Sources: Telegram investor note reveals TON to launch in Q3

Telegram is planning to launch its Telegram Open Network (TON) in Q3, according to an internal note sent to the company’s investors.

Despite initial doubts over whether Telegram could execute the crypto project, the messaging firm reported a successful testing process that confirmed its blockchain and consensus algorithm met the goal of its original TON white paper.

The firm said the testing period "reaffirms our belief that the TON virtual machine and the TON ... Byzantine consensus algorithm are capable of meeting the goals stated in the original white paper," according to a source.

Telegram's blockchain project is designed to host decentralized applications, similar to Ethereum.

In February, Telegram reported in an investor update that TON was 90% complete. The firm is also said to list TON’s native tokens, GRAM, on Asian exchange such as Binance, Huobi, and OKEx.

Its $1.7 billion ICO is one of the largest to date, attracting investors including Benchmark, Sequoia Capital, and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.