TON Blockchain Explained: Development, Features, and Price Predictions for 2024-2025-2030

Toncoin has recently grabbed not only the crypto headlines but also became a top 10 crypto asset by market capitalization, sitting between Dogecoin and Cardano.

What is TON?

The Open Network aka TON is a decentralized computer network consisting of a layer-1 blockchain and several components with the aim of uniting the Web2 internet and blockchains. The team’s White Paper describes TON as “a huge superserver, intended to host and provide a variety of services”.

The mentioned components include TON Blockchain, TON Storage, TON Proxy, and TON Payments. To understand how TON works, let’s break down each piece of the ecosystem below.

TON Blockchain

The TON blockchain is the core pillar of the entire TON ecosystem representing a scalable layer-1 blockchain built as a “superserver” to support the creation and operation of dApps and smart contracts. 

TON is operated on a proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus mechanism, which means its stability and security is maintained by validators who stake Toncoin. Since the creation of the network, any changes and updates in it are possible only if 66% of validators reach a consensus.

The TON blockchain achieves remarkable scalability and processes millions of transactions per second through a unique multi-chain architecture. As outlined in its white paper, this structure consists of three key components:

Masterchain: this blockchain stores general information about the TON protocol, including the number of validators, active workchains, and the latest block hashes from each workchain.

Workchains: these are compatible blockchains within the TON network responsible for processing value transfer and smart contract transactions. Workchains further subdivide into shardchains.