On May 30, 2019, Telegram introduced a simplified version of the platform. Initially, the TON project had to be implemented before October 31, 2019. However, it has some problems with SEC. Investors decided to wait for the launch despite all the negative news.
The architecture of the TON platform contains several levels of protection against attempts to establish any state regulation over it. What other features does the project have, and how will it be implemented? What is GRAM? When will GRAM coin sales begin? Find out the answers to these questions in the new article by Changelly!
Telegram Open Network Development History
In 2018, Telegram announced an ICO (Initial Coin Offering) to terminate it shortly after that. Telegram had already raised enough capital in private financing rounds. Investors provided a whopping 1.7 billion in Telegram’s crypto network.
Already at the beginning of 2018, unknown scammers tried to fool Internet users by offering them to buy the Telegram messenger with the GRAM cryptocurrency, which did not exist yet. The letter, allegedly signed by the creators of the Telegram Open Network (TON) blockchain system, contains a link to the fake project website. Attackers suggested users register on it and be the first to purchase 30 thousand GRAM tokens for $5 thousand.
In February, Pavel Durov reported to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on attracting $850 million from 81 investors.
In March 2018, Telegram raised $ 850 million from 94 investors in the second round of closed ICO. Already in May, it became known that Telegram refused to conduct public ICO.
Telegram launched in test mode its blockchain platform Telegram Open Network (TON) in late autumn last year. At that time, the TON Virtual Machine (TVM) smart contract mechanism was 95% ready. The development of the protocols and network of the TON blockchain has also been completed.
In March 2019, launched by the cryptocurrency exchange Xena Exchange, the derivative for the Gram token for the month rose in price from $2.2 to $8.25. The price increase is due to the interest of buyers in the project of Pavel Durov.
In August, investor patience began to run out. Investors in the Telegram Open Network (TON) ICO campaign began to get rid of project tokens by selling them on the secondary market. The price for one Gram token in the secondary market ranges between $1.60 and $2. The benefit for sellers is obvious, given that during the first and second rounds, the cost of the coin was $0.37 and $1.33, respectively.
At the same time, following the agreement, investors of the TON ICO campaign are forbidden to sell or otherwise transfer the rights to tokens until the network officially launches. Violation of this condition may lead to the cancellation of allocation so that buyers in the secondary market risk, not seeing the purchased tokens.
In August, it became known that the non-custodian multicurrency crypto wallet Button Wallet added in test mode support for the Telegram Open Network (TON). The service offers for free to users who activate the application 6.6 Gram test tokens.
In early September, the Telegram Open Network developers reached the final stage before the full-scale launch of the project, introducing software for nodes and a block browser for the test network.
In October, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission questioned the legality of the project and demanded a stop on the TON messenger blockchain project, as well as a ban on the distribution of Gram tokens. The regulator considers them to be unregistered securities.
Telegram did not agree with the position of the regulator, stressing that they registered duly closed placement of tokens that are not securities. However, the company decided to postpone the launch of the blockchain project.
Telegram investors refused to demand a refund and agreed to postpone the launch of the platform until April.
The developers of the Telegram Open Network (TON) network published the first version of the rules for using the Gram token wallet, in which the participation of the Telegram messenger team in the development of the project was officially confirmed for the first time.