Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram, recently received a massive donation from over 552,000 players of the viral Telegram-based clicker game called Notcoin. These players generously donated a portion of their in-game coins to Durov as a token of appreciation for the messaging app that hosts the crypto game. The donated haul has now increased in value to millions of dollars, and Durov has stated that he plans to hold onto the tokens until they experience a 100x increase in value.
In February, more than half a million players of Notcoin contributed a share of their in-game coins to Durov, resulting in him acquiring over 1.03 billion Not tokens, which accounts for slightly over 1% of the total Notcoin supply on The Open Network (TON). The value of these tokens currently stands at approximately $7.3 million, though it was slightly lower when Durov made the announcement.
Durov, with an estimated fortune of $15.5 billion according to Forbes, has mentioned that he is not in need of the cash and does not have any immediate plans to sell the tokens. However, he has stated that if the value of the NOT token surges to $680 million, he will sell them to acquire additional servers for Telegram, further strengthening the messaging app’s infrastructure.
Notcoin, launched as this year’s largest gaming token, debuted with a market capitalization of nearly $1.5 billion. Despite experiencing volatility in its value since launch, currently slightly above $0.007 according to CoinMarketCap, NOT ranks as the 101st most valuable cryptocurrency by market capitalization, amounting to $746 million. Notcoin aims to serve as a platform for additional games and aspires to become the “Netflix of social, viral games,” as described by co-creator Sasha Plotvinov.
Starting in November, TON Space, a self-custodial wallet, will be accessible to Telegram’s global user base without requiring any wallet registration, as an extension of the existing custodial version. However, certain jurisdictions, such as the United States, are currently excluded from the self-custodial wallet due to regulatory scrutiny. The launch of the new wallet coincides with Telegram TON Blockchain introducing a new feature allowing users to transfer Tether (USDT).
The team overseeing The Open Network (TON) blockchain has completed its transition into a Swiss non-profit organization, emphasizing the platform’s commitment to compliance and regulatory standards. With the growing popularity of Notcoin and the upcoming launch of TON Space, Telegram continues to be at the forefront of innovation in the crypto space, providing users with secure and convenient options for managing digital assets within the messaging app ecosystem.
