TON blockchain upgrade: Faster transactions, lower fees

TON’s Catchain 2.0 upgrade boosts speed 6×, enables sub-second transactions, and aims to cut fees 6×. Toncoin price rises 5%. Upgrade supports instant payments and apps in Telegram.

Telegram founder Pavel Durov has announced a significant upgrade to the TON blockchain, dramatically increasing its processing speed and reducing transaction confirmation times to under a second. The Catchain 2.0 upgrade, now live on the mainnet, has improved block generation rates by approximately six times. This marks the first of seven steps in Durov’s “Make TON Great Again” initiative, with the next phase aiming to reduce transaction fees by about six times. Following the upgrade, Toncoin’s price surged over 5% to $1.30. Validator economics are also affected, as faster block production is expected to boost validator earnings. The upgrade is designed to enable instant payments, faster trades, and more responsive Mini Apps within Telegram’s ecosystem, which serves over 1 billion users. These technical enhancements make the TON blockchain more suitable for high-frequency payments and consumer applications, with future efforts focused on further reducing user costs.