Tether, one of the leading stablecoin issuers, has joined forces with Telegram, a popular messaging app, to introduce USDT payments directly within the platform. Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, shared the news on April 19, revealing that Telegram users can now access USDT functionalities seamlessly.
This popped up just now on my @telegram app.
Tether and Telegram join forces ❤️
An entire ecosystem at your fingertips.Unstoppable Together. pic.twitter.com/8mTNCtIi7n
— Paolo Ardoino 🍐 (@paoloardoino) April 19, 2024
The integration enables users to send USDT within Telegram free of charge and withdraw the stablecoin from the app without incurring any fees. Ardoino, alongside Pavel Durov, CEO of Telegram, and Andrew Rogozov, CEO of Top and Wallet, unveiled the partnership at the Token2049 conference in Dubai.
With Tether’s dominant position in the stablecoin market, commanding over 70% of the sector’s $158 billion market capitalization, and Telegram’s massive user base of 900 million, this collaboration presents a significant opportunity for crypto adoption.
Durov highlighted Telegram’s popularity in China, particularly among Android wallet users, suggesting that the integration could drive crypto usage in regions with capital controls and regulatory hurdles.
To incentivize adoption, the TON Foundation, despite its severed ties with Telegram following regulatory issues, is offering incentives worth approximately $66 million in TON tokens. These incentives include rewards for liquidity provision, user deposits, and fee-free withdrawals until the end of June.
6/ 11M $TON incentives 💸
To drive adoption, TON Foundation is allocating 11M $TON in incentives. A huge step towards putting crypto in every pocket.
– 5M $TON will be used to boost rewards in USDt/TON liquidity pools across TON DEXes @ston_fi and @dedust_io.
– 5M $TON will be…— TON 💎 (@ton_blockchain) April 19, 2024
TON, which has seen a remarkable surge in market capitalization, rising from $8 billion to $21 billion since January, is now among the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market cap on CoinGecko. This growth was catalyzed by various initiatives, including an ad-sharing scheme introduced by Telegram in February.
However, the partnership does not come without risks, as both Tether and Telegram have faced regulatory scrutiny in the past. Tether has been under investigation by U.S. authorities for alleged involvement in illicit activities, while Telegram’s planned token sale was blocked by the SEC.
Despite these challenges, Tether remains committed to its tokenization platform, aiming to offer users full asset ownership and interoperable infrastructure.
