The STON.fi Turning Telegram into the Future of Finance
When most individuals nonetheless noticed crypto as one thing distant and sophisticated, Slavik Baranov noticed a chance to make it really feel human. As CEO of STON.fi, one of TON’s main DeFi protocols, he’s serving to flip that imaginative and prescient into actuality, constructing finance that lives the place customers already are: inside Telegram. In this interview, Baranov explains how simplicity turned the driving power behind STON.fi’s design, why decentralization is each a philosophy and a method, and the way the venture goals to redefine mainstream finance for the TON era.
For readers who don’t stay on TON but: what drawback did Web2 or early-crypto by no means resolve for you — and the way did that push you into constructing on TON particularly?
Back in early crypto, every little thing felt sophisticated — too many steps, an excessive amount of jargon, too many dangers. You needed to be technically and financially educated to even begin. That complexity all the time bothered me, as a result of it meant crypto was solely accessible to a small group of individuals.
What TON does is lastly take away that barrier. By being deeply built-in with Telegram — a messenger already utilized by over a billion individuals — it makes crypto really feel like simply one other digital function, not a separate universe. You don’t must “enter crypto”; it’s already the place you might be. That’s an enormous psychological and usefulness shift.
And this shift issues now greater than ever. Young individuals face actual monetary strain — housing, financial savings, stability — and DeFi may help them take again some management. But for that to occur, the instruments should be easy, acquainted, and reliable. TON offers us precisely that basis, and that’s why we selected to construct right here.
We need decentralized finance to be not a privilege for the technically expert, however a pure half of on a regular basis digital life.
The TON ecosystem is rising quickly, but competitors amongst DEXs is fierce. What do you assume actually units STON.fi aside — not simply technically, however philosophically?
Everyone in blockchain embraces the trustless philosophy — however human nature doesn’t change in a single day. For many newcomers, belief nonetheless issues deeply. In TON, the place adoption is accelerating, the approach STON.fi behaves as a protocol right now will form how individuals understand the whole ecosystem tomorrow. That’s why openness is its basis.
STON.fi is in fixed dialogue with its group — sharing updates, explaining product modifications, and being current at occasions. People know they’ll attain out immediately and get actual solutions. Many of its most dear enhancements got here from group suggestions — customers who examined new options, discovered points, and helped refine the product. That dynamic retains the venture sincere and grounded.
Technically, STON.fi is powerful, however with out that two-way belief, it wouldn’t imply as a lot. Because what actually units STON.fi aside is not only the tech, it’s the tradition: it’s being constructed with its customers, not away from them.
Integrating TON wallets into the STON.fi expertise feels seamless right now. But past technical necessity, what’s the deeper aim behind creating such a frictionless person journey? Is STON.fi aiming to redefine how mainstream customers work together with DeFi on TON?
For us as for the fundamental software program contributor, the deeper aim is to make decentralized finance really feel as pure and intuitive as utilizing any function inside Telegram. Since TON is basically the Telegram-native blockchain, our mission has all the time been to merge crypto and on a regular basis digital conduct.
Most individuals don’t need to take into consideration liquidity swimming pools, routing, or on-chain transactions — they only need issues to work. So the developer’s focus has been to design round that: to cover the complexity of DeFi behind a well-recognized, light-weight interface that meets customers the place they already are. That’s why we’re constructing functions and protocols that combine immediately into Telegram mini apps and let customers swap, stake, or present liquidity in a single step, usually with only one transaction.
In that sense, sure — STON.fi is totally aiming to redefine how mainstream customers work together with DeFi on TON. All STON.fi ecosystem members need DeFi to cease feeling like “finance for the few” and begin feeling like a pure half of a person’s digital expertise. That’s the future we’re constructing: DeFi that feels native and human.
STON.fi just lately bought its DAO alive — an enormous step for any DeFi protocol. What impressed the transfer towards decentralization of governance? Was it a philosophical selection, a strategic one — or each?
It’s positively each. From day one, STON.fi has been constructed to be one thing larger than a single venture — a spine others can construct on, hook up with, and develop with. So decentralization of governance is a pure step in that evolution.
Philosophically, STON.fi has all the time believed that true DeFi can solely exist when decision-making energy is distributed amongst the group that truly makes use of and helps the product.
At the identical time, it’s a strategic transfer. As the TON ecosystem grows, we’re seeing extra builders, liquidity suppliers, and functions constructing on high of its infrastructure. A DAO ensures that every one these stakeholders have a voice in how the protocol evolves. It aligns incentives, creates transparency, and builds long-term belief.
Trust and transparency are every little thing in DeFi. How does STON.fi architect its safety — each on-chain and off-chain — to safeguard customers’ belongings and information?
First, at STON.fi Dev now we have a world-class engineering workforce that builds for optimum resilience and safety. But inner experience isn’t sufficient — that’s why we herald exterior auditors for each main launch.
STON.fi V2 sensible contracts handed a complete audit by Trail of Bits, one of the most revered cybersecurity corporations in blockchain. In addition, we preserve ongoing bug bounty applications with Certik and HackenProof to continually take a look at our programs towards real-world assault situations.
Security isn’t a one-time occasion — it’s an ongoing course of of iteration, evaluate, and enchancment. That’s the mindset we preserve each day.
If we fast-forward two or three years, what does STON.fi seem like — each as a product and as a community-led ecosystem?
Today, STON.fi sits at the coronary heart of TON’s DeFi — powering liquidity and swaps behind the scenes for apps like TON Wallet, Tonkeeper, Tonco, Swap Coffee, and lots of others. But it isn’t solely infrastructure. STON.fi can also be the go-to protocol for customers themselves — the place the place anybody on TON can immediately swap tokens in just a few faucets, securely and transparently.
Looking forward two or three years, I see STON.fi evolving into one thing even larger — the default liquidity layer of TON and a gateway for tens of millions of new customers coming into Web3 by means of Telegram. And it isn’t stopping there. The subsequent chapter for STON.fi is cross-chain enlargement. The aim is to make Omniston, its liquidity aggregator, an engine that connects TON with the wider Web3 world. Imagine having the ability to entry liquidity throughout a number of blockchains with the identical simplicity and pace you expertise on TON right now — that’s what STON.fi is constructing towards.
At the identical time, the DAO will make governance extra open and community-driven. When priorities come from the builders, liquidity suppliers, and customers themselves, the protocol turns into smarter, extra responsive, and extra resilient.
In the long term, I see STON.fi changing into each the financial layer and the onboarding layer of TON — connecting liquidity, customers, and concepts into one seamless ecosystem. That’s the way it turns decentralized finance into one thing actually mainstream.
Finally, what message would you prefer to share with customers, builders, and traders who’re watching the evolution of STON.fi — maybe deciding whether or not to hitch the motion now or later?
Every know-how has a brief second when it’s nonetheless being outlined — earlier than the patterns set in, earlier than issues get too huge to alter. TON is in that second now.
For builders, it’s a uncommon window: you may form the requirements of an ecosystem nonetheless defining itself. For customers, it’s the first time DeFi feels easy and human. And for traders, it’s an opportunity to assist the infrastructure that makes this whole motion scalable.
That’s why I say: be a part of now. Because this second — this actual stage of TON — won’t ever repeat.
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