TON

TON is a layer-1 blockchain initially conceptualized in 2018. The blockchain uses a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism and claims to have a maximum throughput of one million transactions per second, owing to its network architecture of using two blockchains known as the master chain and the work chain, respectively. The master chain is responsible for storing information relating to the general protocol, validator, work chain, and shards along with hashes of the most recent blocks, while work chains store data of smart contract operations and value transfers, which can be also split into shards. The network’s mainnet was launched in November 2019.

TON also offers a decentralized file sharing and storage solution–TON Storage–that utilizes smart contracts to allow users to store their data in nodes and ensures that node operators are rewarded for storing data. TON Storage also enables websites to be hosted on it and launched on the blockchain without requiring a fixed IP address or a centralized domain.

It partnered with blockchain infrastructure provider Orbs to create an on-chain DAO governance platform, TON.Vote. Token holders can vote directly or delegate voting power to an active “Guardian,” and will be rewarded in proportion to their stake.

The network was initially developed by Telegram but was discontinued in May 2020 following a lawsuit from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) alleging the former to be conducting an unregistered securities offering. The TON Foundation formed by the blockchain’s community is now the steward of the network.

Key customers and partnerships

The company has partnered with Chainalysis to utilize its Crypto Incident Response Service to ensure round-the-clock support for swift fund recovery in case of hacks or exploits. It also collaborated with Transak, a provider of Web3 payment and onboarding infrastructure, to allow users to purchase TON tokens directly from fiat currencies in over 155 countries, and Polygon, a layer-2 scaling solutions provider, to build a layer-2 network for TON that will allow Ethereum developers to easily port their applications to the TON ecosystem and build new programs for Telegram's users.