engaged on a monthly basis-a retention rate of 1%, admittedly modest, yet representing millions of users who, having discovered DeFi through gaming, have chosen to remain for the financial services it provides. This gaming-to-finance transition became one of many factors driving TON’s growth, alongside its technical capabilities and strategic alliances.

The Telegram Integration Advantage

TON’s relationship with Telegram represents, without question, one of its most significant advantages, strategically speaking. While legally independent since 2020, the networks maintain a deep technical and convivial user experience integration that sets TON apart from other blockchain platforms. One might call it a clever arrangement.

Over 100 million Telegram users activated TON Wallet in 2024, representing a full 10% of the messaging platform’s billion-user base. This is not merely about convenience – it fundamentally alters the manner in which individuals engage with blockchain technology. Sending cryptocurrency becomes as intuitive as forwarding a message, eliminating the learning curve that typically hinders crypto adoption. It’s rather… efficient, wouldn’t you say?

This integration reached a new milestone in July of 2025 when TON Wallet enabled native token swaps through STON.fi for 87 million U.S. Telegram users. They can now exchange tokens directly within their wallet interface, powered by STON.fi’s Omniston liquidity aggregator, which carefully routes transactions to ensure optimal rates. Thus, users benefit from competitive pricing and minimal slippage while maintaining the security and transparency of decentralised protocols. This collaboration exemplifies how DeFi projects are acting in concert to make decentralised finance more accessible and user-friendly. In this instance, protocols function as a unified ecosystem rather than isolated competitors vying for market share. This integration transforms DeFi interaction from a complex, multi-step process into something as simple as sending a message-a crucial advancement for mainstream adoption that positions TON’s ecosystem at the forefront of accessible decentralised finance. 🎉

This Telegram integration offers both opportunities and, naturally, dependencies. The effortless user experience grants unparalleled access to mainstream audiences, but it also implies that TON’s success remains, to a degree, intertwined with the continued operation and regulatory adherence of Telegram. It’s a calculated risk that has, thus far, proven remarkably astute, though one that necessitates continuous management as both platforms evolve.

Building Institutional-Grade DeFi Infrastructure

Beyond attracting users, TON has dedicated itself to constructing a legitimate financial infrastructure capable of supporting long-term institutional acceptance. The ecosystem’s Total Value Locked (TVL) expanded from a humble $50-60 million at the commencement of 2024 to approximately $350-400 million in 2025, reflecting both user confidence and demonstrable utility (Figure 2).

Figure 2: TVL on TON blockchain

The DeFi landscape centres around several key protocols that prioritise security and prudent regulatory compliance (Figure 3). Tonstakers dominates liquid staking with an 80% market share, managing over 66 million staked TON tokens across 100,000+ users, thereby enabling users to earn staking rewards without relinquishing liquidity. The protocol’s 94.5/100 CertiK audit score and $100,000 bug bounty program further furnish it with institutional credibility.

STON.fi serves as the ecosystem’s primary automated market maker (AMM) with sophisticated Omniston liquidity aggregation technology. Its native integration within Telegram comes as no surprise, for the protocol accounts for approximately 80% of all traders on TON and has processed over $6 billion in total trading volume across 27 million operations since its inception, serving 5.5 million users.

Figure 3: DeFi TVL on TON (in $ millions)

TON’s stablecoin infrastructure has developed through strategic alliances rather than, shall we say, overly ambitious protocols. TON’s incorporation of USDT and gold-backed XAUT provides essential price stability, with over $10 million initially authorized for the network. While adoption remains, as yet, modest, this conservative approach underscores TON’s emphasis on established and widely accepted practices over impulsive expansion. 🧐

Importantly, the ecosystem has continued to diversify beyond fiat-backed instruments: Ethena’s launch of its synthetic stablecoin USDe and its staked variant introduces a value-accruing, DeFi-native element to TON’s stablecoin mix, complementing the prudent foundation set by Tether. Institutional validation extends beyond token integrations alone.

Copper’s custody services and Trail of Bits’ security auditing anchor the network with the credibility that serious investors require.

Technical Foundation and Security Model

TON’s technical architecture strikes a delicate balance between scalability, security, and decentralisation through several innovative approaches. The network’s proof-of-stake consensus distributes validation across hundreds of nodes globally, providing reasonable decentralisation without the exorbitant energy consumption of proof-of-work systems.

The platform’s sharding architecture theoretically enables processing of millions of transactions per second, though current demand remains well below these limits with about 20-50 TPS. More importantly, the network has demonstrated stability under real-world stress, handling massive user influxes during viral gaming periods without significant performance degradation or fee increases (Figure 4).

Figure 4: TON daily transactions

Security implementation prioritises formal verification and thorough testing over experimental features. Major protocols undergo rigorous auditing, while partnerships with established security firms provide ongoing monitoring and incident response capabilities. The approach may be conservative, but it has successfully prevented the high-profile exploits that have plagued many other DeFi ecosystems.

User sovereignty remains fundamental to TON’s design. Importantly, the Telegram integration preserves the fundamental security model of blockchain networks. Telegram-based Web3 apps can be self-custodial, meaning users themselves – not intermediaries – safeguard their private keys and assets, with no central authority able to freeze accounts or reverse transactions. Consequently, TON achieves a seamless user experience while upholding the non-custodial principles that define legitimate blockchain networks.

Market Position and Competitive Dynamics

TON occupies a rather singular position in the blockchain landscape, uniting mainstream accessibility through Telegram with increasing institutional support. That credibility received a considerable boost in July 2025 with a $400 million token round led by Kingsway Capital, assisted by Sequoia Capital and Ribbit Capital. Later in the year, Verb Technology committed $713 million to acquiring 5% of TON’s circulating supply, establishing a hybrid treasury model reminiscent of Bitcoin’s institutional adoption strategy. This move was cemented by the company’s rebranding to TON Strategy Co. (TSC), a $558 million Nasdaq-listed entity, marking a new milestone for institutional acceptance.

This institutional adoption manifests in concrete metrics: TON attracted $540 million in USDT volume by Q2 2025, demonstrating actual institutional capital deployment rather than mere speculative interest. However, this positioning also presents particular challenges and competitive dynamics, as the network must balance its mainstream accessibility with the demands of institutional users.

Competition from both established DeFi networks and emergent platforms presents ongoing hurdles. While TON’s integration advantages are virtually impossible to replicate, other networks are developing their own user experience improvements and mainstream adoption strategies. One must acknowledge the ongoing rivalry.

Future Outlook

TON’s trajectory from a gaming-adjacent platform to a serious DeFi infrastructure represents a noteworthy accomplishment in blockchain adoption. The transition from gaming to financial services is still underway, with user engagement patterns continuing to evolve. The ecosystem’s concentration in a few key protocols, while efficient, raises questions about diversity and resilience.

Attracting skilled developers and innovative protocols will be vital for maintaining competitive momentum. The current focus on user experience may need to be balanced with more daring innovation to compete with established DeFi networks. The foundation appears sturdy, but the execution of the next growth phase will be crucial. 🧐

For users and investors, TON presents a unique proposition that blends successful user adoption with developing institutional infrastructure. The risks are genuine, particularly regarding platform dependencies and ecosystem concentration, but so are the opportunities for a network that has already demonstrated its ability to connect mainstream and institutional audiences.

2025-09-19 08:19