Will the TON ecosystem enter a significant growth cycle?
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Will the TON ecosystem enter a significant growth cycle?
With the support of a global user base of 900 million, how has TON's ecosystem earned Binance's favor?
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsAuthor: Willson Lee, Core Contributor at Biteye
Editor: Crush, Core Contributor at Biteye
With Binance listing multiple TON-based tokens in recent months, market enthusiasm for this ecosystem has surged.
From mini-program games to payment bots, more and more users are pouring in. Can the TON ecosystem break through its current bottlenecks and achieve sustainable growth? In this article, Biteye dives deep into the future potential of the TON ecosystem—what to expect in the short term, and in the long run. Welcome to read on!
01 Background: The Wave of Listings in the TON Ecosystem
In this market cycle, investor sentiment against high FDV, low-circulating "VC coins" has been widespread. As a top-tier exchange, Binance announced in June this year that it would open its listing program to more mid- and low-market-cap projects, aligning with market trends.
Among the series of mid- and small-cap projects listed, TON-based tokens such as $NOT, $TON, $DOGS, $CATI, and $HMSTR have drawn significant attention—and some controversy—while simultaneously igniting the Telegram mini-program sector.
$NOT is the token of Notcoin, a Tap-to-Earn mini-game. Telegram users simply enter the Notcoin channel and tap the screen to earn $NOT.
This "foolproof" mechanic enabled Notcoin to go viral across Telegram. Since launching on January 1, 2024, Notcoin has become one of the most popular and highly engaged channels on Telegram, boasting over 30 million participants and daily active peaks exceeding 5 million.
Given its simple and direct gameplay, many users were stunned when Binance announced the listing of $NOT in May: “This is actually possible?” Amid widespread surprise, investors began taking notice of the Ton ecosystem—and jumping in headfirst.
Source: https://www.cryptotimes.io/2024/05/16/notcoin-launches-on-ton-blockchain-with-80b-token-airdrop/
Following Notcoin’s market explosion and massive user influx, both TON ecosystem projects and users have grown rapidly. In August, Binance successively listed spot trading for $TON and $DOGS. By September, it added $CATI and $HMSTR.
Unlike the others, $DOGS is a pure meme coin. Its black-and-white dog design was inspired by Telegram founder Pavel Durov, who drew the iconic dog Spotty during a charity auction supporting an orphanage.
$DOGS offered an airdrop open to all Telegram users, with points allocated based on account registration duration and activity level. After eligibility checks opened, users could continue earning points by checking in and completing tasks, with final point totals determining their airdrop size.
A total of 42.2 million users qualified for the $DOGS airdrop, with 17 million successfully claiming their tokens. Prior to its Binance listing, $DOGS already had 4.5 million unique token-holding addresses.
Source: https://www.cryptotimes.io/2024/08/21/dogs-coin-tge-postponed-check-out-new-date/
$CATI is the token of Catizen, a cat-themed Telegram mini-program game. Players can start instantly by launching the bot within the Telegram messaging platform.
New players receive an entry-level kitten. As gameplay progresses, additional cats will "parachute" into the player's café. If you own two cats of the same level, dragging them together upgrades them into a higher-level cat, increasing their coin-earning power.
Since launching in March 2024, Catizen has accumulated 40 million players, with 15.2 million qualifying for the airdrop.
Source: https://gam3s.gg/catizen/
$HMSTR is the token of Hamster Kombat, another clicker-style mini-game similar to Notcoin, where the core mechanic remains tapping to earn coins.
After launch, Hamster Kombat achieved astonishing user growth, registering 239 million users within three months, including approximately 100 million monthly active users.
Source: https://hamsterkombatdaily.in/blog/hamster-kombat-app/
02 Exchange Perspective: Business Growth and Market Demand
As seen from these listings, aside from $TON itself, the other four tokens are projects with straightforward participation models and massive user data. Despite some homogeneity, their repeated listing on Binance reflects various underlying rationales—but the most critical factor is that these tokens’ large holder bases bring significant business growth to Binance.
New listings drive user deposits and trading activity, directly boosting Binance’s user count and trading volume. The sustained listing momentum suggests the growth impact has been substantial.
Compared to other Web3 dApps, the user numbers of TON ecosystem tokens are nothing short of staggering. Hamster Kombat’s metrics would be impressive even by Web2 standards.
03 Why the TON Ecosystem?
The TON ecosystem’s powerful listing effect is inseparable from Telegram’s massive user base and traffic advantage.
Telegram was founded out of a need for encrypted communication, driven by its creator Pavel Durov and his brother Nikita Durov.
Now the third most downloaded instant messaging app globally, Telegram has over 950 million users, with strong adoption in India, Russia, and Southeast Asia.
Telegram has strong crypto-native roots—it was built to protect user privacy via secure communications. In 2018, Telegram launched TON and conducted an ICO to fund its development.
However, due to legal action from the SEC, Telegram was forced to halt TON’s development in 2020 and return funds to investors. Independent developers continued advancing TON after Telegram stepped back, forming a self-sustaining community.
Although Telegram and TON now operate independently, TON maintains tight technical and user integration with Telegram.
TON’s architecture integrates seamlessly with Telegram, and Telegram has adopted a welcoming stance toward embedding TON applications. This allows TON apps to plug directly into the Telegram platform—an advantage unmatched by other blockchains.
Telegram’s inherent crypto affinity means its users are more receptive to cryptocurrency. This integration offers exceptional convenience, especially for new users. Familiar surroundings significantly reduce learning curves, greatly improving user conversion rates.
Studies estimate that around 10%–15% of Telegram users may already be interested in or familiar with crypto.
Based on 950 million users, this translates to a potential crypto audience of between 95 million and 140 million. For these users, the seamless integration of TON and Telegram represents a highly efficient onboarding pathway. Telegram’s crypto DNA is TON’s greatest asset.
04 Future Potential of the TON Ecosystem
The popularity of mini-programs isn't limited to games. The success of game-focused mini-apps like $NOT, $CATI, and $HMSTR has indeed brought immense user attention and activity to the TON ecosystem in the short term.
These games—from simple tapping mechanics to complex strategy and nurturing systems—have attracted vast audiences with their accessible gameplay and wealth-generation potential.
However, as Binance has already listed several such gaming tokens and more studios join the space, rising user awareness and a flood of homogeneous mini-games may lead to diminishing returns in user acquisition and conversion. The model of CEX-driven listings also faces growing challenges.
Therefore, in the short term, the path of Binance-listed mini-games on TON may encounter significant hurdles.
Source: https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/toncoin
In the long term, however, the TON ecosystem remains one of the strongest bridges linking Web2 and Web3, holding tremendous potential for mass adoption in the crypto industry.
Potential for Diversified Mini-Programs
While mini-games currently dominate attention, the potential of mini-programs extends far beyond gaming. The TON ecosystem should further explore diversity by developing more application types.
Beyond existing gaming apps, TON could expand into education, finance, social networking, and other domains. Such utility-driven mini-programs could attract broader user segments and unlock new growth vectors within Telegram’s vast user base.
As understanding of user needs deepens, we can expect a surge of diverse mini-programs—ranging from payments and social interactions to other practical tools.
Through these new applications, TON can more effectively capture Telegram’s traffic potential, delivering greater value and choice to users.
Synergy Between Payments and Bots
Beyond mini-programs, payment solutions and bots will also play key roles in the TON ecosystem.
For example, Tether has natively integrated USDT on TON, enabling users to conduct crypto transactions and payments directly within Telegram.
This seamless payment experience enhances convenience and further lowers the barrier to crypto usage.
Source: https://decrypt.co/148441/telegram-now-lets-users-pay-merchants-bitcoin-heres-how-works
Meanwhile, trading bots—already a primary method of on-chain interaction—are gaining prominence in the TON ecosystem.
These bots assist users through automated trading, information retrieval, and market analysis, enabling more efficient participation in crypto markets. When combined with mini-programs and payment functions, bots enrich user interaction, making trading and asset management easier within the TON ecosystem.
05 Conclusion and Outlook
Binance’s consecutive listings have unlocked Telegram’s treasure trove of traffic for the TON ecosystem.
Although the initial wave of simplistic mini-program hype may be fading in the short term, TON still holds unparalleled advantages and long-term potential thanks to Telegram’s massive user base and vibrant communities. It is well-positioned to drive large-scale crypto adoption. We just need patience as the market continues to explore and validate this path.
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