Notcoin, the Viral Sensation: Can It Become a Breakout Meme Coin for the Ton Ecosystem?

By: LD Capital

I. TON Backed by Telegram’s 900 Million Monthly Active Users

The Open Network (TON), formerly known as Telegram Open Network, was originally created in 2018 by the Telegram team. After facing SEC allegations of conducting an unregistered securities offering during the ICO era, the Telegram team paid a fine, settled the case, and stepped back from the project. Since then, it has been developed and operated by the community-driven TON Foundation. Although formally separated from Telegram, TON maintains a direct relationship with the messaging platform. It remains the only blockchain officially endorsed and deeply integrated with Telegram. As such, TON continues to benefit from Telegram's massive user base and traffic, helping Telegram build a decentralized digital ecosystem rooted in freedom and privacy.

Telegram has attracted over 1.3 billion registered users globally—nearly 900 million monthly active users (MAU)—by championing free speech and user privacy. It also holds a strategic advantage in Web3 user acquisition. Thanks to its permissive content policies and regulatory environment, nearly every Web3/Crypto project operates communities on Telegram. Its user base is heavily concentrated in Asia, Europe, South America, and the Middle East, characterized largely by retail participants with strong peer-to-peer payment demand—making it an ideal target group for Web3 adoption.

Recently, beyond Telegram founder Pavel Durov signaling possible IPO plans, he explicitly announced through his personal channel the official sales channels for TON tokens. Additionally, Telegram’s advertising platform will soon open to advertisers across nearly 100 new countries. To ensure fast and secure ad payments and withdrawals, the platform will exclusively use the TON blockchain. Content creators will be able to cash out their Toncoin earnings or reinvest them to promote and upgrade their channels. These developments are set to accelerate TON’s network growth and significantly expand real-world blockchain use cases.

II. Viral Sensation: Notcoin

Notcoin is a free and easy-to-use game on Telegram where players earn coins by tapping their smartphone screens. Since launching on January 1, 2024, its popularity has surged. The game now boasts over 30 million participants, with around 5 million daily active users, making it the fifth-largest channel on Telegram by user metrics.

According to public statements and interviews by the TON Foundation, Notcoin was built by Sasha Plotnikov, founder of Open Builders, and her team. Open Builders is an organization dedicated to funding projects on the TON blockchain. It is linked to Tonstarter, which successfully raised $1.5 million in seed funding last year specifically to support TON-based initiatives. Moreover, TON’s official Twitter account has repeatedly shared content related to Notcoin, which currently has 1.5 million followers.

In early March, Notcoin introduced a feature allowing top-tier players to convert large amounts of in-game currency into NFT vouchers. These vouchers can be traded before the official token launch. Players may exchange either 10 million or 100 million in-game coins for these discount-coupon NFTs. The NFTs are now listed on Getgems, a leading NFT marketplace within the TON ecosystem, enabling early trading and price discovery. Once the token is officially launched on-chain, these NFTs will be redeemable for actual tokens.

As previously stated by Notcoin representatives, the token generation event and subsequent airdrop to players are expected to occur at the end of March or early April.

III. Key Data Comparison

As of March 27, approximately 500,000 Notcoin NFTs are in circulation. Their current value stands at roughly 10M = 9 TON (approximately $5), giving the collection an estimated market cap of $22.5 million. Total trading volume reached 2 million TON, amounting to about $10 million in trading value.

Starting March 15, Notcoin NFT trading activity picked up significantly. On March 25, a peak of 25,000 vouchers were traded at an average price of 10M = 6.7 TON, totaling $837,500. On March 26, 21,000 vouchers changed hands at an average of 10M = 9.9 TON, amounting to $1.0395 million. The highest recorded sale price was 10M = 66 TON on March 13, while the lowest was 10M = 3.7 TON on March 20.

Bybit announced this Monday that the Telegram-based meme coin Notcoin ($NOT) would be listed on its pre-market trading platform starting at 10:00 UTC. According to data from March 27, Bybit’s pre-market quotes range between 10M = $60–90, representing a significant premium compared to prices on the NFT marketplace.

Comparing Notcoin with FISH, currently the top meme coin in the TON ecosystem, FISH has a market cap of $39 million and a 24-hour trading volume of $2.55 million. During its NFT trading phase, Notcoin’s market cap and trading volume are about half of FISH’s.

IV. Conclusion

Currently, meme coins have become a key vehicle for blockchain ecosystems to achieve mainstream breakthroughs. While the TON ecosystem is still in its early stages, its potential is undeniable due to Telegram’s vast user base. Compared to growing total value locked (TVL), boosting visibility through memes offers a more immediate path to traction. Overall, Notcoin enjoys clear official backing from TON and benefits from a massive existing user pool, positioning it well to become a breakout meme coin. However, risks remain: the tokenomics are not yet fully defined, and over $20 million worth of NFTs are already circulating ahead of the official token launch, creating substantial sell-side pressure upon listing. Nonetheless, based on fundamental strengths, the project holds mid-term potential.