US-listed company Verb Technology announced on August 4 that it has reached a private equity financing (PIPE) agreement with a number of institutional investors, expecting to raise $558 million, which will be used to invest in the native cryptocurrency $TON of the public blockchain TON. (Background: Bitcoin Reserve Company: Why spend $2 to buy $1 worth of BTC?) (Additional context: Trader Eugene: Corporate reserves of cryptocurrency may be the 'last wave opportunity' for altcoins) A new member joins the cryptocurrency reserve company! US-listed company Verb Technology announced on August 4 that it has reached a private equity financing (PIPE) agreement with a number of institutional investors, expecting to raise $558 million, which will be used to invest in the native cryptocurrency $TON of the public blockchain TON. The announcement noted that the transaction is expected to be completed on August 7, and on the same day, Verb Technology will officially change its name to TON Strategy Co. (TSC). At the same time, after using the raised funds to purchase TON tokens, the company will also stake its held TON to generate more cash income. Traditional capital and crypto funds gather, luxury management team in place The announcement continued to state that this PIPE financing attracted over 110 institutional investors, led by Kingsway Capital, with other investors including Vy Capital, Blockchain.com, CMCC Global, Pantera, MEXC Ventures, ParaFi Capital, Luxor Capital, Arrington Capital, Animoca, Kraken, BitGo, FalconX, Orbs Group, The Open Platform, and others. At the same time, Kingsway founder Manuel Stotz will serve as the executive chairman of TSC; former senior advisor of the TON Foundation Veronika Kapustina will serve as CEO; former JPMorgan Onyx development head Sarah Olsen will serve as CFO. Peter Smith, co-founder of Blockchain.com, will serve as a special advisor. The management team spans finance, technology, and blockchain, considered a dual insurance for TSC's compliance and operations. Manuel Stotz emphasized: "Telegram is the preferred communication tool of the increasingly growing global crypto community, and $TON is the currency driving the Telegram ecosystem. In my view, permanent capital tools are particularly suitable for long-term holding of $TON, which not only has appreciation potential but also provides staking income, meaning TSC can benefit from staking rewards." Telegram's tens of millions of users drive the explosion of the TON ecosystem While major cryptocurrency reserve companies on the market are directing their attention and funds towards Bitcoin and Ethereum, why did Verb choose TON? The company explained in the announcement that Verb values TON's core advantage of deep integration with Telegram. Telegram has over a billion monthly active users, with approximately 87 million in the United States alone, allowing users to send and receive TON directly in the chat interface, purchase username NFTs, and pay for Telegram advertising with TON. For developers, TON is also the only authorized blockchain for Mini Apps, which can be described as forming an entry-level monopoly. However, currently, the packaged 'cryptocurrency reserve stocks' on the public market provide institutions with a new tool for legally holding digital assets. But whether it is Bitcoin reserve companies, Ethereum reserve companies, or TON reserve companies, they still face significant challenges, such as the drastic fluctuations of the cryptocurrency market and the lack of unified regulatory standards across countries. If the growth rate of the TON ecosystem does not meet expectations, TSC's asset portfolio will also face valuation pressure. Verb Technology stock price skyrockets Motivated by this news, Verb Technology's stock (VERB) quickly rose after the US stock market opened on the evening of the 4th, and as of the writing of this report, VERB was reported at $14.97 in the US stock market, with an intraday increase of up to 55%, and the market capitalization rose to $20.87 million. Image source: Google Finance Related reports The White House released (digital asset report) the US aims to be a crypto leader, but lacks the Bitcoin reserve part Sun Yuchen appeared at the TRON. Inc. renaming bell-ringing ceremony, TRX reserve strategy opens a new era of crypto assets Stablecoin issuer StablecoinX "establishes Ethena reserve", financing $360 million and daily investing $5 million, ENA jumps 13% "Verb Technology raises $558 million to establish '$TON Vault': optimistic about the deep integration of Telegram and TON, VERB surges 55%" This article was first published on BlockTempo (BlockTrend - the most influential blockchain news media).