The TON Application Chain (TAC) and Polygon Labs have teamed up to make the TON ecosystem compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM).
For this, TAC is developing a Layer-2 network for the TON ecosystem, which is known for its association with the Telegram messaging app.
Why TON needs Layer-2 integration?
On Tuesday, the TON Application Chain and Polygon announced the integration of TON to the network.
The new Layer-2 chain will be based on Polygon. It will use Polygon CDK and the interoperability protocol Agglayer to enable EVM-compatible decentralized applications (DApps) on TAC. It will include decentralized finance (DeFi), gaming, and identity solutions.
“We chose to build on the Polygon ecosystem for its EVM compatibility, seamless availability of liquidity from EVM chains via AggLayer, comprehensive deployment support, and Polygon’s EVM expertise,” Pavel Altukhov, TAC CEO, said in an emailed statement to CoinDesk.
TAC is referred to as a Layer 2 network. It is built on TON and aims to bring EVM-based decentralized apps to TON and Telegram users. The project is backed by The Open Platform, an investor focused on the TON blockchain ecosystem.
Such compatibility is largely needed to allow developers who have created apps based on the popular Ethereum. Devs can easily port their creations to the TAC Layer-2 network within the TON, especially to Telegram’s massive user base.
Altukhov noted that EVM compatibility will remove the barriers to using the TON Network, giving Ethereum developers access to a large Telegram user base.
The CEO also discussed the recent integration of USDT on TON and highlighted the success of the popular Tap-to-Earn Notcoin.
Altukhov noted that the expansion of the mini apps ecosystem has driven the growth of 5.8 million monthly active on-chain wallets on Telegram. TAC’s integration could boost this demand further.
Thanks to these recent developments, the TON blockchain recorded more daily active addresses (DAAs) than Ethereum last month. According to Artemis, TON witnessed 568,300 DAAs (daily active addresses) on June 3, a level that Ethereum hasn’t hit since September 13, 2023.
Messari also highlights TON’s DAAs surpassed ETH in June 2024:
source: messari
Layer-2 race heating up
With TON’s entry, the Layer-2 race is expected to get more interesting. In August last year, leading US crypto exchange Coinbase officially launched the Base. It is an Ethereum Layer-2 blockchain built on top of the OP Stack (an open-source template).
Base has witnessed a remarkable surge since its launch. According to the data from L2BEAT, the total value locked (TVL) is more than $6 billion.
source: l2beat
Other popular Ethereum layer-2 solutions are Blast, Optimism, and Optimism.
Protocols like Celo and Worldcoin have also revealed their plans to develop Layer-2 with OP Stack atop Ethereum.
In April, cryptocurrency exchange OKX launched its own Ethereum layer-2, called “X Layer,” with Polygon’s CDK.
