The overlooked TON is making a comeback through NFTs
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The overlooked TON is making a comeback through NFTs
Telegram is also jumping on the "QQ Show" trend?
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsAuthor: Cookie, BlockBeats
After the wave of "TON mini-games" faded out, the TON ecosystem gradually slipped from the spotlight of market attention. Unexpectedly, this time TON has once again become a focal point—not due to games, but another concept long neglected by the market: NFTs.
On January 1st of this year, Telegram rolled out its first update of the year. In this opening update, previous "gifts" received on Telegram were officially upgraded into "collectibles." These collectibles are NFTs—featuring randomness and rarity like traditional NFTs—and can be transferred to other Telegram users or traded on NFT marketplaces.
In terms of trading volume, Telegram "gifts" began gaining momentum around mid-May and have recently experienced explosive growth. An increasing number of related discussions on Twitter reflect the recent breakout effect of Telegram "gifts."
From June 7th to June 9th, daily trading volume for Telegram “gifts” nearly doubled each day, rising from close to $3 million to over $9 million
Comparing NFT trading volumes across blockchains, since mid-May, TON has consistently surpassed Solana and firmly secured second place in overall NFT trading volume.
In the past few days, TON even outperformed Ethereum, achieving a single-day trading volume of nearly $10 million—about three times that of Ethereum.
On June 9th, Telegram founder Pavel Durov personally tweeted about Telegram "gifts," highlighting several series that had significantly appreciated over the past month, and noted that TON had achieved a milestone by surpassing Ethereum in daily NFT trading volume.
In the race among NFT marketplaces, TON's largest NFT marketplace, TONNEL, has seen its daily trading volume exceed OpenSea’s over the past two days. Other TON NFT platforms such as Portals and Getgems have also reached trading volumes comparable to Blur and Magic Eden in the same period. Considering that TON NFT markets operate solely on one chain while OpenSea supports multiple chains, it is fair to say that TON currently stands alone at the forefront of the NFT market.
Looking at transaction data from Getgems, the current on-chain marketplace, Plush Pepes remains the undisputed leader among Telegram "gifts." Maintaining a floor price of 5,100 TON (approximately $16,800), it also leads all other "gift" series in weekly trading volume—an example of being "more expensive, yet more sought-after."
All "gift" collections appearing on the weekly trading leaderboard show upward trends in the chart above. The runner-up position is less clear-cut—currently Durov's Caps holds the spot based on trading volume and floor price, though others may soon overtake it.
The TON NFT market boom is essentially driven by Telegram "gifts." But how did this happen? How does it differ from the NFTs we know? And what do NFT whales like @BitCloutCat think about it?
Development of TON NFTs
On January 24th, Telegram officially enabled users to move their "gifts" onto the TON blockchain. From then on, users could send "gifts" to the TON chain for trading, marking the formal integration of "gifts" into the TON ecosystem.
Telegram further updated the NFT-enabled "gifts" to add social features. With this update, "gifts" became wearable badges displayed after a user’s name in their Telegram profile.
On February 14th, Telegram launched nine new limited-edition "gift" series, which sold out within hours and generated over $5 million in sales.
On March 7th, Telegram further enhanced the social functionality of "gifts." This update allowed users not only to display one "gift" next to their name but also to showcase six "gifts" on their profile cover.
On May 8th, Telegram upgraded its built-in "gift" trading feature to support transactions using "Stars"—the in-app currency within Telegram.
On June 9th, Telegram founder Pavel Durov took to Twitter to promote Telegram "gifts," mentioning several series that had surged in value over the past month, and confirmed that TON had surpassed Ethereum in daily NFT trading volume on that day.
Differences Between TON NFTs and Traditional NFTs
1. Different Primary Project Types
Familiar NFT projects typically include PFPs (profile pictures), token airdrop vouchers, access passes, and game items. However, in this current wave of TON NFT activity, the dominant force is clearly Telegram "gifts." In Web2 terms, these are better understood as digital avatars—akin to QQ Show.
Looking at Getgems’ weekly trading volume rankings, even non-"gift" entries like "Anonymous Telegram Number" (ranked #1) and "Telegram Usernames" (#3) follow the same "QQ logic": the former offers Telegram accounts without phone number binding, while the latter provides unique usernames similar to Twitter handles—a premium number, a distinctive alias.
Whether it's Telegram "gifts," premium numbers, or unique usernames, they are all officially issued by Telegram and offer real utility within the app. Community-driven PFPs and other NFT types on TON have yet to gain traction.
2. Different Trading Models
In primary market purchases, Telegram "gifts" are officially released in surprise drops and purchased using "Stars"—an in-app purchase model that differs significantly from typical on-chain minting.
Notably, the reveal process for new "gift" series is unique and comes with a long lock-up period. Initially, newly acquired "gifts" exist in a "non-NFT blind box" state. Only when Telegram officially opens the upgrade function can holders choose to upgrade—equivalent to revealing the image and converting it into an NFT. After upgrading, there is still a 21-day waiting period before the item becomes tradable (to prevent speculation).
For secondary market trading, marketplace models fall into two categories: on-chain and off-chain. TONNEL represents the off-chain model, using intermediary bots to handle sending and receiving of "gifts," with the marketplace integrated into Telegram as a Mini App. Getgems exemplifies the on-chain model, listing all TON-based NFTs and catering more to experienced NFT users' habits.
Currently, off-chain market trading volume far exceeds on-chain. This likely reflects strong support from native Telegram users. For a long time, off-chain volume dominated by nearly tenfold. However, in recent days, on-chain trading has begun to rise, narrowing the gap—possibly signaling increased participation from crypto-native users.
3. Different Usage Methods
If you use an on-chain marketplace, the "gift" you receive exists as an on-chain NFT and must be manually claimed into your Telegram account before wearing. This extra step partly explains why off-chain marketplaces are more popular—bots can directly transfer the "gift" in an off-chain state, allowing immediate use without additional steps.
Perspective from an NFT Whale
@BitCloutCat, known as Laser Cat, shared insights in an interview with BlockBeats. He first noticed Telegram "gifts" in March when Plush Pepe—the current floor leader—was priced around 1,000 USDT. He missed the opportunity because he didn’t realize the "gifts" could now be worn as social status symbols.
After the trend picked up, he revisited the space: “It has a social use case, lets people show off—it’s basically ‘QQ Show.’ Buying in the primary market with Stars is just like using Q-coins. Plus, big names like Snoop Dogg’s official Telegram, Telegram’s founder, and Luca Netz, founder of Fat Penguins, are using them. The potential user base is broad.”
Due to the cooldown period, price discrepancies emerge between on-chain and off-chain markets: on-chain versions allow immediate resale and thus command higher prices, while off-chain versions can be used right away but remain locked for future trading.
According to Laser Cat, the main participants appear to be Russians and seasoned NFT traders, with many discussion groups in Russian. While there’s growing chatter in Chinese communities, it's still limited—making it hard to judge whether this is early or late stage. Still, he believes the project has great potential and real breakout appeal, especially since "gifts" can be directly sent to friends within Telegram—even those without crypto wallets. On the secondary market, rarer and visually appealing series have generally seen broad price increases. If creator ecosystems are opened up later, the热度 could grow even further.
Conclusion
Both Telegram "gifts" and the recent MapleStory-linked game revival have brought NFTs back into the spotlight through practical applications. Nearly four years have passed since the peak NFT summer. The term "NFT" is no longer a golden ticket for hype, but quietly, NFTs are taking on more real-world uses and proving their value on larger platforms. We hope to see more NFT applications like Telegram "gifts" emerge, bringing fresh vitality to the market.
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