Stellar Ecosystem
News

Beans publishes a step-by-step tutorial on how to deposit and withdraw cash through MoneyGram integration, enabling users to move money in and out of their non-custodial app with zero fees.

The Block by Block podcast returns for season 2 with Denelle Dixon interviewing Joey Krug of Founders Fund about crypto investing, early-stage ventures, and lessons learned from backing founders in the space.

The Stellar Development Foundation announced Meridian 2023, its 5th annual conference scheduled for September 26-28 in Madrid, Spain. The event will feature 400+ attendees, 100+ speakers including actor Idris Elba, and focus on how blockchain technology can unlock human potential and increase financial access.

The Stellar Newsletter highlights Q1 achievements including Franklin Templeton's OnChain Fund surpassing $270M AUM on Stellar blockchain, SDF's strategic progress, and new board member Asiff Hirji. It covers partnerships like Arf, Cebuana Lhuillier, and blockchain remittances, plus Soroban smart contracts developments and community spotlights. Upcoming Meridian 2023 in Madrid is announced.

Tomer Weller from Stellar Development Foundation interviews Sergey Gorbunov, co-founder of Axelar, to discuss cross-chain communication protocols and how both teams approach interoperability challenges for developers.

Elliot Voris has joined the Stellar Development Foundation as a DevRel team member after years of community contributions. He discovered Stellar through Stellar Quest during COVID and has since become a key contributor to community education, Soroban documentation, and developer tools.

The Stellar Newsletter highlights the Soroban Adoption Fund with $100M in opportunities, including a $10M Stellar Community Fund program for Soroban projects and developer initiatives like Sorobanathon. It covers UNHCR's nomination for blockchain impact award using Stellar for aid in Ukraine, partnerships like Beans App with MoneyGram, and technical updates on Pull Mode and Ubuntu upgrades. Community events, policy priorities, and developer resources are also featured.

BP Ventures announces sponsorship of Public Node's Stellar validator node, funding its uptime and monitoring. This supports the growth of the Stellar network and Public Node's mission for open blockchain infrastructure. The partnership highlights commitment to inclusive blockchain technology.

The Stellar Development Foundation outlines three active programs under the $100M Soroban Adoption Fund: Stellar Quest Live Series 6 for competitive learning, Sorobanathon: Equinox for experimentation and content creation, and the Stellar Community Fund for building full products. Each targets different developer skill levels with varying award structures.

This article explains Pull Mode, a feature introduced in Stellar Core releases 19.4.0 and mandated in 19.7.0 that reduces redundant transaction broadcasting between validators. By having validators request transaction hashes before sending full transactions, Pull Mode decreased computational overhead and increased maximum TPS by 72% in testing.

The Stellar Newsletter highlights the 2023 roadmap emphasizing utility through tools like Stellar Aid Assist and Soroban smart contracts. It introduces the Stellar Asset Sandbox for easy testnet asset issuance, reviews Q4 2022 achievements, and announces Sorobanathon: Equinox. Additional updates cover TASCOMBANK's blockchain pilot in Ukraine, SDF's CFTC involvement, network growth milestones, and developer resources.

Stellar Quest Live Series 5 concluded after a year-long hiatus, attracting 2,344 unique accounts and distributing over 1 million XLM across six Soroban-focused challenges. The series was the most successful to date, driving 50+ submissions to Sorobanathon: First Light despite technical challenges and XLM farming issues.

Stellar Quest Live Series 5 celebrates community resilience through memorable bugs and breakthroughs. From crashed anchors to Futurenet peer limits, the Lumenaut volunteer team has repeatedly turned infrastructure failures into network improvements while maintaining humor and camaraderie.

The Stellar Newsletter highlights recent ecosystem developments including Soroban smart contracts live on Futurenet with a $100M developer fund and Sorobanathon. It covers Meridian 2022 on-demand sessions, Stellar Quest Live Series 5, bridge bounty grants, and the new Anchor Platform. Additional updates include stablecoin launches, SDF investments in NetXD and Wave, and community fund discussions.

Stellar Quest Live Series 5 returns after a year hiatus, featuring six Soroban smart contract challenges running November 10 through December 1. Developers compete in real-time quests to earn NFT badges and share 534k XLM in rewards.

Stellar Quest Learn launches Level Three with XLM rewards (up to 100 XLM total), introduces a Pioneer Quest for wallet onboarding, and removes wallet connection requirements to reduce friction for new users.

Meridian 2022, Stellar's annual in-person conference, takes place Oct. 11-13 in Rome with 40+ sessions, 65+ speakers, and networking opportunities. Registration is free and mandatory online; the venue is Palazzo Brancaccio in central Rome.

Litemint has launched decentralized NFT auctions on the Stellar blockchain, utilizing time-bound transactions, pre-authorized transactions, and path payments for secure, trustless execution. The system ensures no third-party custody, bid protection until auction end, reserve price enforcement, and participant withdrawal rights. Full settlement occurs on the Stellar DEX via a pre-authorized contract transaction.

Stellar's developer documentation received a major overhaul with new structure, reorganized sections including a new Fundamentals and Concepts area, and an expanded Encyclopedia. The update aims to improve the developer experience with iterative improvements rolling out over coming months.

Stellar's Meridian 2022 conference returns to Rome for the first time since 2019, bringing together the community to tackle urgent global challenges through collective problem-solving and diverse perspectives on blockchain solutions.

The Stellar Development Foundation released an updated security guide covering common scams targeting the Stellar community, including phishing, support fraud, look-alike assets, and false claims. SDF clarifies it never asks for private keys, controls accounts, or freezes funds, and provides guidance on protecting yourself and reporting fraud.

The article highlights the popularity and benefits of Answerly NFTs within a Stellar-based knowledge-sharing ecosystem. Holders gain lifetime pro-membership perks like increased rewards, higher limits, and ad-free experience upon connecting their Stellar wallet. A recent airdrop boosted interest, with ANSR tokens available for purchase to acquire these NFTs.

SDF launches Stellar Campus Experts, a community-driven program for university and bootcamp students to learn blockchain technology, organize campus events, and build careers in the space with stipends, networking, and exclusive opportunities.

Stellar Quest is splitting into two components: Stellar Quest Learn, an evergreen educational platform launching today with five initial quests and NFT badges, and Stellar Quest Live for periodic competitive events. The redesign addresses community feedback about accessibility and consistent engagement.

A comprehensive overview of Africa's rapidly growing Web3 economy, highlighting major blockchain protocols (including Stellar), venture capital investments, NGO partnerships, and government initiatives shaping the continent's crypto and blockchain landscape.

The Stellar Development Foundation spotlights three women on its Developer Relations and Engineering teams, sharing their career paths, daily work, and advice for others entering blockchain and tech roles during Women's History Month.

DFS Lab and the Stellar Development Foundation launched a second Blockchain Bootcamp for African startups to build on Stellar, offering $5,000-$20,000 XLM prizes and follow-on funding opportunities. The virtual three-day sprint runs April 26-28, 2022, with applications due March 27.

BravePay introduces liquidity rewards for the BRAVE-XLM pool on Stellar's AMM to boost adoption and returns beyond the standard 0.3% fee. The program adds 10% of the pool size in BRAVE rewards, distributed daily based on individual shares. It emphasizes fraud prevention, long-term commitments, and ecosystem growth.