Telegram founder Pavel Durov has announced plans to rename the blockchain network's native $TON token to GRAM. Durov assured that the network's name will remain unchanged, and the rebranding process will take up to three weeks.

The statement aligns with a broader initiative titled "Make $TON Great Again," with this move designated as the fourth of seven steps. "We are returning to our roots – and opening a new chapter," Durov stated in his messenger post. Historically, the name Gram was featured in the project's original White Paper and remains in the network's internal code. Earlier in May, the entrepreneur revealed that Telegram would take over management of the crypto project from the $TON Foundation, promising a sixfold reduction in network fees. Following the recent announcement, the $TON token price surged by nearly 10%.

Concurrently, a verified account bearing the Telegram logo initiated a poll on the $TON Vote platform regarding the token and ticker rename. The poll description guaranteed that user balances, wallet addresses, smart contracts, staking operations, NFT assets, and DeFi positions would remain unaffected, while warning against fraudulent "exchange" or "migration" offers. However, the vote was deleted from the platform half an hour after launch, and no results were announced. Telegram representatives emphasized that the messenger is becoming the primary driving force behind $TON's development and its largest network validator, advancing a vision initially attempted between 2019 and 2020 before the original project was discontinued.