- TOP raised $28.5 million at a $1 billion valuation
- Round led by Ribbit Capital with Pantera Capital participation
- Funding to expand Wallet in Telegram to US/EU and build TON apps
The Open Platform (TOP) recently secured a transformative $28.5 million Series A round at a meticulously negotiated $1 billion valuation, cementing its status as a rising unicorn in the blockchain arena. Spearheaded by fintech specialist Ribbit Capital, with strategic participation from Pantera Capital, this financing represents approximately 5 percent equity sold to new investors. Since its founding and incorporation in Abu Dhabi in 2023 by Andrew Rogozov, TOP has now raised over $70 million across seed and venture rounds, drawing backers such as Vy Capital, Kingsway Capital, Dmitry Eremeev, and Kevin Hu of Brevan Howard. This capital injection arrives at a pivotal moment, as the company prepares to leverage Telegram’s massive user base of over one billion accounts to accelerate blockchain wallet adoption and build a suite of TON-based applications.
Secures $28.5 Million Series A at $1 Billion Valuation
In April 2025, TOP closed its Series A round, achieving a unicorn valuation of $1 billion on a relatively modest sale of 5 percent equity, underlining strong investor confidence in the company’s long-term prospects. The lead investor, Ribbit Capital, acquired roughly 4 percent of shares, while Pantera Capital’s allocation equated to about 1 percent. Prior to this round, TOP had accumulated $42 million during earlier fundraising, bringing its total funding to $70 million. Financial terms stipulated no issuance of cryptocurrency tokens, focusing allocation solely on equity to ensure regulatory clarity. This approach contrasts with many blockchain startups that opt for token distributions, positioning TOP for smoother compliance in key markets. With this fresh capital, TOP is poised to deepen its technical lead on The Open Network (TON) and expand operational capacity.
Ribbit Capital Leads Series A Investment for TOP
Ribbit Capital’s leadership in this round highlights its conviction in TOP’s strategic partnership with Telegram and the TON blockchain. Ryan Barney of Pantera observed that backing technology capable of reaching one billion users is uniquely compelling given that Telegram founder Pavel Durov reported surpassing the one-billion-user threshold in early 2025. Ribbit’s participation underscores its history of investing in transformative fintech and crypto enterprises. Pantera’s involvement coincides with the TON Foundation’s own efforts; in March 2025, Sequoia Capital, Benchmark Ventures, Draper Associates, and Ribbit collectively amassed $400 million in TON’s native cryptocurrency. This confluence of capital from both equity and token-focused investors reflects a broad-based belief in the ecosystem’s potential, with TOP at the forefront of on-chain application development for millions of daily users.
TOP’s Role in Telegram’s Blockchain Network Integration
Originally conceptualized in 2018 when Pavel Durov’s team raised $1.7 billion to build the Telegram Open Network, the technology faced an SEC challenge in 2019 that led to a 2020 settlement returning $1.2 billion to investors and payment of an $18.5 million fine. Despite this regulatory setback, independent developers persevered, and in 2023, Telegram officially designated TON as its exclusive blockchain. Andrew Rogozov, having worked on the early TON codebase, formed TOP to formalize development efforts. Today, TOP is the principal architect of “Wallet in Telegram,” an integrated crypto wallet embedded in the app’s main menu for users outside North America and Europe. By bridging messaging and financial interaction, TOP is driving seamless user experiences, processing peer-to-peer transfers and smart-contract interactions for millions of transactions per day on TON.
Planning U.S. and European Expansion for Wallet in Telegram
With regulatory compliance a top priority, TOP will channel a significant portion of its $28.5 million proceeds into establishing legal, operational, and technical infrastructure in the United States and Europe. This entails hiring compliance officers, securing necessary licenses, and implementing rigorous KYC/AML protocols. User support teams will be set up across multiple time zones to handle onboarding, troubleshooting, and educational outreach. The company also plans to invest in robust cybersecurity measures to safeguard user assets and transaction data. As Telegram’s in-app wallet service gains traction in markets such as Russia, Asia, and Latin America, TOP aims to replicate that success by adapting Wallet in Telegram to meet the distinct regulatory frameworks of the SEC, FCA, and other regional authorities.
TOP Future Projects and Funding Allocation
Beyond wallet deployment, TOP intends to use its Series A funding to incubate a broad portfolio of TON-based products. Planned initiatives include decentralized gaming platforms leveraging blockchain-native economies, AI-powered financial analytics integrated with on-chain data, and tokenized asset marketplaces tailored to Telegram’s user demographics. The company is assembling specialized development teams for each vertical, partnering with third-party studios to co-create immersive experiences that drive network activity. By diversifying its project pipeline, TOP seeks to increase transaction volumes on TON, enhance token utility, and cultivate a vibrant community of developers and end users engaging daily with decentralized applications.
Conclusion
By securing a $28.5 million Series A at a $1 billion valuation, TOP has solidified its role as the leading developer powering Telegram’s chosen blockchain. With Ribbit Capital and Pantera Capital aboard and a clear mandate to expand Wallet in Telegram into Western markets, TOP is uniquely positioned to integrate crypto services into one of the world’s largest messaging platforms. The forthcoming projects in gaming, AI, and tokenized marketplaces promise to broaden TON’s ecosystem, ensuring that TOP remains at the cutting edge of blockchain application development.
Disclaimer
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