The new blockchain project from encrypted messaging service Telegram has reached the final stage of development and is now ready for imminent launch. This follows news from the telegram camp on Friday, that the code for running a blockchain node had been released, allowing developers and other interested parties in the project known as TON, to be able to begin looking at the running of a full node, a validator node and the blockchain explorer. 100 or so nodes are already being maintained internally by Telegram themselves. This indicates the project is in its very final stages of development. However, the project, which raised $1.7 billion in a fundraising round nearly early last year, is already behind its schedule. TON was initially estimated to hit the market on September 1st, but now it is looking as if the project will actually see a full rollout of its mainnet towards the end of October. The reasons for this delay still remain unclear. For some, the launch date can’t come sooner enough, as the proof-of-stake protocol has been pipped to rival more established existing blockchains, most notably, Ethereum, which research has shown to be on the decline. It is belied its innovative “shardchains”, validators chosen from those who stake the large amounts of tokens, and compatibility with existing Ethereum-based software should help it cement a place as the go-to for many developers. Whether or not this will come to pass remains to be seen, but it seems that we won’t have long to wait to find out.