The cryptocurrency linked to Telegram, Toncoin (TON), has seen a sharp price spike in late May 2025, prompted by reports that BlackRock is deepening its financial involvement with the messaging app’s ongoing $1.5 billion bond sale. But the rally didn’t last – prices gave back most of the gains within three days.
This spike follows a prolonged stretch of poor performance caused by legal troubles, a drop in user activity, and fading investor trust. While short-term sentiment might still be lifted by big-name backing, the broader outlook for Toncoin still raises concerns.
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BlackRock Rumors Propel Toncoin Price
On Wednesday, Toncoin jumped over 7% to $3.3, bringing its market capitalization to roughly $8 billion. The uptick in value came after the news suggesting that BlackRock might join Telegram’s new bond offering or expand its stake.
The bond, offering a 9% yield over five years, is aimed at refinancing Telegram’s older debt. Telegram has already secured interest from Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala, and speculation now surrounds Citadel and BlackRock as potential backers.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Telegram plans to raise $1.5 billion from this round. The buzz around this yield-heavy instrument has placed fresh attention on Toncoin, given its close association with the messaging app. BlackRock, already known to hold Telegram bonds, has not officially confirmed further involvement, but even the rumor has pushed traders into Toncoin with short-term momentum.
The TON Foundation has also undergone leadership change in a bid to recover from the fallout. In recent months, Maximilian Crown, who previously worked with MoonPay, took over as CEO. His background in fintech is seen by some as a potential boost for TON’s payment service ambitions.
Separately, Telegram allegedly secured a $300 million deal with Elon Musk’s xAI to integrate the Grok assistant into its app. The news was later denied by Elon Musk, but Pavel Durov says the formalities are pending.
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Toncoin Still 60% Down From 2024 Peak
Despite recent activity, Toncoin remains 60% below its peak in 2024. The largest blow came in August 2024, when Telegram’s founder and CEO, Pavel Durov, was arrested in France. Authorities accused him of failing to moderate illegal content on the platform.
Following the arrest, Toncoin’s value dropped 16% in a matter of days. The legal situation worsened when Durov was denied a U.S. visa, with French prosecutors rejecting his investor trip as not “compelling”.
Although he was released in March 2025, the damage had been done. The arrest shook investor confidence and added legal risk to the Toncoin brand. Market participants pulled back, creating a sustained period of price weakness that no technical bounce has yet reversed in full.
Furthermore, the total value locked (TVL) in the TON ecosystem shrank by more than 79% since July 2024, further indicating that users and developers are leaving the network or reducing engagement, according to DefiLlama.
Despite the company’s claim of over 121 million users interacting with TON-based services like payments and NFTs, core activity numbers tell a different story.
What’s Next?
Toncoin has regained some ground after falling into a prolonged slump, and its recent rally was driven by news surrounding Telegram’s bond sale rather than improvements in network fundamentals. The boost in price, while significant for the short term, did not last long and has not erased deeper issues that began with Pavel Durov’s legal troubles and a collapse in user activity.
While new partnerships and a shift in executive leadership suggest that Telegram and the TON Foundation are improving the sentiment, the data still leans toward long-term caution. Whether Toncoin can stabilize or continue its climb will depend less on temporary investor enthusiasm and more on a sustained return of users, developers, and trust.
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