Telegram-Linked TON Blockchain Down as Binance, Bybit Suspend Trading

The Open Network (TON), initially developed by brothers Pavel and Nikolai Durov, went dark late Tuesday evening, with eagle-eyed users reporting the protocol had stopped processing transactions.

The network, formerly associated with the messaging platform Telegram, has not produced any new blocks for the last four hours, according to blockchain explorer Tonscan.

Binance and Bybit have suspended deposits and withdrawals to and from the network, Decrypt confirmed.

A representative for TON did not immediately return a request for comment.

Durov was arrested in Paris on Saturday, facing charges of facilitating illegal transactions, refusing to cooperate with law enforcement, and allowing child pornography, drug distribution, organized fraud, money laundering, and illegal cryptographic activities to go unchecked on Telegram.

Durov, alongside his brother Nikolai, unveiled the layer-1 blockchain in 2018 via a Telegram Whitepaper. That was followed up by the project’s initial coin offering— the second largest in history— of its native token, Gram.

The Securities and Exchange Commission later halted the project, viewing its Gram token offering as unregistered securities.

After Telegram withdrew in 2020, community developers continued the project, launching the current network led by Anatoliy Makosov and Kirill Emelianenko.

This is a developing story and will be updated accordingly.