Telegram has offered to refund investors after its scheduled release of the Gram token failed – again – due to regulatory complications. Investors will immediately receive 72% of their stakes, as first option, or 110% if they choose to wait another year. The second option may be paid in another cryptocurrency in the Telegram messaging application, with an additional 10% bonus.
The social network raised $1.7 billion in an ICO in 2018, promising investors the token Gram in return. Telegram made legal undertakings that it would deliver the cryptocurrency to investors initially by Oct. 31, 2019, or give back the money. The latest deadline for the launch of the Telegram Open Network (TON), the decentralized network supporting Gram, is today, April 30.
But in the period since its fund-raising, the company has faced serious legal challenges. The U.S Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) wants the Gram project stopped because of alleged illegal activity by the Telegram development team.
Now, in a letter to TON investors posted on a Russian platform, Telegram stated that: “Unfortunately, in light of the recent U.S district court decision, we are unable to issue Grams to you by the 30 April deadline date.” The court decision prevents the company from issuing its promised digital asset or launching the underlying TON network until the dispute is resolved.
In the second repayment option, Telegram proposes to pay investors more, either in cash, stock or a different cryptocurrency, if they agree to “loan” their existing stake to the company until around this time next year. It said:
As a token of gratitude for your trust in TON, we are also offering you an alternative option to receive 110% of your original investment by April 30, 2021, which is 53% higher than the
