Almost half a year has passed since the announcement of cooperation between The Open Network (TON) and Telegram. During this time, the ecosystem has grown and become more accessible to users of the popular messenger. However, for many crypto enthusiasts, TON is still an under-radar, non-mainstream blockchain.
We decided to explain how crypto projects use Telegram's features, introducing the main decentralised applications (DApps) in the TON ecosystem, and providing links to useful resources.
To work on TON, you need Toncoins, which you can quickly and easily buy on our website or use the widget below.
Recall that at the end of October 2023, TON set the world record for the fastest blockchain.
What are Telegram Mini Apps and how do they help crypto projects
Telegram bots are programmes that work with text commands in chats, expanding opportunities for users of the messenger. However, for a long time, they had a disadvantage in terms of interface: interaction with them was possible only through commands.
In April 2022, developers expanded the functionality of bots by adding support for web applications. They called this technology Telegram Mini Apps (TMA). In short, it allows you to launch applications with a full-fledged interface right inside the messenger.
Such possibilities turned out to be very interesting for developers as Telegram's solution serves as an alternative to Google Play and the App Store, enabling them to publish their applications without any problems.
Crypto projects find this particularly attractive due to the non-crypto-friendly policies laid out by Google and Apple. Moreover, TMAs make it easier to onboard new users who are not familiar with crypto. As you'll see next, TMAs allow users to work with DApps right inside the messenger.
TON ecosystem: main projects
Today, TON is a large and diverse ecosystem that it is impossible to cover everything in one article. We will only mention the largest and most fundamental projects.
It is curious that most of these projects are uniquely made on TON. This goes against the usual view of dApps, which tend to work on different blockchains. For example, the most popular decentralised exchange (DEX) Uniswap is available on 8 different networks.
This kind of compartmentalisation makes TON different from other blockchains. On the one hand, it allows users to go beyond established patterns, but on the other, it can be a challenge when trying to attract power from other ecosystems. However, this seems to be of little concern to the TON Foundation; their main goal is to attract new users to crypto, and they intend to do this through integration with Telegram.
There are still problems due to the lack of popular stablecoins; in fact, there are none, only wrapped versions of USDT and USDC: jUSDT and jUSDC. Unfortunately, their low liquidity makes it difficult to build a full-fledged DeFi on TON. With the growing popularity of TON, issuing companies (Tether and Circle) will likely adapt their solutions to this blockchain.
Now let's get to the projects!
Wallets
Wallets are the main way to manage your Toncoins, NFTs, and Jettons. Jetton is the common name for tokens on TON.
@Wallet and @CryptoBot are custodial wallets that work as bots in Telegram, allowing users to store and send not only TON but also USDT, BTC, and other popular cryptocurrencies to other users of the messenger.
TON Space – TMA from the developers of @Wallet, runs in the same bot and serves as a full-fledged non-custodial hot wallet for TON. It allows users to generate a new or import an existing seed phrase, manage assets, and connect to dApps.
Tonkeeper, Tonhub, and MyTonWallet are non-custodial hot wallets available for Android and iOS. Tonkeeper and MyTonWallet are also available as extensions for both browsers and desktop versions.
Other wallets can be found here.
Staking platforms
TON works on Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus mechanism. It is quite expensive to become a validator yourself, so there are services that allow users to delegate their Toncoins and receive a proportional percentage of the rewards. The protocols mentioned below are similar in functionality but may differ in rewards and fees. So, if you plan to stake your Toncoins, research the terms and conditions in detail first.
Tonstakers, bemo, Hipo, and Ton Whales are the main protocols. The approximate annual percentage yield (APY) is around 4%.
Other staking platforms can be found here.
Decentralised Exchanges (DEXs)
Decentralised exchanges allow trading of jettons and provide liquidity. STON.fi and DeDust are the largest DEXs on TON, with Total Value Locked (TVL) of $8.3 million and $7.1 million, respectively. They are similar to each other and to PancakeSwap or Uniswap in terms of major features.
Storm Trade is the first and only DEX on TON that allows you to trade leveraged perpetual futures on different assets. It can be compared with well-known protocols such as dYdX or GMX. The project is currently running the "Eye of the Storm'' campaign, in which participants will receive an airdrop of STORM tokens for activity. Also, pre-launch trading on Notcoin futures has recently been added.
By the way, STON.fi, DeDust, and Storm Trade have TMA, so you can trade assets without leaving the Telegram messenger.
Other DEXs can be found here.
NFT marketplaces
NFT marketplaces are needed for buying and selling, auctioning, and launching NFT collections. Getgems and TON Diamonds are two of the largest NFT marketplaces on TON. Getgems is more suitable for regular users and projects, while TON Diamonds focuses on digital art and auctions of works by popular artists.
Other NFT services can be found here.
Games
With fast and cheap transactions, TON is attractive for gaming projects. Let's talk about three of the most popular ones.
Notcoin is the biggest hype this year. The simple clicker has managed to attract almost 26 million players to date. All the excitement for the project is built on the expectation of airdrop, which can be earned for clicks on the phone screen or by performing various tasks related to getting to know TON and other projects on it. This game is a great example of using TMA for crypto projects.
Punk City is a game similar to "Rock Paper Scissors" in mechanics. Each player has their own character that can be upgraded along with weapons to fight others in arenas. You can play for free or bet in Toncoins and PUNK tokens.
Fanton is an NFT game in the fantasy football genre. In it, you can build a team of football players, trade NFT cards, participate in tournaments, and win Toncoins or project tokens FNTF.
Other TON games can be found here.
Useful resources for further dive in TON
At the end, we decided to leave links to useful resources that will help you further explore TON and the projects on it.
Community Bot allows different projects to launch their campaigns to attract new users or for activities among their existing audience. We wrote more about it in the article about TON Winter Fest. This TMA is the starting point for finding projects on TON with airdrops.
Tonviewer and Tonscan are blockchain explorers where you can analyse transactions, wallets, and so on.
DYOR Ninja is an analogue of CoinMarketCap, but only for TON. Here, you can research price changes and main information about jettons.
re:doubt is a service that allows you to make and share visualisations of blockchain data in the form of dashboards. It is similar to Dune Analytics but works only with TON.
Telegram Apps Center and ton.app are catalogues of TON-related projects. Telegram Apps Center works as TMA, while ton.app is a separate site.
We advise you to familiarise yourself with the TON ecosystem and try it out for yourself. However, as with any crypto project, you need to be careful with your funds and remember basic instructions on how to avoid scams.
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