Tether is deepening its integration with Telegram’s Web3 ecosystem by introducing its stablecoins, including Tether (USDT) and Tether Gold (XAUT), on The Open Network (TON).
On April 19, Tether Operations unveiled the launch of USDT and XAUT stablecoins on the TON blockchain, coinciding with keynote speeches from Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino and Telegram founder Pavel Durov at the Token2049 crypto event in Dubai.
This move aligns with Tether’s broader restructuring efforts, which include the establishment of four new business divisions: Tether Data, Tether Finance, Tether Power, and Tether Edu.
Ardoino emphasized the shared vision of an open and decentralized internet and a borderless financial system between TON and Tether.
“The launch of USDT and XAUT on TON will enable seamless value transfer, fostering increased activity and liquidity while offering users a financial experience comparable to traditional financial systems,” stated the Tether CEO.
This development signifies another step in Tether’s expansion across various blockchains, extending its reach to 15 blockchains, including Tron and Ethereum.
Additionally, this milestone holds significance for the TON network, which surpassed Dogecoin as the ninth-largest blockchain and cryptocurrency by market value on April 16.
Given that the TON blockchain collaborates with Telegram, USDT and XAUT on TON have the potential to deliver a straightforward, borderless payment experience for Telegram’s vast user base, estimated at over 900 million global users.
Jack Booth, the marketing head of the TON Foundation, highlighted the distinctive feature of USDT’s launch on TON, emphasizing the TON ecosystem’s capability to facilitate transfers between fiat and crypto. Booth expressed ambitions for TON to surpass traditional finance in efficiency and user-friendliness, stating:
“With built-in on-ramps for fiat at the launch and global off-ramps to bank cards and accounts coming soon. This will be the first time a mass audience will be able to use crypto infrastructure for global payments.”
The integration of USDT with the TON blockchain marks a significant development in the intersection of the two ecosystems. USDT has been available on Wallet, a third-party custodial wallet accessible to Telegram users, alongside other cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Toncoin, since at least 2023.
Presently, the Tron network serves as the default blockchain for USDT on Wallet, facilitating TRC-20 USDT transactions. According to Halil Mirakhmed, Wallet’s chief operating officer at Telegram, TON-based USDT will be introduced as an additional option on Wallet, alongside TRC20 USDT.
At the time of the announcement, the Tron blockchain accounted for the largest share of issued USDT, as reported by Tether transparency data.
The news comes a few weeks after Tether launched a recovery tool allowing users to migrate USDT between different blockchains in March 2024. Previously, Tether’s USDT stablecoin crossed an all-time high market cap of $100 billion on March 4.
WIF’s 13% loss is BOME’s gain – Why that’s unusual for these memecoins
BOME outshined other meme coins in the last 24 hours, while WIF’s value dropped by 13%
As the market remained bearish, most cryptos registered massive drops in their prices. Dogwifhat [WIF] was not an expectation, as it was among the top losers among meme coins.
However, BOOK OF MEME [BOME] held its ground well, as it was among the few whose price did not drop in the last 24 hours.
WIF and BOME’s divergence
WIF experienced a substantial decline in response to the bearish market conditions, with a double-digit drop that ranked among the highest among top meme coins. According to CoinMarketCap, the meme coin saw a decrease of more than 13% in the past 24 hours, trading at $2.30 with a market capitalization exceeding $2.29 billion.
Contrary to the trend, BOME demonstrated a different trajectory, experiencing a value increase of over 2% during the same period. At the time of reporting, the meme coin was trading at $0.008789, with a market cap surpassing $484 million.
Despite WIF maintaining dominance over BOME in terms of social volume, analysis of Santiment’s data by AMBCrypto revealed that both meme coins exhibited negative Weighted Sentiment. This indicated that bearish sentiment prevailed in the market for both WIF and BOME, despite the recent price uptick observed in BOME.
