Toncoin Gram Wallet Pledged for Over 1 Billion Telegram Users

Toncoin News

Telegram will build a native, non-custodial crypto wallet into its app this summer, founder Pavel Durov pledged, putting self-custody digital assets in front of the messaging platform's more than one billion users at once. The wallet is tied to Toncoin (TON), the token that anchors the network Telegram now develops. Durov said the integration would enable instant, zero-fee transfers directly inside chats and public channels, without users leaving the app. Crucially, users retain control of their private keys, meaning Telegram will not custody the assets. The move deepens the platform's push to fold on-chain payments into everyday messaging for a mass mobile audience.

The pledge triggered an immediate rally in the token. Following Durov's post, the asset — recently rebranded to Gram — jumped more than 8%, climbing from roughly $1.4362 to about $1.5554 before paring gains to trade near $1.5203. The sharp move underscored how sensitive the altcoin remains to Telegram-related catalysts, given the network's direct dependence on the platform's adoption. Traders who chased the initial spike saw part of those gains unwind within hours, a pattern typical of announcement-driven runs that lack immediate on-chain confirmation. The reaction nonetheless reflected renewed speculation that a billion-user wallet could reshape demand for the token.

Durov framed the initiative in sweeping terms, describing it as the largest rollout of a non-custodial crypto wallet in human history. Writing on his personal Telegram channel, he said instant, zero-fee transactions for over a billion users were about to become reality, though he offered few technical specifics beyond the summer timeline. The characterization positions Telegram as a potential distribution channel rivaling established exchanges and standalone wallet apps. By embedding self-custody directly into a mainstream messaging product, the company aims to lower the onboarding friction — separate app downloads, seed-phrase setup and complex first-use steps — that has long constrained crypto adoption.

The wallet plan follows a significant governance shift for the network. Last month, Toncoin rebranded to Gram, cementing a transition that began in May when Telegram took over development of The Open Network. In that restructuring, the platform replaced the TON Foundation as the network's lead steward and primary validator, consolidating control over the chain's direction. The rebrand realigns the token's identity with the Gram name Telegram originally chose in 2018. The tighter integration between the messaging company and the underlying blockchain gives the token an unusually direct link to a single corporate operator — a structure that concentrates both upside potential and centralization risk.

Telegram is not starting from zero. The company already operates an in-app self-custody product called Wallet, which reported more than 150 million users earlier this year. That existing footprint gives the new native wallet a substantial base to build on and signals genuine demand for in-app crypto tools among Telegram's audience. Folding a native token wallet across all of the company's apps could push those figures far higher. Analysts highlight that embedded wallets may ease the user-acquisition problem that decentralized finance has wrestled with for years, letting developers distribute services to a far broader mainstream audience through a familiar interface.

The ambition also revives a project Telegram first chased in 2018, when it launched the TON initiative and sold Gram tokens, only to abandon the effort after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission forced it to halt the sale for violating securities law. That history looms over the new rollout, as does a fresh set of risks: security vulnerabilities, an expected rise in fraud attempts and blind-signing scams, and potential objections from regulators across multiple jurisdictions. The choice of underlying blockchain, the fee model and compliance with varied legal frameworks will determine whether a mass-market, self-custody wallet can scale without repeating past regulatory setbacks.

COINOTAG's proprietary 42-indicator composite S/R scoring engine rates the $1.8270 resistance at 59/100, driven by the confluence of the Donchian Upper band and the Fibonacci 0.618 retracement, with the token trading near $1.80 as of writing. Below spot, the engine scores the $1.6060 pivot at 70/100 (Pivot Point, SMA 100, Ichimoku Tenkan) and deeper support at $1.5690 at 68/100 (EMA 200, SMA 200). Derivatives are strikingly neutral: funding sits at 0.0000% with open interest flat, signaling no leveraged conviction either way, while an RSI of 44.50 and a sideways trend echo the caution. A Fear & Greed reading of 25 (Extreme Fear) amid broader bear-market hesitancy, with Bitcoin dominance at 69.9%, frames the tape. A bullish break needs $1.8270; losing $1.5690 invalidates the thesis.