Vadim Sterlin in $TON

Launching USDT stablecoin on the TON network? Rumors have been buzzing around Telegram and TON ecosystem for the past month about the upcoming launch of the USDT stablecoin (crypto dollar) on the TON network. What does this mean for the ecosystem ? 🤔 Firstly, it will significantly boost the usefulness of the TON itself. Right now, stablecoins represent the most understandable use case of cryptocurrencies for the mass audience - money transfers. Currently, these transfers are done using USDT on Ethereum, TRON, Polygon Matic, and BNB networks. With the addition of native USDT stablecoin on the TON network, TON itself gains additional utility - TON can be used to send crypto dollars for payments and personal transfers. Second. Very probably transfers in USDT will be available within Telegram's @wallet. This feature was available at the launch of @Wallet, however, later the wallet team restricted this capability - and new @wallet users can only transfer TON to each other, severely limiting the functionality of the entire wallet. Third. Token growth on TON: with the addition of USDT, it will be easier for the mass audience to track token prices, as they will be traded not only paired with TON but also with USDT. Currently, all services on TON use TON as the base currency. For example, in Fanton and Adsgram, we decided to use TON as the base currency because we had no other options to provide a convenient and reliable means of payment to our clients. Accordingly, all TON projects will be able to use USDT, making the use of TON services easier and ultimately attracting more users to the ecosystem. We are looking forward to Pavel Durov's announcement on Friday. If this indeed happens, it will be great news that we at Fanton and Adsgram have been eagerly anticipating and will be very happy about. 🎉

(Continuing from my previous post) And here, the traditional web2 understanding of "fundamentals" shatters into pieces against the realities of the modern crypto market. Crypto isn't about fundamentals, unit economics, or profit. It's about the economy of attention. And partly for this reason, the markets draw such roller coasters: when everything grows, it attracts attention, people bring their money and invest where the noise is loudest. When everything falls, people don't catch gold fever, the crazy growth rates aren't visible, everything starts to quiet down, and people, not seeing the long-awaited multipliers, begin to sell, which starts to press on the price until all those who aren't in it for the long-term investment get out. In summary, what I want to say is: meme coins are one of the riskiest assets in crypto because everything depends on crowd behavior. Please don't invest all your savings in meme coins unless you're prepared to lose them all :) P.S. In the photo, I'm in Singapore in September 2023, amazed at how Singapore has become such an incredible place. I was there for the Token 2049 conference, where a strategic partnership between TON and Telegram was announced. The day after tomorrow, I'm heading to Dubai for the same conference. I'm curious to see what Pavel Durov will tell in his presentation!

The Meme Coin Phenomenon and the Hype Economy The 2024 crypto season can officially be called the season of meme coins. New coins are popping up every day by the hundreds, skyrocketing hundreds of times in just a few hours, and sometimes crashing just as quickly. The TON Foundation is looking for a meme coin lead, and Solana seems to be shooting off into space due to an influx of investors chasing the latest meme coin. But what exactly are meme coins? Meme coins are a phenomenon that epitomizes cryptocurrency. Initially started as a joke, meme coins have firmly established their place in the crypto world. Why? Because people are tired of serious faces promising huge returns that never materialize. People are fed up with hearing about fundamental value and grappling with complex technologies. And anyway, most know that, mostly, it's the creators and early investors who profit from coins, not the ordinary people who often buy in when professional investors are selling. Most crypto investors are high-risk players looking to turn $100 into $10K+. That's why there's always huge demand for new "themes" in the crypto community. Memes have become such a theme. The mechanics of meme coins often involve a Fair Launch—this is when the entire volume of coins is immediately taken up by the community. There are no big percentages for the team, investors, market makers, advisors, or other professional market players who systematically outplay the crowd. No, it's simple—tokens are immediately in the hands of people. And this has proven to be a very viable concept. Faced with a choice between investing in a serious project that addresses some seemingly important but incomprehensible problem and a cool picture of a frog, a huge number of people choose the latter. The most absurd thing is that this leads to the emergence of incredibly inflated coins in terms of capitalization, which have absolutely no fundamental value in the traditional sense of the word.

(Continuing from my previous post) Though many Chinese have told me Hong Kong attracts the elite from the mainland. That makes sense: business earns on the vast mainland market, but the elites prefer to live in the more liberal and international Hong Kong, staying connected. I thought about how great it would be if there were a similar place for Russian speakers with liberal views. Unfortunately, it doesn't exist: you either live in the Russian-speaking world and deal with what's happening in Russia or you're in exile. With China's growing desire to exert more control over Hong Kong, I'm a bit worried about this unique and appealing place. I hope it can retain the atmosphere of freedom that currently prevails. Hong Kong makes you want to work hard. It feels like a great city to build a career, launch startups, and make big plans. I came back very inspired and motivated to work.

My First Time in Hong Kong: A Different Take on Chinese Culture I just visited Hong Kong for the first time, which was also my first encounter with Chinese culture—or so I thought. Hong Kong turned out to be quite different from mainland China. Initially, I had a rather stereotypical view of China and its people, shaped by mass tourism. However, as often happens with stereotypes about countries and people, I found things were quite different. First observation: Hong Kong is cleaner than many places in Europe. There's no trash or dirt on the streets. People look stylish, and subjectively, there seem to be more attractive people here than in Barcelona. Overall, folks seem more polite than I expected. The city itself left me with mixed feelings. On one hand, the air felt limited: look up, and all you see are skyscrapers. Despite its greenery compared to other Asian megacities, coming from Barcelona's low and creative buildings, I felt a bit claustrophobic. It was particularly unsettling in areas with old high-rises and narrow streets. Tall, narrow buildings, grayed and blackened by time, with dark windows stretching skyward—brr, I honestly don't understand how one can live happily there. Yet, urban planning is as thoughtful as it can be in such a cramped space with so many roads. I realized that walking around the city, easily racking up 10-15 thousand steps a day, often gets you places almost as quickly as taking a taxi or public transport. On the other hand, the city's energy is powerful, centered on business, money, and determination. It's not the soulless chase for money and comfort I sense in Dubai; here, there's a genuinely Asian work ethic mixed with Chinese hierarchical culture, seasoned with British organization. I was also struck by how much money circulates through Hong Kong. If the whole city is built up with high-rises and office buildings, just imagine the amount of money concentrated here, considering the local real estate prices?

Why I Recommend Everyone to Look Towards Crypto Now To all my friends asking about crypto, I often share this narrative: cryptocurrencies are among the few technological and social trends poised for massive development in the next 5-10 years, alongside AI. We've all been amazed by the rapid advancement AI has made in the last two years. We immediately saw how understanding this technology started changing people's lives. Concurrently, trillions of dollars in investments flowed into the industry. However, the situation with cryptocurrencies is slightly different. Big tech giants and investment funds aren't paying as much attention to blockchain technology yet. Everything associated with crypto seems a bit "scary" and "gray," making many professional teams hesitant to enter the industry. What does this lead to? Currently, there's a relatively low barrier to entry in crypto and much less competition compared to traditional sectors. For instance, I entered the TON ecosystem with my Fanton project idea and $10K in investments one and a half years ago. Now, we're one of the biggest players in TON, and we also have Adsgram and a gaming studio. It's hard to imagine such a journey in the web2 world. And this isn't because I'm special. I just had good experience and education, and due to the low competition, I see rapid growth and development opportunities in crypto. So, if you're wondering whether to get into crypto or not - just try it. Chances are, you'll earn much more money and grow faster than in a regular job. P.S. Photo from last week's Hong Kong conference. I'll write about my impressions of the city tomorrow 🙂