1. Introduction to KTON

KTON is a next-generation liquid staking protocol purpose-built for The Open Network (TON). Incubated by TONX Studio and backed by the TonCore (NEWTON) validator research team, KTON allows anyone to stake TON coins, receive a transferable yield-bearing token (the KTON jetton), and use that token across the growing TON DeFi landscape — all without forfeiting staking rewards.

1.1 Origin & Vision

  • 2021 — First TON validators are launched by the NEWTON team, laying the groundwork for institutional staking services.

  • 2022 — The TonStake project pioneers public validator pools, onboarding thousands of early miners.

  • 2025 — KTON V2 introduces dynamic liquidity management, MEV-optimised yields, and advanced governance.

Our long-term vision is to make TON staking as liquid and ubiquitous as ETH staking, accelerating DeFi adoption and opening the door to sophisticated capital markets on Telegram's native blockchain.

1.2 What Problems Does KTON Solve?

Challenge
Traditional TON Staking
KTON Solution

Illiquidity

Funds are locked for the entire validator cycle.

Stakers receive $KTON jettons that can be traded, lent or used as collateral.

High Entry Barrier

Validator seats require 10 000+ TON.

Pooling enables anyone to stake from 1 TON.

Operational Overhead

Running a validator demands 24/7 uptime & DevOps expertise.

Professional node operators do the heavy lifting while users share rewards.

Inflexible Rewards

Static APY, no optimisation for MEV.

Planned dynamic validator rotation and MEV capture aiming for up to 8 % sustainable APY.

Lack of DeFi Composability

Staked TON is isolated from the ecosystem.

$KTON integrates with DEXs, lending and yield protocols across TON.

1.3 Key Highlights

  • Institutional-grade security: audited contracts, role-based access control, and time-delayed upgrades.

  • Zero lock-up: deposit or redeem at any time; instant withdrawal via swap pools.

  • Telegram-native UX: Mini Apps and bot integrations tap into Telegram's 1 B user base.

  • Official Telegram Bot: access KTON directly via our Telegram Mini App at https://t.me/ktonio_bot.

  • DeFi-ready from day one: supported by DEXs such as STON.fi & DeDust, and visible on DefiLlama.

  • Transparent on-chain accounting: real-time pool metrics via TonViewer & TONScan.

Continue to 2. Why KTON? to understand KTON's competitive edge.