TON Network to Shut Down Toncoin Bridge on May 10, 2025
TON Network has officially announced that it will be closing down the Toncoin Bridge on May 10, 2025. From this date, users will no longer be able to bridge Toncoin from the TON Network to Ethereum or BNB Smart Chain. Nevertheless, users who have already started transfers will still be able to claim their assets even after the shutdown.
At present, it is still possible to bridge Toncoin into TON, but TON Network will be ending this feature in the near future, with more information to be released later.
Why is Toncoin Bridge Being Shut Down?
Toncoin Bridge was originally central to the initial growth of TON Network. Prior to Toncoin being listed on centralized exchanges and prior to DeFi functionality being present on TON itself, the bridge was necessary for transferring Toncoin to exchanges such as Uniswap and PancakeSwap.
It was also important for making use of wrapped tokens like jUSDT. Still, TON Network now possesses its own reliable DeFi economy and is already cooperating with the new generation of cross-chain ecosystems like LayerZero, Stargate, and Symbiosis. The improvement has made the initial bridge obsolescent. More secure transfer solutions, becoming more scalable nowadays, are given priority.
Fundamental Milestones Complemented Through Toncoin Bridge
Toncoin Bridge has since launch supported TON in securing milestones:
- August 2021: Release of Ethereum Bridge (v1)
- October 2021: Release of BNB Smart Chain Bridge (v2)
- April 2023: Release of Ethereum Bridge (v3)
As of today, 31,893 transfers have been made by Toncoin Bridge, crossing more than 101 million TON to Ethereum and BNB Smart Chain. 35,694 holders and 460,000 transactions were on Ethereum, while the BNB Smart Chain observed 113,495 holders and more than 2.6 million transactions.
After the bridge closure, bridge oracles will start unstaking their TON but this won't influence existing services of the system. TON Network has teased the launch of new solutions for transfers of Toncoin in the near future.
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Conclusion
The deactivation of Toncoin Bridge is a landmark event in the quest of TON Network towards complete self-sufficiency. Although the bridge was vital to the initial outreach of Toncoin to international markets, the new DeFi and cross-chain infrastructure of the network now provide improved, faster, and more secure alternatives. The decision reflects the increasing technical prowess of TON and is also consistent with the long-term prospect of Toncoin in the future digital finance arena.
