The STON.fi Turning Telegram into the Future of Finance
In Brief
While most saw crypto as distant and complex, STON.fi CEO Slavik Baranov saw a chance to make it human—bringing decentralized finance into Telegram and redefining simplicity for the TON generation.
When most people still saw crypto as something distant and complicated, Slavik Baranov saw an opportunity to make it feel human. As CEO of STON.fi, one of TON’s leading DeFi protocols, he’s helping turn that vision into reality, building finance that lives where users already are: inside Telegram. In this interview, Baranov explains how simplicity became the driving force behind STON.fi’s design, why decentralization is both a philosophy and a strategy, and how the project aims to redefine mainstream finance for the TON generation.
For readers who don’t live on TON yet: what problem did Web2 or early-crypto never solve for you — and how did that push you into building on TON specifically?
Back in early crypto, everything felt complicated — too many steps, too much jargon, too many risks. You had to be technically and financially educated to even start. That complexity always bothered me, because it meant crypto was only accessible to a small group of people.
What TON does is finally remove that barrier. By being deeply integrated with Telegram — a messenger already used by over a billion people — it makes crypto feel like just another digital feature, not a separate universe. You don’t have to “enter crypto”; it’s already where you are. That’s a huge psychological and usability shift.
And this shift matters now more than ever. Young people face real financial pressure — housing, savings, stability — and DeFi can help them take back some control. But for that to happen, the tools must be simple, familiar, and trustworthy. TON gives us exactly that foundation, and that’s why we chose to build here.
We want decentralized finance to be not a privilege for the technically skilled, but a natural part of everyday digital life.
The TON ecosystem is growing rapidly, yet competition among DEXs is fierce. What do you think truly sets STON.fi apart — not just technically, but philosophically?
Everyone in blockchain embraces the trustless philosophy — but human nature doesn’t change overnight. For many newcomers, trust still matters deeply. In TON, where adoption is accelerating, the way STON.fi behaves as a protocol today will shape how people perceive the entire ecosystem tomorrow. That’s why openness is its foundation.
STON.fi is in constant dialogue with its community — sharing updates, explaining product changes, and being present at events. People know they can reach out directly and get real answers. Many of its most valuable improvements came from community feedback — users who tested new features, found issues, and helped refine the product. That dynamic keeps the project honest and grounded.
Technically, STON.fi is strong, but without that two-way trust, it wouldn’t mean as much. Because what really sets STON.fi apart is not just the tech, it’s the culture: it’s being built with its users, not away from them.
Integrating TON wallets into the STON.fi experience feels seamless today. But beyond technical necessity, what’s the deeper goal behind creating such a frictionless user journey? Is STON.fi aiming to redefine how mainstream users interact with DeFi on TON?
For us as for the main software contributor, the deeper goal is to make decentralized finance feel as natural and intuitive as using any feature inside Telegram. Since TON is essentially the Telegram-native blockchain, our mission has always been to merge crypto and everyday digital behavior.
Most people don’t want to think about liquidity pools, routing, or on-chain transactions — they just want things to work. So the developer’s focus has been to design around that: to hide the complexity of DeFi behind a familiar, lightweight interface that meets users where they already are. That’s why we’re building applications and protocols that integrate directly into Telegram mini apps and let users swap, stake, or provide liquidity in a single step, often with just one transaction.
In that sense, yes — STON.fi is absolutely aiming to redefine how mainstream users interact with DeFi on TON. All STON.fi ecosystem participants want DeFi to stop feeling like “finance for the few” and start feeling like a natural part of a user’s digital experience. That’s the future we’re building: DeFi that feels native and human.
STON.fi recently got its DAO alive — a big step for any DeFi protocol. What inspired the move toward decentralization of governance? Was it a philosophical choice, a strategic one — or both?
It’s definitely both. From day one, STON.fi has been built to be something bigger than a single project — a backbone others can build on, connect to, and grow with. So decentralization of governance is a natural step in that evolution.
Philosophically, STON.fi has always believed that true DeFi can only exist when decision-making power is distributed among the community that actually uses and supports the product.
At the same time, it’s a strategic move. As the TON ecosystem grows, we’re seeing more developers, liquidity providers, and applications building on top of its infrastructure. A DAO ensures that all these stakeholders have a voice in how the protocol evolves. It aligns incentives, creates transparency, and builds long-term trust.
Trust and transparency are everything in DeFi. How does STON.fi architect its security — both on-chain and off-chain — to safeguard users’ assets and data?
First, at STON.fi Dev we have a world-class engineering team that builds for maximum resilience and security. But internal expertise is never enough — that’s why we bring in external auditors for every major release.
STON.fi V2 smart contracts passed a comprehensive audit by Trail of Bits, one of the most respected cybersecurity firms in blockchain. In addition, we maintain ongoing bug bounty programs with Certik and HackenProof to constantly test our systems against real-world attack scenarios.
Security isn’t a one-time event — it’s an ongoing process of iteration, review, and improvement. That’s the mindset we maintain every day.
If we fast-forward two or three years, what does STON.fi look like — both as a product and as a community-led ecosystem?
Today, STON.fi sits at the heart of TON’s DeFi — powering liquidity and swaps behind the scenes for apps like TON Wallet, Tonkeeper, Tonco, Swap Coffee, and many others. But it is not only infrastructure. STON.fi is also the go-to protocol for users themselves — the place where anyone on TON can instantly swap tokens in a few taps, securely and transparently.
Looking ahead two or three years, I see STON.fi evolving into something even bigger — the default liquidity layer of TON and a gateway for millions of new users entering Web3 through Telegram. And it is not stopping there. The next chapter for STON.fi is cross-chain expansion. The goal is to make Omniston, its liquidity aggregator, an engine that connects TON with the wider Web3 world. Imagine being able to access liquidity across multiple blockchains with the same simplicity and speed you experience on TON today — that’s what STON.fi is building toward.
At the same time, the DAO will make governance more open and community-driven. When priorities come from the developers, liquidity providers, and users themselves, the protocol becomes smarter, more responsive, and more resilient.
In the long run, I see STON.fi becoming both the economic layer and the onboarding layer of TON — connecting liquidity, users, and ideas into one seamless ecosystem. That’s how it turns decentralized finance into something truly mainstream.
Finally, what message would you like to share with users, builders, and investors who are watching the evolution of STON.fi — perhaps deciding whether to join the movement now or later?
Every technology has a short moment when it’s still being defined — before the patterns set in, before things get too big to change. TON is in that moment now.
For builders, it’s a rare window: you can shape the standards of an ecosystem still defining itself. For users, it’s the first time DeFi feels simple and human. And for investors, it’s a chance to support the infrastructure that makes this entire movement scalable.
That’s why I say: join now. Because this moment — this exact stage of TON — will never repeat.
Disclaimer
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About The Author
Victoria is a writer on a variety of technology topics including Web3.0, AI and cryptocurrencies. Her extensive experience allows her to write insightful articles for the wider audience.
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Victoria is a writer on a variety of technology topics including Web3.0, AI and cryptocurrencies. Her extensive experience allows her to write insightful articles for the wider audience.
