Former TON Foundation employees Jan Wittkopp and Inal Kardan founded the venture firm TON Ventures, securing initial investments of $40 million.
The initiative aims to support startups within The Open Network (TON).
“We will invest at the application level, as well as in tools that enhance the development and monetization process of TON ecosystem applications,” Wittkopp commented to The Block.
The founder declined to disclose the fund’s investors, noting that they are primarily private individuals interested in the ecosystem’s long-term growth.
TON Ventures has already supported over ten startups, including Catizen, Tradoor, and Evaa Protocol. The average investment size is $500,000 or less for early-stage funding. However, it will also engage in “strategic” later-stage deals, such as integrating major protocols into the TON network.
The company is confident that within the next three to five years, Web3 products will become formidable competitors to established players in money transfers and certain banking segments.
Earlier, developers of TON and the Tonkeeper wallet implemented support for gas-free transactions.