AlphaTON Capital, the Nasdaq-listed company that recently rebranded from Portage Biotech (PRTG), said it will purchase about $100 million worth of TON tokens to build a digital asset treasury and expand into network operations. The firm will begin trading under the ticker ATON on September 4 and will manage TON network infrastructure, incubate applications inside Telegram’s ecosystem and generate staking rewards.
The company raised $38.2 million through a private placement to fund the TON purchase and secured a $35 million loan facility from BitGo to accelerate token acquisition and staking operations. The loan will be collateralized by TON tokens and is due in six months. Shares still trading under the PRTG ticker rose about 14 percent to $7.91 after the announcement.
AlphaTON named Brittany Kaiser as chief executive officer and appointed Enzo Villani, a cofounder of Nasdaq Global Corporate Solutions, as executive chairman.
A brief background: TON began as Telegram’s blockchain project in 2018 but was abandoned after regulatory pressure in 2020. It has since become an independent, community-driven open source project and was publicly endorsed by Telegram CEO Pavel Durov in 2021.
Why this matters: a Nasdaq-listed firm building a concentrated token treasury and operating network infrastructure highlights growing institutional interest in alternative tokens and staking. Readers should note the risks — token price volatility, collateral concentration, the short six-month loan term and ongoing regulatory uncertainty that can affect token valuations and the company’s collateralized facility.
Source: CoinDesk. Read the original coverage for full details.