WhatsApp Alternative Telegram to Develop Decentralized Exchange and Crypto Wallet

The founder and CEO of popular WhatsApp alternative Telegram, Pavel Durov, today announced on Twitter that it is developing a new decentralized exchange (DEX) platform and crypto wallet.

Durov highlighted the importance of the blockchain industry needing to go back to its roots, decentralization, a need that the recent FTX debacle only further exposed. He said:

“The blockchain industry was built on the promise of decentralization, but ended up being concentrated in the hands of a few who began to abuse their power.

“The solution is clear: blockchain-based projects should go back to their roots – decentralization. Cryptocurrency users should switch to trustless transactions and self-hosted wallets.”

To undo the harm in the crypto space and to be part of the solution, Telegram will start building its decentralized tools to be made available to millions around the globe, Durov said:

“Telegram’s next step is to build a set of decentralized tools, including non-custodial wallets and decentralized exchanges for millions of people to securely trade and store cryptocurrencies. This way we can fix the wrongs caused by the current excessive centralization.”

In August this year, Durov revealed plans of a marketplace, Fragment, where wallet addresses can be auctioned, running on its own developed ‘The Open Network’ protocol. It became an immediate success. Telegram’s next step is expected to expand on this protocol as Durov said in the Tweet:

“It took only 5 weeks and 5 people to put together Fragment – a fully decentralized auction platform. We were able to do this because Fragment is based on The Open Network, or TON – a blockchain platform that is fast and efficient enough to host popular applications.

“Fragment has been an amazing success, with 50 million USD worth of usernames sold there in less than a month. This week, Fragment will expand beyond usernames.”