March 29, 2024

Co-founder of Vkontakte: TON is a speculative high-risk investment

Co-founder of the largest Russian social network «VKontakte» Lev Leviev is convinced that the cryptocurrency marketwill forever remain in the «gray zone». He spoke about this, as well as his attitude towards Pavel Durov’s blockchain project Telegram Open Network, in an interview with the YouTube channel «Russian norms!»

Leviev said that he did not see any particular advantages in using bitcoin as a means of payment due to its high volatility. At the same time, he is convinced of the future of the market:

«The topic of cryptocurrencies exists, of course. Huge market, «gray» market. Moreover, Chinese. I think this will forever remain in a gray area.

He also said that he did not become an investor in the blockchain project of his former partner Pavel Durov, as he considers Gram tokens a “speculative high-risk investment.”

«The project was perceived as an investment.Nobody invested in Telegram to go and buy coffee for [Gram tokens]. Everyone invests because they believe the value of the coin will increase. This is speculation», —Leviev stated.

Co-founder of «VKontakte» also believes that the project will exist, but regulators may prevent it from functioning fully:

«I think they will succeed in some wayform, but not sure how widely it will be used and legal… It will be difficult for them to create a currency that is easy to use in everyday life, because states like to control the currency. No one will allow some independent currency to become very large and completely legal.

Lev Leviev is one of the founders of the Blocktrail startup, which in 2016 acquired the mining giant Bitmain.

«I regret that I did not sell it in bitcoins, although it is not a fact that I would have kept them», —Leviev commented on the sale of the startup.

Recall that in March this year, the media reported that VKontakte could launch its own cryptocurrency.