How to accept Gram payments as a business

Only someone living under a rock wouldn’t know about Pavel Durov’s projects. One such project is Gram (formerly known as Toncoin). It has earned respect among crypto experts because its blockchain operates within Telegram. In 2026, it will be especially important for users that all transactions take place on a single platform. Here, buyers can pay for purchases directly in the chat without downloading a wallet. This builds greater trust by reducing the risk of scams. Below, we’ll discuss this year’s major changes, how to accept this coin, how to sell it specifically on Telegram, and how to convert the proceeds into fiat currencies or stablecoins.

What Gram (prev. Toncoin) is now

Staying on the topic of the name change – in June 2026, Toncoin was renamed Gram. As Binance Academy reported, this change resulted from a vote that concluded on June 8: approximately 81% of participants voted in favour of the name change.

Pavel Durov described this as a return to the project’s roots, and emphasized that the new name is not a marketing ploy. In fact, the name “Gram” was used in the project’s original white paper and has remained in the network’s internal code to this day. The token was shelved after the SEC halted Telegram's $1.7 billion token sale in late 2019, with the project wound down and investor funds returned in 2020. Now the name is back.

Balances were transferred at a 1:1 ratio, wallet addresses remain valid, and smart contracts and staking positions continue to function.

The developers have preempted negative sentiment by stating that the blockchain will still be called TON (The Open Network). User balances, addresses, smart contracts, staking, NFTs, and DeFi positions will remain unchanged. Binance highlighted one point worth reminding all token holders of: any message asking you to “transfer,” “exchange,” or “receive” your TON is a scam. No action is required on your part.

The platform uses a blockchain architecture that employs a Proof-of-Stake algorithm and sharding. Sharding effectively distributes the transaction load across multiple parallel chains instead of relying on a single queue. This design choice ensures that user traffic can be processed swiftly and without delays.

The 2026 upgrades that changed the math

On April 9, 2026, Catchain 2.0 was launched. Block time was reduced from approximately 2.5 seconds to approximately 400 milliseconds, finalization time fell below one second, and Durov wrote that the network “now runs 10 times faster.” The streaming layer added with the update enables updates to be transmitted from the chain to wallets in 30–100 milliseconds.

In addition to the introduction of Telegram Wallet, the blockchain underwent another important change within a few weeks of the app's release. The base fee for blockchain transactions dropped sixfold from its prior level to 0.00039
GRAM, equivalent to about $0.0005, according to the TON Foundation as of mid-2026. The elimination of the gas auction for each transaction means transaction costs remain stable across the blockchain, regardless of network load.

Where the token stands in 2026

As of late July 2026, Gram trades around $1.45–1.60, with a market capitalisation near $4.1 billion and a rank in the low twenties (#21 on CoinMarketCap, #25 on CoinGecko, the spread reflecting different circulating-supply methodologies). Circulating supply sits at roughly 2.73 billion tokens. The all-time high of $8.24 dates to June 2024, so the token trades around 80% below that peak, and it has held a comparatively narrow band through mid-2026 rather than moving sharply in either direction.

Not everyone was pleased with the rebranding either. The ticker symbol overlaps with a unit of mass, and the reaction to this was far from enthusiastic – in one widely circulated comment, Gram was called “such a bad name that it gets confused with a unit of weight.” Derivatives departments also reacted coolly: one market note noted that the rebranding “failed to improve sentiment” and coincided with capital outflows from TON futures.

The scepticism is understandable given how often rebrands mask something less benign, though in this case the on-chain evidence is straightforward: same chain, same balances, same contracts.

Selling inside Telegram

Let’s be honest – no other payment token operates on a blockchain built into a messaging app with over 1.1 billion monthly active users, more than 500 million of whom open a bot or mini-app each month. As a result, the issue of a wallet becomes irrelevant. You don’t ask the customer to install or top up anything. You process transactions right where they already are.

These three tools cover most merchants’ needs, and each is suited to a specific type of merchant.

Mini-apps with TON Connect

Mini-apps are full-fledged web apps that open directly in a chat: no App Store, no installation required. Notcoin, Catizen, and Hamster Kombat attracted tens of millions of users at their peak (old-timers got a little emotional seeing these names). Here’s how it works: when a mini-app charges a subscription fee or requests a top-up, TON Connect links any TON wallet to it. Each transaction requires buyer confirmation, so the app cannot transfer funds on its own. The payment is processed on the blockchain in about a second after Catchain 2.0 is launched. This makes it the optimal solution for any high-volume transactions or those involving recurring payments.

The @wallet Bot

Built right into Telegram, @wallet supports both GRAM and USDT and lets you send either currency to any contact, including those who haven’t set up a wallet yet. A tutor, freelancer, or store operating via chat sends a request, the buyer pays – and that’s it. No websites, plugins, or tedious integration required. Quite simply, it’s the easiest way for individuals to get started.

Telegram “Stars,” with one caveat

“Stars” are Telegram’s virtual currency for digital goods on iOS and Android, created primarily to comply with app store regulations. Buyers purchase “Stars,” spend them in your app, and you cash them out in Gram via Fragment. The problem lies in the economics. Telegram passes on to you approximately 30% of the commission charged by Apple and Google, leaving creators with about 70% of the face value. This works well for tips and small unlock features. For anything where a 30% loss is significant, using Gram or USDT in the payment chain allows you to keep the full amount.

A Specific Example

Let’s take a paid Telegram community with a monthly subscription fee. Through a payment gateway, you redirect subscribers to an external payment page, lose some subscribers due to the inconvenience, and incur a 2–3% fee per transaction. Through a mini-app connected to the Gram gateway, the same subscriber pays with just two taps without leaving the chat; the transaction is processed in a fraction of a second, and the network fee is practically zero.

Ways to accept Gram payments

In addition to Telegram’s built-in features, standard methods are also used, and an effective setup involves combining them depending on the sales channel.

Gateway

Suitable for high volumes, it handles address generation, verification, and payments, so you don’t have to interact with the payment chain.

Sending a Simple TON Wallet Address

Suitable for infrequent B2B transactions involving large amounts – the process is manual but involves no intermediaries.

QR Codes and Payment Links

Suitable for sales via social media and at physical retail locations: they are generated in the control panel and posted wherever you sell.

Programmatic Invoicing via API

Covers recurring billing and marketplaces where a webhook confirms each successful transaction in your system.

USDT on TON: An Asset Most Merchants Actually Need

Merchants generally don’t want to hold a coin whose value fluctuates. They need dollars, and USDT on TON provides them. In April 2024, Tether deployed native USDT as a token on The Open Network. According to data from ton.org, USDT in circulation on TON is currently about $1.4 billion.

How the jetton works

The TON jetton token standard is essentially a local version of ERC-20. USDT-TON has the same peg to the dollar as USDT on other networks. It represents approximately one dollar in redemption rights from Tether’s reserves. Still, it’s important to note that its supply is tracked separately from the supplies of the versions on Ethereum, Tron, and Solana. To send it, you need a TON wallet and a small amount of Grams to cover the transaction fee. According to DEXTools’ 2026 guide on Jetton, the transfer fee is a fraction of a cent. Confirmation takes less than a second.

Here, it’s worth clarifying Telegram’s role again: @wallet sends USDT-TON to any contact, so a buyer can pay you with a dollar-pegged token without leaving the chat.

TON vs Tron for accepting USDT

Tron processes the majority of the world’s USDT volume, so this comparison is relevant. According to Eco’s data for April 2026, there are approximately $86 billion in USDT on Tron, which accounts for nearly half of all Tether, and about 75% of all transfers in 2025 took place there. The stablecoin volume on TON is newer and smaller. For a seller, the choice comes down to three factors.

Transfer cost

On TON, it ranges from $0.001 to $0.005. On Tron, it ranges from $0.20 to $1 when renting energy, and from $1 to $5 when burning TRX directly.

Speed

TON confirms transactions in less than a second. Tron processes transactions in about three seconds.

Audience and liquidity

Tron has the deepest USDT liquidity and attracts users accustomed to exchanges. TON attracts Telegram users and enables direct payments within the chat.

Accepting jettons beyond USDT

USDT is not the only jetton available on the TON platform. Other jettons, including NOT from Notcoin and additional options, circulate through Telegram applications. Our jetton-capable gateway facilitates effortless transactions, allowing buyers to pay with any TON token they hold while allowing you to settle in a specific token. The mechanics are straightforward and mirror the process of accepting Gram: a unique address is generated, the token is sent, and the gateway provides on-chain confirmation. This model offers unparalleled flexibility, as users are no longer required to acquire a specific coin before completing their purchases.

How to set up a Gram gateway

Setting up a Gram (previously Toncoin) payment gateway is similar to registering a card processor.

1. Sign up with a crypto payment provider that supports Gram and USDT on TON.
2. Please check your business details so that the provider can complete the onboarding and compliance steps.
3. Set up how you want to handle payments with an expert. This includes deciding which types of coins to accept and whether to convert them automatically.
4. You can add it to your website using a button, a link to Telegram, or the API in your app. Then, just run one test payment.
5. Switch on auto-conversion to solve the problem of volatility. Whenever you pay in grams, the money is instantly exchanged for a stablecoin. This means you get the same dollar value, instead of the price going up and down.
6. Then, move your money to a digital wallet or a bank account. Take Gram or a jetton, and if you want dollars, you're not affected.

The case for and against Gram at checkout

The straightforward comparison, with no spin, reveals that merchants and analysts highlight distinct perspectives on each side.

What's good about it

Speed that reads instantly

Sub-second finality after Catchain 2.0 means the buyer sees "paid" right away, cutting the abandonment that comes from watching a spinner.

Fees that barely register

A fixed $0.0005-ish per transaction is rounding error even at volume, against $2 to $10 on Ethereum mainnet.

A captive audience

Over a billion Telegram users, and your checkout can open inside the app they already live in.

No chargebacks

On-chain transfers are final. Once settled, the money's yours, and the card-style fraud reversal is off the table.

Proven on-chain usage

On-chain activity runs to millions of transactions daily across tens of millions of wallets, with live figures published by TONStat and TON Explorer. In 2024 the chain recorded more daily active addresses than Ethereum, per Artemis data cited by Delphi Digital.

Cheap stablecoin rail

USDT on TON at a fraction of a cent makes cross-border settlement land where SWIFT and card rails fall apart.

What's not

Heavy validator concentration

Under MTONGA ("Make TON Great Again"), Durov's seven-step roadmap for the network, Telegram took operational control in May 2026 and became the largest validator, staking 2.2 million GRAM. One company holding that much sway is a red flag to a decentralization purist. To a merchant who just wants uptime, arguably reassurance. Either read is fair.

Extreme supply concentration

Holder concentration is high: secondary trackers put the top 100 addresses at roughly 92% of supply and the top 10 above 62%, figures worth verifying against a block explorer before relying on them. Either way, the free float is thin, and thin floats move hard.

Constant unlock pressure

The TON Believers Fund releases roughly 36.59 million GRAM monthly, about $75 million at May 2026 prices, running to October 2028, per CoinMarketCap. Steady sell-side weight on the price.

Regulatory baggage

This one has teeth, and there's a fresh example below.

Telegram Ban in India: Real-Time Regulatory Risk

On June 16, 2026, India temporarily restricted access to Telegram for one week. It cited Section 69A of its Information Technology Act and disabled the message-editing feature within the app. After this news, the price of TON fell by more than 10% during the day – from about $1.80 to about $1.625 – before it started to come back up again. The creator of the messaging app, Pavel Durov, said he didn't agree with this decision and that it affected more than 150 million users in India. But traders were more interested in the uncertainty surrounding the rules than his protest.

Investors should know that a token linked to one app will also be subject to the same laws that affect that app. When a messaging app fails in a big market, the company feels the impact straight away.

Volatility, and why it doesn't have to be your problem

The price of Gram is significantly below its 2024 peak and reacts sharply to Durov’s posts – the sell-off in India is a case in point. The common thread running through all of the above factors contributing to the decline – concentration, token unlocking, regulatory upheavals, and volatility – is price risk. All of this affects coin holders. Enable automatic conversion to a stablecoin at the time of sale, and none of this will affect your proceeds.

Which businesses benefit most

Gaming and GameFi projects on TON process payments directly within their mini-apps, without external redirects; content creators and paid communities receive subscription revenue directly; e-commerce merchants gain access to an audience that actively uses cryptocurrency – an audience they would otherwise miss out on; cross-border operators transfer USDT, which is pegged to the dollar, in a matter of seconds, paying just a few cents for the transaction. If your audience already opens Telegram every day, the platform's advantages are obvious. If not, Telegram’s advantage largely disappears, and you have to compare Gram with other fast and inexpensive blockchain networks.

Bottom line

One feature sets Gram apart from all other cryptocurrencies. It is the native cryptocurrency of a messaging app with over a billion users. Following updates in 2026, it has finally become fast and inexpensive enough to function as a true payment network. Transactions completed in fractions of a second, fees of about half a cent, and a payment window that opens directly in the chat give it an advantage for the gaming industry, content creators, and merchants operating internationally – one that no payment processor can match. Exchange rate fluctuations and concentrated supply are real issues, but automatic conversion to a stablecoin at the moment of sale neatly solves this problem. So the decisive question isn’t technical. It comes down to whether you already have customers on Telegram.

Frequently asked questions