Tether, the stablecoin operator, is deepening its partnership with Telegram’s Web3 ecosystem by introducing its US dollar-pegged stablecoin, USDT, on The Open Network (TON). In addition, Tether will also launch its gold-pegged stablecoin, Tether Gold (XAUT), on TON. The announcement was made by Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino and Telegram founder Pavel Durov during their keynote speeches at the Token2049 crypto event in Dubai. Tether also revealed its plans to restructure and introduce four new business divisions: Tether Data, Tether Finance, Tether Power, and Tether Edu.
Ardoino stated that TON and Tether share a common vision of an open and decentralized internet, as well as a borderless financial system. He believes that the launch of USDT and XAUT on TON will facilitate seamless value transfer, increase activity and liquidity, and offer users a financial experience comparable to that of the traditional financial system. This development signifies another significant step in Tether’s expansion across various blockchains, bringing its coverage to a total of 15 chains, including Tron and Ethereum.
This milestone is also crucial for the TON network, as its native token, Toncoin (TON), surpassed Dogecoin (DOGE) to become the ninth-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization on April 16. The announcement highlighted that the TON blockchain works in conjunction with Telegram, which means that USDT and XAUT on TON have the potential to provide a simple and borderless experience for peer-to-peer payments to Telegram’s estimated user base of over 900 million global users.
One noteworthy aspect of USDT’s launch on TON is that the TON ecosystem enables transfers between fiat and cryptocurrencies and aims to surpass traditional finance in terms of efficiency and user-friendliness, according to Jack Booth, the marketing head of the TON Foundation.
It is worth mentioning that this is not the first time the two ecosystems have intersected. Since at least 2023, USDT has been among the default cryptocurrencies available on Wallet, a third-party custodial wallet accessible to Telegram users, alongside other coins like Bitcoin (BTC) and Toncoin. Currently, the Tron network serves as the default blockchain for USDT on Wallet, facilitating TRC-20 USDT. However, with the introduction of TON-based USDT on Wallet, users will have another option, while TRC-20 USDT will remain available.
The Tron blockchain currently accounts for the largest share of issued USDT, according to data from Tether.
This news comes a few weeks after Tether introduced a recovery tool in March 2024, allowing users to migrate USDT between different blockchains. On March 4, USDT reached an all-time high market capitalization of $100 billion.