A group of investment funds, including Sequoia Capital and Ribbit, has acquired over $400 million worth of Toncoin, according to the TON Foundation.
The TON blockchain benefits from its integration with Telegram, which has over one billion users, facilitating widespread adoption of web3 applications.
Despite market volatility, Toncoin remains among the top 20 global cryptocurrencies with a market capitalization of $9 billion, driven by popular mini-apps and games.
Major investors are betting on the potential of TON
The TON Foundation announced that a group of investment funds, including Sequoia Capital, Ribbit, Benchmark, and Kingsway, has acquired over $400 million worth of Toncoin, the native cryptocurrency of the TON blockchain. Instead of investing in the form of stocks or cash, these investors chose to directly place their capital into Toncoin.
A blockchain at the heart of the Telegram ecosystem
TON (The Open Network) is becoming a key infrastructure for mini-applications integrated into Telegram, one of the most popular messaging platforms in the world. With over one billion users and growing adoption of web3 functionalities, Telegram presents a unique opportunity for massive implementation of digital assets.
According to the TON Foundation, the TON blockchain now has over 40 million active users and 121 million unique holders of Toncoin, indicating a thriving ecosystem.
Sequoia Capital: a bet on the future
Among the investors, Sequoia Capital stands out for its enthusiasm for the project. Shaun Maguire, a partner at the fund, praised the synergy between the TON team’s expertise and Telegram’s massive distribution:
The TON team is the best in the world at the intersection of consumer product design and crypto infrastructure. Combined with Telegram’s global reach, we are excited to see where this will lead.
In addition to Sequoia, other strategic investors such as Vy Capital, Draper Associates, Libertus Capital, CoinFund, Hypersphere, SkyBridge, and Karatage are also participating in this funding.
Sustained excitement despite market volatility
The interest of venture capitalists in Toncoin is not new. In 2023, Pantera Capital had already made two separate investments in the asset. Yat Siu, co-founder of Animoca Brands, revealed that his company started buying Toncoin when its price was still below $1.
Although its price reached a peak of $8 in 2024, Toncoin is currently trading around $3.75, with a market capitalization exceeding $9 billion, placing it among the top 20 global cryptocurrencies.
Telegram: an accelerator of massive adoption
The growth of the TON ecosystem has been largely driven by the increasing popularity of mini-apps and games integrated into Telegram. Phenomena like Notcoin and Hamster Kombat, clicker games that attracted millions of users, have significantly boosted engagement on the blockchain.
