Toncoin Chain Thrives Despite Telegram Crackdown

Toncoin (TON) continues to demonstrate strong growth, even after Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov’s arrest at the end of August. The network has shown resilience, overcoming two network outages while distributing the Dogs (DOGS) token. Despite these challenges, Toncoin’s user base has expanded, reaching over 7 million active monthly users.

Toncoin’s growing user base

Toncoin’s user base has grown significantly, although it still lags behind some competitors. With more than 7 million active monthly users, Toncoin is establishing itself as a significant player in the blockchain space. This growth has allowed Toncoin to surpass Arbitrum, which saw its active user count drop to 2.9 million, down from a peak of 9.8 million. 

Toncoin is emerging as a successful layer-1 network despite not being compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine, which limits its access to Ethereum users and liquidity. The network’s growing user base now positions Toncoin similarly to Solana’s early 2024 trajectory, which currently boasts over 40 million active users.

Drivers of Toncoin adoption

Several factors are driving Toncoin’s adoption. Tap-to-earn games incorporate familiar Web2 gameplay features and have maintained high activity levels. Social media groups within the Toncoin community, particularly those on Telegram, have played a crucial role in organizing daily challenges that attract users. 

The recent DOGS token distribution significantly impacted the network, boosting the number of active wallets to over 700,000 daily. The Toncoin community’s engagement is further strengthened by leading Telegram groups, such as Hamster Kombat and TapSwap, which have been pivotal in maintaining user interest. The ongoing success of tap-to-earn games and the influence of Telegram advertising, which has been active since March, continue to drive Toncoin’s growth.

The DOGS token launch also resulted in a surge of new users, contributing to Toncoin’s highest activity levels. The community’s anticipation remains high as the network prepares for its second major airdrop related to Hamster Kombat. The upcoming airdrop, scheduled for September 26, follows a crackdown on Sybil users, with over 50% of point-farming accounts being reset. Despite these challenges, the Hamster Kombat game is expected to draw significant attention, competing with other meme tokens and potentially converting some of Telegram’s 54 million subscribers into active crypto traders and investors.

Challenges in value retention

Despite Toncoin’s growing user base and on-chain activity, the network has faced challenges in retaining its value. The most notable outflow occurred on August 26, when over $3.13 million in value was withdrawn from Toncoin’s decentralized trading pools. This outflow contributed to a decline in the network’s total value locked, which has dropped from nearly $900 million at its peak to $340.7 million.

Toncoin’s decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols have struggled, partly due to the network’s inability to host versions of popular DeFi apps like Uniswap or Aave. Instead, Toncoin relies on native decentralized exchanges (DEXs) and protocols to maintain its ecosystem. The project’s native token, TON, recently faced a price drop, falling below $5, with a market cap of $12.8 billion. Despite these setbacks, TON remains a popular token and continues to attract attention, even becoming a target for hackers.

While Toncoin has faced challenges in value retention, its growing user base and community engagement suggest that the network remains a significant player in blockchain. As Toncoin continues to expand, its future success will depend on its ability to overcome these challenges and maintain its momentum.

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