Telegram's crypto wallet is moving beyond being just a tool for sending and receiving assets. Wallet in Telegram has launched on-chain yield vaults built on the TON Wallet infrastructure, which is based on self-custody. With this new structure, Bitcoin, Ethereum, and USDT holders can invest directly in decentralized finance protocols without leaving the application.
Promised yields of up to 18%
The most striking aspect of the service is the strategy offered for USDT. Supported by Re7's DeFi strategy, this option offers a compound annual yield of up to 18%. ETH and BTC vaults are also active, but a variable yield structure has been adopted for these two assets; a fixed rate has not been announced.
Three separate protocols are running in the background. Morpho, a large lending network with deposits exceeding ten billion dollars, provides the infrastructure. The EVM-compatible execution layer TAC is transporting wrapped Ethereum (wETH) and Coinbase's wrapped Bitcoin (cbBTC) to the TON network. Re7 is responsible for curating the yield strategies and managing risk.
From "Tap-to-Earn" Craze to Real Finance
The timing of this move is highly significant for the TON ecosystem. The "tap-to-earn" game craze that swept Telegram in 2024 led to the rapid spread of mini-applications. However, as soon as this hype based on token rewards subsided, user interest quickly dropped. The TON ecosystem began searching for a tangible and sustainable reason to keep people on the platform. Just two weeks before the launch of the vaults, Wallet in Telegram, in partnership with MoonPay, also launched cross-chain deposit functionality. This feature, which allows funds to be transferred to TON Wallet from Ethereum, Solana, Tron, and other major networks, is followed by the vaults, offering users the opportunity to utilize this capital. Therefore, these two consecutive steps stand out as a complementary strategy. Andrew Rogozov, founder and CEO of The Open Platform and Wallet in Telegram, stated: "With Vaults in TON Wallet, we are bridging the gap between advanced DeFi protocols and hundreds of millions of users. Direct access to self-custodial vault strategies for ETH, BTC, and USDT from within the TON ecosystem is a huge step toward making decentralized finance truly universal."
Vaults are based on a self-custodial model; meaning users do not lose control over their assets. However, the announced 18% APY for USDT is not a guarantee; it is a compound rate derived from Re7's strategy. This figure may vary depending on market conditions and strategy performance. The same variable structure applies to BTC and ETH vaults, and no fixed rate has been announced for these assets.
What's on the roadmap?
Wallet in Telegram plans to allow users to deposit native BTC and ETH directly into the platform in the future. These deposited assets will be automatically converted to cbBTC and wETH upon migration to TON Wallet. With over 150 million registered users, the platform is arguably one of the biggest names among cryptocurrency wallets integrated into messaging applications.
