In support of the expansion and development of the TON ecosystem, KuCoin Ventures will provide grants to The Open Network (TON) blockchain platform, including an initial $20,000 contribution.
The funding will assist with community-building, marketing endeavors, incubation programs, and TON ecosystem projects, including five payments or game finance (GameFi) platforms, research and development, and community-building—a statement issued on December 1 further details the project support.
The accelerator director at TON Foundation, Ian Wittkopp, stated that the grants from KuCoin enable the organization to continue supporting blockchain solutions in payments and gaming within its ecosystem. He said :
“Today’s partnership with KuCoin Ventures is an acceleration point in the momentum of mini-app development on the The Open Network… KuCoin Ventures’ efforts align with TON’s vision of a more accessible and decentralized digital future for everyone.”
The company’s confidence in TON’s potential within the blockchain industry, according to Alicia Kao, managing director of KuCoin, was the reason for the transition. She further stated:
“This strategic alliance aligns with our mission of promoting further development of the crypto and blockchain industry through tighter cooperation.”
“We believe this establishes a novel collaboration between exchanges and the blockchain environment,” she continued. “We hope that this joint effort will function as an inspiration, stimulating additional endeavors of a similar nature.”
According to a KuCoin representative who spoke with Cointelegraph, the partnership is in its infancy. They declared:
“This partnership is just the beginning. We plan to leverage this collaboration for deeper cooperation and communication… We are making all the necessary preparations for this… collaboration.”
KuCoin endeavors to emulate its achievements through additional blockchain collaborations and promote the growth of the TON ecosystem to “ease the transition of cryptocurrency from a niche interest to widespread adoption.”
According to its website, KuCoin Ventures has invested in various decentralized finance (DeFi) lending protocols, nonfungible token (NFT) platforms OVO and POKT, and decentralized infrastructure POKT.
In March, KuCoin Ventures led a $10 million investment in CNHC, a provider of blockchain-based payment services and issuer of stablecoins. Justin Chou, the head of KuCoin Ventures and chief investment officer of KuCoin at the time, told Cointelegraph in a statement that the venture arm had never before invested in a stablecoin-related initiative before the investment in CNHC.
Additionally, TON has been actively forming alliances with other crypto actors as of late. To support the platform’s expansion, the company disclosed on October 4 that it had secured an eight-figure investment from MEXC Ventures, a subsidiary of the global cryptocurrency exchange MEXC.
In November, Web3 investment firm Animoca Brands became the largest validator on the blockchain platform. The announcement states that the company, co-founded by Yat Sui, intends to provide Telegram with blockchain-based games.
