Delay in launching Telegram Open Network forces investors to sell Gram tokens in violation of agreement

Investors in the Telegram Open Network (TON) ICO campaign get rid of project tokens by selling them on the secondary market. According to CoinDesk , there are several OTC platforms, cryptocurrency exchanges, and at least one investment fund among sellers.

The price for one Gram token in the secondary market ranges between $ 1.60 and $ 2. The benefit for sellers is obvious, given that during the first and second round, the cost of the coin was $ 0.37 and $ 1.33, respectively.

In particular, the Japanese exchange Liquid, which sold Gram together with Gram Asia in July, set a price of $ 4 per unit. Customers are expected to receive Gram in several tranches 3, 6, 12 and 18 months after the launch of the network.

Moreover, in accordance with the agreement, investors of the TON ICO campaign are prohibited from selling or transferring rights to tokens in any other way until the network officially launches. Violation of this condition may lead to the cancellation of allocation, that is, buyers in the secondary market risk not seeing the purchased tokens.

Representatives of Gram Asia could not explain their actions in the event of cancellation of the allocation. In turn, the head of business development of the parent company Liquid Quoine, Set Melamed, said that a guarantor was involved in the sale of Gram tokens in the secondary market, and Gram Asia would not receive payment until it provided the tokens. Bitforex, a small Chinese platform, has offered tokens debt receipts.

Experts explain the motivation of sellers to the uncertainty that arose because of the alleged delays in the launch of TON. Initially, the full launch of TON and the Gram wallet was planned for the fourth quarter of 2018. According to the latest statement by the developers, the launch of the project should take place no later than October 31.

Thus, a number of funds may seek to exit the Gram with minimal benefit. However, according to one investor, large institutional players like Sequoia and Lightspeed do not want to sell, but rather build up their long-term positions.

The lack of response of the Telegram team to this situation can be explained by its employment in anticipation of the launch of the project.

“The team does not have time to worry about this, ” one of the investors explains. “They should finish work on the protocol.” The launch dates were severely disrupted. Everyone was expecting the launch to happen in December last year. In February, Telegram wrote to investors that the work was 90% complete. It seems that the last 10% were the most difficult. "

Recall that the first sale of Gram tokens in the secondary market for large investors was announced in February 2018. In June, an informed source said that Liquid’s intention to sell Gram tokens has nothing to do with Telegram’s official plans.

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