US High School Student Sells Telegram Algorithm Cup NFT for 15,000 GRAM (≈ $20,400)

According to BeInCrypto, an American high school student has sold the Telegram Algorithm Cup NFT he earned at the International Olympiad in Informatics for 15,000 GRAM tokens, worth roughly $20,400 at the time of the transaction. That price is about 40 times Telegram’s official estimate for the average trophy value, which the company has put at approximately $500. Telegram had previously said the trophy was worth around $500 on average, putting the final sale far above its benchmark. Telegram founder Pavel Durov mentioned the sale on his channel and encouraged other winners to use the proceeds to start businesses. He recalled that $20,000 would have been enough to found his first company, VKontakte, two decades ago. The transaction, settled entirely in GRAM, was held up by Durov as an example of what competition winners can earn. The Algorithm Cup is a digital collectible on the TON blockchain, given to 235 medalists as part of the competition’s prize package. GRAM, renamed from Toncoin in June, traded at about $1.36 at the time. The deal put the 15,000-token payment just past the $20,000 mark.