Toncoin (TON) surged sharply this week after Telegram founder Pavel Durov announced that Telegram will replace the TON Foundation as the primary steward of the network, step in as the largest validator, and cut transaction fees by roughly sixfold. The market reacted quickly: TON’s price climbed from around $1.30 on May 3 to about $2.50 within three days, and it rose more than 30% over a single 24-hour period.
The price spike coincided with a notable uptick in online discussion about the token.
TON Chatter Goes Vertical
On-chain analytics provider Santiment reported that social activity around TON surged significantly. Mentions reached 91 in a single four-hour window on May 5, roughly six times the normal level, and remained elevated in subsequent intervals. The primary catalyst for this attention was Telegram’s decision to assume direct control over validation and the future direction of the protocol.
Santiment observed that while a similar centralization move by other projects, such as Arbitrum, had previously raised governance concerns, the market has so far reacted positively to Telegram’s announcement despite the resemblance in approach.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Durov confirmed that fees on the TON network have been cut by about six times and are now effectively close to zero. He also stated that Telegram will become the largest validator on the network. According to his post, the next phases will include releasing new developer tools and deploying performance upgrades aimed at strengthening the network and improving the ecosystem for builders and users.
The ton.org homepage has been updated to a simple landing message that reads,
“ton.org is now controlled by MTONGA. Expect changes soon.”
Previous Upgrades
Telegram’s latest intervention builds on developments Durov flagged last month, when he said the project would move toward transactions with near-zero fees and fixed costs independent of network load. That announcement set expectations for reduced fees and broader accessibility to on-chain activity on TON.
Earlier upgrades to the network also contributed to the current momentum. On April 10, the TON network deployed a significant consensus update known as Catchain 2.0. That upgrade trimmed transaction finality from roughly ten seconds to about one second by adopting a revised consensus mechanism that supports faster confirmations. The change raised block production throughput, which affected validator rewards and altered staking dynamics—factors that together contributed to a higher annual inflation rate for the token.
These technical improvements, combined with Telegram’s recent governance and fee decisions, appear to have reinforced confidence among traders and developers. Faster finality, lower fees, and a commitment to deliver new developer tools all add up to a more attractive environment for dApp creators, users, and validators.
While shifting control toward a single corporate entity can prompt questions about decentralization and long-term governance, the immediate market and social response to Telegram’s move has been overwhelmingly positive. Observers will likely watch subsequent announcements and technical rollouts closely to assess how the changes affect network security, validator competition, and on-chain activity over time.
In the near term, reduced fees should encourage more transactions and user engagement, while planned performance upgrades and developer tooling could drive further ecosystem growth. Stakeholders in the TON ecosystem will be monitoring how these changes play out across metrics such as transaction volume, active addresses, validator distribution, and token inflation to determine whether the recent rally is sustainable.