Bitget Wallet has partnered with crypto investment firm Foresight Ventures to launch a $20 million funding initiative.
The program aims to foster growth within Telegram’s Mini App ecosystem, offering extensive opportunities for developers to innovate, Bitget announced in a press release shared with Cryptonews.com.
The new initiative aligns with the rising popularity of Telegram Mini Apps, such as Notcoin and Hamster Kombat, which have been instrumental in the 2024 growth of The Open Network (TON) blockchain.
However, the TON ecosystem has faced recent setbacks, following the arrest of Telegram CEO Pavel Durov in August.
This led to a significant decline in TON’s total value locked (TVL), dropping from $776.6 million in July to $311 million by late August. Despite a modest recovery in September and October, the current TVL remains at $356 million, according to DefiLlama.
Addressing the TON Ecosystem’s Challenges
Telegram’s gaming and application ecosystems have seen dwindling engagement, with notable apps like Hamster Kombat experiencing reduced user activity since its trading debut in September.
The new funding initiative by Bitget Wallet and Foresight Ventures aims to reverse these declines by supporting the TON ecosystem with both financial and technical resources.
Beyond funding, the program includes technical support through Bitget’s OmniConnect developer kit, operational assistance, marketing aid, and access to Bitget Wallet’s Telegram user base to foster community growth.
The initiative also presents opportunities for strategic partnerships, potential listings on the Bitget exchange, and further investment avenues through Foresight Ventures.
This fund follows Bitget and Foresight Ventures’ $30 million investment in the TON blockchain in September, highlighting their ongoing commitment to bolstering Telegram’s decentralized ecosystem.
Bitget Wallet COO Alvin Kan expressed enthusiasm for the initiative, stating, “We believe Telegram provides the ideal platform for developers to reach new users and build impactful applications, and we are excited to see the next wave of innovation emerge from our partnership with prominent projects in this ecosystem.”
Expanding Bitget’s Ventures in the TON Ecosystem
Bitget has been steadily expanding its influence within the TON ecosystem.
In June, Bitget Wallet rolled out a comprehensive support package designed to connect decentralized applications within the TON network, enhancing Bitget’s positioning within this rapidly expanding landscape.
The wallet also introduced a Telegram Signal Bot, which enables efficient direct trading signals across Telegram communities, improving user experience.
Telegram itself has recently bolstered its platform with the launch of “Telegram Stars,” an in-app payment feature available on both iOS and Android, which has contributed to the exponential growth of its mini-app ecosystem.
This aligns with the TON Network’s continued transaction surge, surpassing 1 billion transactions after a major memecoin airdrop led to network outages.
The TON ecosystem has also introduced the W5 smart wallet standard, developed with Tonkeeper, which facilitates gasless transactions on the TON blockchain.
