Messaging platform Telegram has launched its popular cryptocurrency wallet in the U.S.
Telegram’s 87 million users in the U.S. can now send, receive, and manage cryptocurrency directly inside the crypto wallet, which is available in the company’s app.
TON Wallet, as it is known, is built into Telegram’s interface and is now beginning its U.S. rollout. It is a self-custodial crypto wallet in which a user controls their own private keys.
The service is built on the TON blockchain and allows users to send stablecoins and other digital tokens to their contacts as easily as sending a message or cash transfer.
The company says it’s the first time a self-custodial crypto wallet has been embedded into a mainstream messaging platform in the U.S.
Outside of America, more than 100 million users globally have activated Telegram’s crypto wallet since 2024, says the company.
TON Wallet supports peer-to-peer transfers, swaps between digital tokens, staking to earn yield, and zero-fee crypto purchases.
It also works with bank debit cards and connects to decentralized apps inside Telegram’s “Mini Apps” ecosystem.
TON Wallet’s launch in the U.S. could increase competition with the likes of Block’s (XYZ) Cash App and Coinbase Global (COIN), which recently announced its own “super app.”
Telegram is privately held and its stock doesn’t trade on a public exchange.
