TON Foundation’s new head of growth pushes for US expansion

Martin Masser wants to see more US builders using TON, though the TON Space Telegram wallet isn’t available there just yet

article-image

TON and Adobe modified by Blockworks

share

This is a segment from The Drop newsletter. To read full editions, subscribe.


The foundation behind The Open Network (TON), which uses Telegram but operates independently from it, has hired a new head of growth. Martin Masser is now trying to bring more awareness to the chain that saw a “tap-to-earn” run last year.

He told me in an interview that even in crypto circles, most know what Telegram is, but far fewer know about TON. Masser’s focused on expanding TON’s presence and awareness in the US and Europe. US residents can’t yet use TON Space (a self-custodial browser wallet inside Telegram), but Masser confirmed expanding TON Space to the US is part of the plan. That said, no live date for US access has yet been announced.

“I love the American market, especially. There’s so much that comes out of America, a lot of the narratives as well. We haven’t even had that to touch,” Masser said, adding: “I love going to America. There’s an energy. There’s a buzz, you know.”

Masser hopes that US builders will increasingly look to TON and Telegram as viable options for crypto projects like games, payments and remittance tools, DeFi miniapps, and other apps within the app that provide just about any service you could think of. 

“My role as head of growth isn’t to give narratives. I don’t want to tell people you have to do stickers, you have to do gifts, you have to do DeFi, you have to do all of this stuff. I do see foundations try to do that, try and force this narrative,” Masser said. 

“I love the fact, because people use Telegram, they have their ideas already, and then you’re giving them a lot more tools. I want to be there a) to support them, give them feedback, and also connect, because there’s lots of teams I’m already now connecting,” he added. “You can add so many more things.”


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

Tags

Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily, with Byron Gilliam.

Upcoming Events

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

Industry City | Brooklyn, NY

TUES - THURS, JUNE 24 - 26, 2025

Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto’s technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you’re ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens.

Brooklyn, NY

SUN - MON, JUN. 22 - 23, 2025

Blockworks and Cracked Labs are teaming up for the third installment of the Permissionless Hackathon, happening June 22–23, 2025 in Brooklyn, NY. This is a 36-hour IRL builder sprint where developers, designers, and creatives ship real projects solving real problems across […]

recent research

Research Report Templates (8).png

Research

Meta-aggregators like Titan and Kamino Swap improve price execution for users, making the Solana swapping landscape more competitive. Jupiter has incorporated meta-aggregation features into its latest routing engine to keep users on its front end (own the user, own the flow). At large, teams are treating swaps as a commoditized complement, offering incredibly cheap or free swaps to own the end-user and increase demand for high-margin product offerings (multi-product DeFi). On another note, the divergence in the concentration of aggregator volume between DEXs suggests increased specialization at the DEX layer by asset type.

article-image

Many community banks and credit unions feel like they missed the fintech craze — and they don’t want to miss stablecoins

article-image

BlackRock COO Rob Goldstein noted that the firm had been looking into crypto since 2017

article-image

With the June FOMC meeting coming up, the Fed remains unlikely to cut interest rates. Is this the right move?

article-image

The crypto-optional shooter is expected to release on Steam in a few weeks

article-image

The new airdrop campaign reaches 50,000 users, setting the stage for Spark’s 10-year token distribution