TON rebrands native token to Gram in MTONGA milestone

| bitcoinist.com
TON is rebranding its native token to “Gram” as the fourth checkpoint in Pavel Durov’s “Make TON Great Again” (MTONGA) roadmap. Durov said the change should take about three weeks and that the token name will return to the one used in the project’s original white paper. A new token website and teaser logo were released. The TON network says the transition is mostly name-only: no token swap, migration, bridge, claim, or conversion is required. The team claims every TON balance, address, contract, and position will remain unchanged. Voting is underway, with about 1.8M TON (nearly 80%) pledged in favor at the time of reporting. MTONGA continues in parallel with earlier upgrades launched in April, including improvements aimed at higher transaction speed and lower fees. In early May, Telegram officially re-entered the ecosystem after a six-year gap, replacing the TON Foundation as a key driver. Telegram is also described as the network’s largest validator, which Durov argues helps decentralization by acting as a counterbalance rather than a single center. Market reaction has been fast. The earlier report said TON jumped more than 15% (from around $1.95 to above $2.25) after the news, before easing toward about $2.07. In the latest update, Gram was trading around $2.02, up over 5% on the week. For traders, the TON→Gram rebrand is a narrative/positioning catalyst tied to ongoing ecosystem delivery and renewed Telegram involvement, which may support momentum in the short term while liquidity and sentiment settle.
Bullish
The TON→Gram rebrand has triggered a clear positive market reaction in the reported window, with TON rising sharply on announcement and remaining above key recent levels. Because the transition is described as name-only (no swap/migration/claim) and voting shows strong approval, traders may expect reduced operational risk and cleaner execution—typically supportive of near-term sentiment. In the short term, the event can function as a narrative catalyst alongside the broader MTONGA delivery and Telegram’s renewed ecosystem role, which may keep buyers active and support momentum. In the long term, effectiveness will depend on whether the promised ecosystem improvements and Telegram-driven validator influence translate into sustained usage, revenue, and demand for Gram/Ton exposure. If those fundamentals follow through, the bullish bias can persist; if not, the move could fade into a branding-only uptick.