TL;DR – TONNEL is a zero‑knowledge mixer protocol on the TON blockchain that obscures transaction links through anonymous smart‑contract pools. Users deposit TON, receive a secret key, and withdraw funds via zk‑proofs, while relayers—registered through NFT tiers— broadcast proofs for a fee.
Overview#
TONNEL operates as a privacy‑focused mixer on the TON blockchain. It aggregates user deposits into pooled smart contracts, then enables withdrawals that are unlinkable to the original sender through zero‑knowledge proofs. The protocol leverages the TON Virtual Machine (TVM) to execute its contracts securely. Mainnet operations began on 2 January 2024 after a year of testnet testing.
Zero‑Knowledge Technology#
TONNEL employs SNARK (Succinct Non‑Interactive Arguments of Knowledge) as its primary zk‑proof method and also supports STARK as an alternative technique.
Deposit Process#
- Connect a TON‑compatible wallet and transfer a predefined amount of TON (xTON) to the TONNEL smart contract.
- The transferred amount includes transaction and protocol fees.
- Depositors receive $TONNEL jettons proportional to their deposit.
- A one‑time secret key is generated and stored locally by the user. Loss of the secret key results in loss of the deposited funds.
Withdrawal Process#
Users can withdraw deposited xTON from a different wallet by providing the secret key and the recipient address.
Proof Generation Options
| Method | Approx. Time | Security |
|---|---|---|
| Local generation in the browser | ≤ 2 minutes | High |
| TONNEL server generation | ≤ 1 minute | Lower |
The recipient receives roughly 95 % of the original deposit after fees.
Relayers and NFT Tiers#
Relayers broadcast zk‑proofs to the TONNEL contract and ensure each secret key is used only once.
- Registration: purchase a relayer NFT on getgems.io and link it to the @Tonnel_Network_bot.
- Upon selection, the relayer must sign a message within 40 seconds; otherwise, the task is reassigned.
- Relayers earn a fee for each successful proof submission.
NFT Reputation
| Tier | Points | Reputation Impact |
|---|---|---|
| Gold | 500 | Highest chance of selection |
| Silver | 250 | Moderate chance |
| Bronze | 5 | Lowest chance |
ZkNFT Support#
TONNEL supports private NFT operations via the ZkNFT standard, enabling confidential minting, transfer, and burning. The first private NFT collection has been deployed on TON.
$TONNEL Token#
The $TONNEL token is tradable on STON.fi and DeDust.
Metrics TVL was approximately $1.26 million in June 2024. An airdrop of 100 000 $TONNEL tokens was distributed in January 2024. Between October 2023 and April 2024, LP providers on DeDust earned 62 200 $TONNEL; current LP rewards total 66 666 $TONNEL across Ston.fi and DeDust.#
Zk Fragment Service#
TONNEL offers an anonymous number rental service called Zk Fragment, allowing users to rent private Telegram numbers.