Stellar Ecosystem
News

The SDF Policy Hub presents 2025 policy briefs and analyses on payments, tokenization, and DeFi, alongside contributions to regulatory discussions on public blockchains, stablecoins, and financial inclusion.

A Stellar Development Foundation leader reflects on their five-year tenure, highlighting SDF's strategic focus on building a viable ecosystem through payments infrastructure, on/off-ramps, and real-world assets. The post celebrates Stellar's growth metrics and the recent launch of Soroban smart contracts as the next phase of ecosystem expansion.

The Stellar Development Foundation participated in the World Economic Forum 2024 in Davos, hosting and participating in multiple panels and workshops focused on blockchain's role in financial inclusion, tokenization, and global financial access. SDF leadership, including CEO Denelle Dixon and Chief Legal Officer Candace Kelly, engaged with governmental, financial, and tech organizations to advance discussions on sustainable and inclusive financial systems.

The Stellar Development Foundation visited Ghana, Nigeria, and Kenya in February to meet with ecosystem builders, creators, and fintech innovators. The trip highlighted local solutions addressing payment challenges, financial inclusion, and creative economy opportunities across Africa.

Cables Finance has launched on the Stellar network as a semi-decentralized FX trading platform featuring a central limit order book, slippage-free trading, and OTC capabilities. The launch represents a collaboration between Cables Finance and the Stellar Development Foundation to democratize access to cross-border payments and FX trading globally.

Stellar Aid Assist, a blockchain solution for crisis aid disbursement, has been nominated for Best Use of Web3 at the 28th Annual Webby Awards. The platform has already delivered over $2 million in aid to Ukraine-displaced individuals through UNHCR. Voting is open through April 18th.

Pendulum's Q1 2024 roundup highlights the launch of the Spacewalk bridge connecting Stellar and Polkadot ecosystems for seamless XLM and stablecoin transfers. Key developments include reward structures for bridge vaults, new liquidity pools on Zenlink and StellaSwap, and progress on Forex AMM powered by Nabla. Community engagement and governance updates further strengthen the ecosystem's growth.

The Spacewalk Bridge is now live on the Pendulum network, enabling trust-minimized transfers of XLM and fiat-backed stablecoins like EURC, AUDD, NGNC, TZS, and BRL between Stellar and Polkadot ecosystems. Stellar users can trade XLM on Zenlink DEX and provide liquidity in pools such as XLM.s/PEN and XLM.s/DOT. Pendulum's Forex DEX powered by Nabla offers single-sided liquidity provision without impermanent loss, enhancing DeFi accessibility.

The Stellar Development Foundation collaborated with Friends With Benefits to host an Art Basel event that raised funds for Casa Tochan, a migrant shelter in Mexico City. The event featured artist Daniel Fila (Krave) creating a live graffiti mural symbolizing financial freedom and creative liberation, aligning with Stellar's mission of financial inclusion.

The Stellar Development Foundation commissioned PwC to develop a global financial inclusion framework to help assess how blockchain-based solutions can advance digital financial inclusion and enhance the social impact of financial service providers.

Beans App and Blend Capital partnered to bring DeFi to underserved markets via Stellar's Soroban platform. Users can now convert physical cash to crypto through MoneyGram, earn yield on Blend's lending pools, and withdraw back to fiat, eliminating traditional banking intermediaries.

The Stellar Development Foundation submitted a response to the U.S. Treasury's Request for Information on Financial Inclusion, advocating for open-source blockchain technology and transparent systems to advance financial access. SDF emphasized the importance of free or low-cost digital financial services, smart contracts, and open data initiatives in creating inclusive financial systems.

A roundup of global crypto regulations, adoption trends, and developments, including UK stablecoin laws, Hong Kong licensing, and South Africa's embrace of stablecoins. Highlights mainstream adoption like Swiss Postfinance's crypto services and Web3 hurdles. Notably features the launch of smart contracts on the Stellar network, marking a new era for the blockchain.

Stellar network validators voted to upgrade Mainnet to Protocol 20 on Feb. 20, enabling Soroban smart contracts with a phased rollout approach. The upgrade delivers a secure, scalable, and developer-friendly smart contract platform built on Rust and WASM, designed for real-world financial inclusion and low-cost transactions.

Velo Labs announced partnerships between its Orbit crypto merchant network and major POS providers, targeting 500,000 users by year-end. Orbit enables QR code-based cryptocurrency payments at retail points of sale with instant fiat conversion for merchants.

BiGGER, an Australian software development company, deployed the Stellar Disbursement Platform to streamline payroll for its 100+ contractors across South America, reducing monthly processing time from 8 hours to minutes. The company now hosts SDP instances for humanitarian organizations like Casa Tochan, enabling efficient digital aid distribution.

This article provides a comprehensive overview of Decentralized Finance (DeFi) and its implementation on the Stellar blockchain. It explains DeFi's core components—including blockchain, smart contracts, DEXs, and liquidity pools—and highlights how Soroban, Stellar's native smart contracts platform, enables developers to build DeFi applications with access to real-world financial rails.

The Stellar Development Foundation released its Q4 2023 quarterly report highlighting major ecosystem achievements including Protocol 20 support, Soroban mainnet rollout, $4M in SCF funding to 88 projects, and over $2M in humanitarian aid disbursed via the Stellar Disbursement Platform.

Beans, a non-custodial wallet on the Stellar blockchain, announces a partnership with Kado to enable new deposit options including debit/credit cards, ACH in the USA, and PIX in Brazil. This integration offers users faster, cheaper ways to on-ramp fiat into Stellar for international transfers. The collaboration enhances accessibility and competitive rates for global remittances.

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) partnered with the Stellar Development Foundation to pilot a blockchain-powered cash assistance program in Ukraine using Stellar Aid Assist and the Stellar Disbursement Platform, reaching 167 households with digital aid delivery that achieved 100% recipient satisfaction.

The Stellar Development Foundation published a comprehensive paper examining how blockchain-based solutions advance digital financial inclusion, addressing the 1.4 billion unbanked adults globally and highlighting blockchain's role in reducing cross-border transaction costs and enabling access to formal financial services.

Stellar Aid Assist, launched one year ago in Ukraine with UNHCR, has successfully disbursed $1.1 million in aid to over 1,500 internally displaced people. The initiative's success led to the development and open-sourcing of the Stellar Disbursement Platform, enabling bulk payments across borders for governments, organizations, and companies.

Beans collaborates with the Stellar Foundation and Friends With Benefits to support Casa Tochan's migrant shelter using the Stellar Disbursement Platform. The initiative leverages the Beans wallet for fee-free, instant fund disbursements, highlighting blockchain's humanitarian potential. This partnership demonstrates accessible financial services for global good.

STASIS has integrated its EURS euro stablecoin with the Stellar network, bringing a regulated, 1:1 euro-backed digital asset to Stellar's payment infrastructure. EURS, backed by liquid euro reserves at the Lithuanian Central Bank, enables fast, low-cost transactions globally.

The Stellar Development Foundation announced that its Head of Policy, Lesley Chavkin, has joined the Stablecoin Standard Advisory Board to contribute expertise on stablecoin regulation and standards. This move aligns with SDF's mission to advance financial inclusion and support innovative payments solutions, particularly for remittances.

ClickPesa and Pendulum announced a partnership to expand DeFi-based financing for SMEs in Tanzania. Pendulum's blockchain bridges Polkadot and Stellar, enabling the ClickPesa Debt Fund to provide capital to microfinance institutions serving underserved businesses and women entrepreneurs.