TON validators will vote on the suspension of inactive addresses holding a total of over 1bn Toncoin

LONDON, Jan. 23, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A network-wide vote is set to take place next month on the TON blockchain in which validators will decide whether inactive miners' wallets are to be suspended. Wallets will be considered inactive if they took part in Toncoin mining, the token's distribution phase that ended in June 2022, and have never made an outgoing transaction.

This vote, scheduled to begin on the 21st of February, follows a call by the TON Foundation published in December requesting miners show their activity by undertaking a transaction on the TON blockchain. Those wallets that have remained inactive since this call to action are the subjects of this vote. 

Inactive mining wallets will not be subject to the vote if they are activated at any time before the end of the voting period. Wallets that did not receive Toncoin directly from mining, or that have made an outgoing transaction at any time in the past, will not be affected.

The distribution of Toncoin began in July 2020, when 98.55% of the total supply became available for mining. These tokens were placed in special 'Giver' smart contracts, allowing anyone to participate in mining Toncoin. This approach to distribution, termed Initial Proof of Work (IPoW), allowed TON to reap the benefits of decentralisation that Proof of Work offers, while remaining a Proof of Stake blockchain. The final Toncoin was mined from these 'Giver' smart contracts in June of 2022, however around 1 billion Toncoin were mined during the distribution period and have since remained dormant in their respective wallets.

There are currently 195 inactive mining addresses that have never undertaken an outgoing transaction, each of which have a balance of over 1 Toncoin. As of the 18^th of January 2023, the balance of these addresses adds up to around 1.08 billion Toncoin, or 21.3% of the total number of coins. These addresses are public and can all be found on TON blockchain explorers such as TonTech. If the vote passes, the proposed suspension of wallet addresses would last for four years, with transactions unable to be made from the wallets during that time.

The "suspended list" will be available to the public on the blockchain. Addresses will be suspended following a network-wide vote in which 75% of validators must participate in several voting rounds.

The move towards the suspension of inactive addresses is testament to the importance of transparency to the TON community. Through the potential suspension of these wallets, there is a hope that clarity about the volume of Toncoin currently circulating will be provided, and that the active community participating in the open-source project will continue to grow and thrive.