How to Find High-Potential Projects in the TON Ecosystem After Its Binance Listing

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The TON ecosystem has officially entered a new phase of growth following its listing on Binance — one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges. This milestone has unlocked unprecedented liquidity and visibility, positioning TON as a major player in the blockchain space. While the ecosystem is still in its early stages, it's rapidly evolving, driven by strong community engagement, strategic initiatives like the TON Open League, and a growing number of innovative projects.

But how do you identify promising opportunities within such a dynamic yet nascent environment? Instead of relying on outdated models or rigid frameworks, we propose a simpler, more effective approach: follow the attention.

In this article, we’ll explore how the TON Open League has become a powerful indicator of momentum and potential, analyze standout projects across DeFi and meme categories, and uncover the key development teams shaping the ecosystem’s future.

The Rise of TON: From Niche Chain to Mainstream Contender

TON’s accelerated growth began after the Dubai Summit, where strategic partnerships and ecosystem momentum converged. Although TON had already built a solid technical foundation — including mainnet stability and high circulating supply — it was during 2024 that the network truly captured global attention.

A pivotal moment came with Notcoin, a Telegram-based click-to-earn game that attracted millions of users and achieved full listings across major centralized exchanges. Notcoin’s success sparked a "Click Summer" trend and demonstrated TON’s unique advantage: deep integration with Telegram’s 800+ million user base.

👉 Discover how blockchain ecosystems grow through user engagement and viral mechanics.

This synergy between TON and Telegram creates a powerful distribution engine — one that few other blockchains can match. As a result, NOT token surged in trading volume, even topping Binance charts during peak activity. This performance fed back into the broader TON ecosystem, boosting confidence, increasing developer interest, and driving up TON’s price from ~$7 to an all-time high of $8.2.

Even before the Binance listing, TON’s total value locked (TVL) surpassed $700 million, and its market cap consistently ranked in the top 10. With nearly 50% of its tokens in circulation — significantly higher than many competing Layer 1s — even small shifts in demand can create outsized market movements.

This combination of high liquidity, strong fundamentals, and growing adoption reflects years of deliberate ecosystem management by the TON Foundation.

The TON Open League: A Catalyst for Ecosystem Growth

One of the most impactful initiatives driving user engagement has been the TON Open League, launched in March 2024. Designed as a competitive incentive program, the Open League encourages developers to build and promote applications on TON by rewarding growth metrics such as daily active wallets (DAW), weekly activity, and user retention.

The results have been staggering:

Over 60 projects participated, including both teams using their own tokens as incentives and independent applicants. The competition not only boosted visibility but also created a feedback loop: more attention → higher user engagement → better rankings → greater rewards → sustained growth.

This structured yet flexible framework allows emerging projects to gain traction quickly while giving investors clear signals about which teams are executing effectively.

Spotlight on High-Performance Projects

With over 1,000 projects now live on TON — spanning DeFi, gaming, NFTs, social apps, wallets, bridges, and more — filtering for potential can be overwhelming. However, performance during the Open League provides valuable insights.

Broadly, successful projects fall into two categories: DeFi and meme tokens.

🔹 DeFi Stars: Capturing Real Ecosystem Value

DeFi protocols are the backbone of any healthy blockchain. On TON, leading projects include:

These projects don’t just ride hype — they provide essential tools that enable other builders to succeed.

🔹 Meme Tokens: Harnessing Attention Economics

Meme coins thrive on virality and community energy. In TON’s Telegram-integrated environment, they’re especially potent. Notable performers include:

While often dismissed as speculative, these tokens play a crucial role in onboarding new users and generating short-term attention — which can then be channeled into sustainable projects.

Key Development Teams Shaping the Future

Behind every successful project are strong builder teams. In TON’s case, three types of contributors stand out:

  1. TON Foundation-backed initiatives
  2. Established builder labs (e.g., TOPLabs)
  3. New entrants leveraging open tools

TOPLabs: Building Core Infrastructure

TOPLabs has launched over 30 high-impact projects, including:

Their focus is on foundational tools — the “picks and shovels” of the ecosystem.

Microcosm Labs: Empowering Smaller Builders

Focused on Asia and long-term sustainability, Microcosm Labs supports projects like:

They emphasize interoperability and collaboration — for example, TonUP and PixelSwap jointly launched the “Move to TON” grant program to attract global developers.

👉 Learn how top-tier blockchain labs accelerate ecosystem innovation.

This cooperative model — where major players actively support smaller ones — is a defining trait of the TON ecosystem.

What’s Next? The Road Ahead for TON

As of mid-2025, the TON ecosystem has doubled in size within five months — from ~500 to over 1,000 projects. Application diversity is increasing steadily in DeFi, GameFi, SocialFi, and AI-integrated dApps.

With the sixth season of the Open League approaching in September, another wave of innovation is expected. New funding programs, improved tooling, and deeper Telegram integrations will likely fuel further growth.

For investors and builders alike, the lesson is clear: follow the leagues, track the metrics, watch the collaborations. The most promising projects aren’t always the loudest — but they’re often the ones best aligned with the ecosystem’s rhythm.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: Why is the TON Open League important for investors?
A: It serves as a real-time performance dashboard. Projects gaining traction in user growth and engagement during the league are strong candidates for long-term success.

Q: Are meme tokens on TON worth considering?
A: Yes — but with caution. While speculative, they reflect community sentiment and attention flow. Some evolve into sustainable ecosystems (like NOT).

Q: How does Telegram integration benefit TON projects?
A: It enables instant access to hundreds of millions of users via bots and mini-apps, drastically lowering user acquisition costs.

Q: Which DeFi projects should I watch on TON?
A: STON.fi, TonUP, PixelSwap, and Scale are leading innovators with proven track records of capturing value.

Q: Is TON suitable for long-term investment?
A: With strong fundamentals, active development, and increasing adoption, TON shows strong potential for sustained growth — especially if it continues expanding use cases beyond speculation.

Q: How can developers get funding or support in the TON ecosystem?
A: Through programs like “Move to TON,” grants from Microcosm Labs, or participation in the Open League itself.

👉 Stay ahead of blockchain trends and discover emerging opportunities in fast-growing ecosystems.