KuCoin has pledged $20,000 to the Ton Foundation for ecosystem development.

KuCoin Ventures, the venture arm of Seychelles-registered crypto exchange KuCoin, is providing funding including an initial $20,000 to support the development and expansion of the Ton ecosystem for the Open Network (TON) blockchain platform.

According to a Dec. 1 statement, the fund will support five payment or game finance (GameFi) platforms, research and development efforts, community building, marketing activities and projects in the Ton ecosystem, including Ton Bootcamp.

According to Ian Witkopp, Head of Accelerator at Ton Foundation, the grant from KuCoin will help them continue to support real-world blockchain solutions in payments and games across the ecosystem. he said:

“Today's partnership with KuCoin Ventures marks a milestone in the progress of mini-app development on the open network.

CuCoin Managing Director Alicia Cao said the company took the step because it believes in the potential of Ton in the blockchain industry. she added.

“This strategic alliance is in line with our mission to promote the further development of the crypto and blockchain industry through strong collaboration.”

“We believe this represents a new convergence between exchanges and the blockchain landscape, and we hope this joint effort serves as an inspiring example to inspire more similar efforts,” she added.

A spokesperson for KuCoin told Cointelegraph that the partnership is in its first phase. are there:

“This partnership is just the beginning. We plan to use this cooperation for deeper cooperation and communication… We are making all the necessary preparations for this cooperation.

In addition to supporting the expansion of the Ton ecosystem, KuCoin seeks to replicate its success with other blockchain collaborations to “facilitate the transition of cryptocurrency from niche interest to mass adoption.”

According to its website, KuCoin Ventures has invested in decentralized infrastructure POKT, non-fungible token (NFT) platform OVO, and decentralized finance (DeFi) lending protocol Sturdy, among others.

In March, KuCoin Ventures led a $10-million investment in stablecoin issuer and blockchain-based payment service provider CNHC. In a statement to Cointelegraph, Justin Cho, Chief Investment Officer of KuCoin and head of KuCoin Ventures, said the investment in CNHC is the first time the venture arm has invested in a statscoin-related project.

Ton has recently been busy forging partnerships with other crypto players. On October 4, the company announced that MEXC Ventures, a subsidiary of MEXC Global kriptovalyutnoy exchange, raised an eight-figure investment to support the development of the platform.

The blockchain platform welcomed Web3 investment firm Animoka Brands as its largest backer in November. According to the announcement, the Yat Siu-based company plans to bring blockchain-based games to Telegram.