TON’s UAE Golden Visa Initiative Ignites Price Rally—and Intense Scrutiny

The TON Foundation has announced a new program enabling crypto holders to pursue long-term residency in the United Arab Emirates. However, while the news has generated excitement, it has also sparked significant skepticism within the crypto community.

On July 6, Max Crown, CEO of the TON Foundation, shared via X (formerly Twitter) what he described as a “groundbreaking initiative” offering Toncoin (TON) holders a pathway to secure a 10-year UAE Golden Visa.

The plan requires participants to lock up $100,000 worth of Toncoin for three years, alongside paying a $35,000 one-time processing fee. After the lockup period, investors can withdraw their staked coins and collect an estimated 3–4% annual yield during the staking period.

Information on the TON Foundation’s website outlines benefits such as quick visa approval—within seven weeks—less bureaucracy compared to traditional visa applications, and the ability to include family members without extra costs apart from standard government fees. The staking is conducted through decentralized smart contracts on the TON blockchain, which the Foundation says ensures security and transparency.

TON presents its offering as a more affordable and faster alternative to conventional UAE Golden Visa routes, which often demand at least $540,000 in real estate or fixed deposits and typically involve longer processing times. The Foundation argues that this new route aligns with the UAE’s ambition to become a center for crypto and Web3 development.

Toncoin’s Market Surge

Following the announcement, TON’s price jumped significantly. The token surged 12% to a peak of around $3.06 before settling at approximately $2.8944, marking a 5.36% increase over the past 24 hours. Trading activity also soared, with 24-hour volume running roughly 251.54% higher than the 30-day average, according to CoinDesk Research’s technical data.

Divided Reactions in the Crypto Community

Despite the initial optimism, the announcement has provoked heated debate.

Bobby Ong, co-founder and COO of CoinGecko, called the idea an “amazing story,” suggesting it could attract high-net-worth investors and drive demand for Toncoin. Still, he expressed hope it wasn’t just a temporary hype cycle.

Conversely, Joe HedgedHog (@JoeHedgedHog), an investment partner at Sigil Fund, clarified that the initiative does not represent an official UAE government partnership. Instead, he said it’s a service run by a private legal firm leveraging TON staking as a means to support applications for entrepreneur visas. He noted that technically, any cryptocurrency could be used for such a purpose and characterized the staking requirement as more of a “token utility sink” rather than a government-mandated process.

ivangbi (@ivangbi_), Head of Strategy & Business Development at Gearbox Protocol, also criticized the announcement, calling it misleading. He explained that the $35,000 fee goes to a legal firm, which then submits visa applications to the UAE government for consideration. He stressed that final decisions rest entirely with UAE authorities and that the TON staking balance might not even be mandatory under revised visa rules. He warned that the absence of explicit government backing makes outcomes uncertain, suggesting the initiative could primarily be a marketing strategy rather than a guaranteed route to residency.

Changpeng Zhao (CZ), former Binance CEO, chimed in cautiously, noting lingering questions. He pointed out that the $35,000 fee seems destined for a legal firm rather than the UAE government directly. CZ warned that the way TON’s website frames the program could falsely imply that staking Toncoin guarantees a visa, which is not officially true.

CZ also highlighted that staking services are regulated financial activities in the UAE, suggesting that the TON Foundation might not hold the necessary licenses to operate such a service legally. Moreover, official UAE government sources do not list Toncoin staking as an accepted qualification for the Golden Visa, instead pointing to traditional visa categories.

In follow-up comments, CZ advised the crypto community to “trust but verify,” underscoring that while the concept is intriguing, genuine government confirmation is essential. To date, no UAE government agency has officially endorsed TON’s program.

Background on UAE Entrepreneur Visas

The entrepreneur visa program in the UAE—the apparent legal channel for the TON initiative—is designed for individuals running innovative business ventures. Applicants must provide a certificate from a licensed UAE auditor showing the business is worth at least 500,000 AED, secure endorsements from local authorities affirming the project’s innovative nature, and obtain support from an official business incubator in the country.

Toncoin Technical Highlights

• Price Range: TON climbed from $2.75 to a high of $3.06, a 12.4% gain totaling $0.34.
• Initial Rally: Began around 7:00 on July 6, with volume surging to nearly 13 million tokens.
• Major Spike: An intense wave of 57.5 million tokens traded at 8:00, lifting TON to its peak.
• Support Zone: Buyers have formed a strong base between $2.86 and $2.89.
• Resistance Zone: Sellers appear concentrated around $3.03, suggesting a potential trading range.
• Short-Term Gain: Between 15:12 and 16:11 on July 6, TON rose 2.4%.
• Breakout Move: A notable surge hit at 15:48 as trading volume spiked to 1.68 million tokens. TON briefly reached $2.93 at 15:50 before stabilizing around new support levels near $2.90–$2.91.

As discussions continue, TON’s Golden Visa proposal remains an ambitious—and controversial—attempt to fuse crypto finance with global residency solutions, awaiting clearer validation from UAE authorities.