Tether announced its intention to enhance peer-to-peer payments on Telegram by expanding its dollar-pegged USDT and gold-backed XAUT tokens to the TON network to accommodate Telegram’s massive user base of 900 million users.
Originally launched by Telegram, the TON network has experienced rapid expansion driven by incentives for Telegram users. Tether, which has a market capitalization of $108 billion USDT, has revealed plans to natively integrate its dollar-pegged stablecoin and gold-backed XAUT into The Open Network (TON), a blockchain closely linked to messaging app Telegram. .
Tether’s transparency page shows that $10 million worth of USDT has been accepted on the TON blockchain, with $3 million already minted. This strategic move aims to promote “borderless peer-to-peer payments” among Telegram’s broad user base and strengthen the burgeoning TON ecosystem, allowing users to utilize stablecoins in decentralized finance (DeFi) applications.
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino emphasized the importance of this expansion, saying that the launch of USDT and XAUT on TON will enable seamless value transfers. The move aims to increase activity and liquidity while providing users with a financial experience similar to that found in traditional financial systems.
The open network operates as a decentralized layer 1 network, initially led by Telegram but operating independently due to regulatory issues. In recent months, incentives for Telegram user adoption have led to a surge in the TON ecosystem, with monthly active addresses exceeding 1.7 million, up from less than 100,000 six months ago.
Despite the TON token temporarily falling by up to 15% following the announcement, it has maintained a 7% gain over the past 24 hours and has tripled in price this year, reaching a market capitalization of nearly $25 billion. Telegram’s cryptocurrency wallet supports a variety of blockchains for deposits and withdrawals, and has drastically reduced transaction fees to encourage TON adoption.
Following the announcement, Ramp Network, a fintech company that connects cryptocurrencies with traditional banking infrastructure, announced plans to facilitate USDT purchases and withdrawals on TON. Ramp Network plans to integrate with third-party wallets that support TON-based assets, starting with TON to USDT fiat conversion on its platform, and later integrate off-ramp functionality.
Szymon Sypniewicz, CEO of Ramp Network, has clearly stated the company’s vision: “Cryptocurrency trading should be as simple as text messaging,” and sees the potential to improve the lives of millions of people within the TON ecosystem through accessible, low-cost cryptocurrency trading. emphasized.
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