Key Takeaways:
- Tether’s Expansion on TON: Tether has issued $60 million of its USDT stablecoin on The Open Network (TON) following a new partnership, making TON the 11th-largest blockchain host for Tether.
- Innovative Payment Integration: The collaboration with TON allows for instant and free cross-border payments directly through Telegram, aiming to make transactions as easy as sending a text message.
- Market Impact and Stability: The issuance of USDT on TON contributed to a 22% surge in Toncoin’s price, although it later stabilized. Tether remains the dominant player in the stablecoin market with a 69% market share.
Just two days after announcing their partnership at the Token2049 event in Dubai, Tether has successfully issued $60 million of its USDT stablecoin on The Open Network (TON), now ranking it as the 11th-largest blockchain host for Tether among 16.
The partnership, revealed on April 19 during the Token2049 cryptocurrency conference, marks Tether’s new venture of minting USDT directly on TON.
Tether Tokens (USD₮ and XAU₮) Launch on The Open Network (TON) @ton_blockchainhttps://t.co/TwYhMeHAZ5
— Tether (@Tether_to) April 19, 2024
Additionally, the company has expanded its offerings on TON by launching the gold-pegged stablecoin, Tether Gold (XAUT).
According to a post by the TON team, the integration facilitates instant and free cross-border payments, equating the ease to sending a text message to Telegram’s 900 million users.
Already 35M USDt issued on TON.
— Paolo Ardoino 🍐 (@paoloardoino) April 21, 2024
Great start!
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino shared enthusiasm in a post on X on April 21, celebrating the initial issuance of $35 million USDT on TON, which has since grown to $60 million as per the latest figures at 11:30 pm UTC from the Tether Transparency report.
This collaboration enables Telegram users to effortlessly transfer funds through direct messages without needing a blockchain address or downloading any additional applications.
From its inception, USDT on TON is supported by fully integrated fiat on-ramps globally, with plans to introduce comprehensive global off-ramps soon, allowing for direct withdrawals to bank accounts or cards.
Despite this new milestone, the bulk of Tether’s $109.8 billion in circulation remains on the Tron network, holding $57.8 billion, followed by Ethereum with $51 billion—a figure that’s declining as Tether diversifies its blockchain affiliations to combat high network fees on Ethereum.
Tether Tokens USD₮ and XAU₮ are now live on the Ton blockchain & available in the @telegram wallet. pic.twitter.com/9KdoKT19Jc
— Tether (@Tether_to) April 19, 2024
Tether continues to dominate the stablecoin market with a 69% share of the $159.5 billion total market cap, as reported by CoinGecko. Circle follows with a 21% market share for its USD Coin, which has $33.7 billion in circulation.
Following the announcement, the price of Toncoin surged by 22% before stabilizing, currently trading down 1.6% at $6.13, according to the latest data from CoinGecko.