DeFi, payments, tokenization, Soroban, governance, and project launches — curated daily from publications, project blogs, and community channels across the Stellar blockchain ecosystem.
Stellar Development Foundation announces Meridian 2020, a virtual conference from November 16-20 featuring keynotes from Reid Hoffman, Tim Berners-Lee, and other global leaders to discuss payments, financial inclusion, CBDCs, and blockchain policy.
The Stellar Development Foundation and FinClusive partner to enable compliant financial access through Stellar's blockchain. FinClusive provides a comprehensive compliance toolkit and on-off ramp services for anchors, addressing de-risking practices that exclude underserved populations from financial services.
Stellar community will vote on Protocol 13, a network upgrade enabling exchanges and asset issuers to enforce fine-grained control over regulated asset trading, including preventing unauthorized purchases while preserving existing orders and supporting security token compliance.
The Stellar Development Foundation partnered with Elliptic to integrate crypto-asset risk management and AML compliance tools into the Stellar network, enabling businesses to conduct enhanced compliance checks on assets from issuance to redemption while maintaining the network's built-in compliance functionality.
The Stellar Foundation partnered with blockchain forensics firm Elliptic to help Stellar-based businesses screen transactions for money laundering, sanctions, and compliance risks. The service is optional for businesses; XLM wallet users won't be automatically surveilled. Stellar argues regulatory compliance and privacy can coexist.
The Stellar Development Foundation appointed Lin-Hua Wu (Dropbox CCO) and Ronaldo Lemos (Brazilian tech lawyer and academic) to its board of directors, expanding the board to five members to strengthen governance in communications, policy, and regulatory affairs.
The Stellar Development Foundation joined the Blockchain Association, a crypto industry lobbying group, to advocate for favorable blockchain regulation and policy with US policymakers and Congress.
The Stellar Development Foundation joined the Blockchain Association to advocate for smart regulatory policy and help policymakers understand blockchain's potential to enhance the financial system and promote equitable access.
The Stellar Winter Roundup 2019 recaps key achievements and events from December through October, including ecosystem expansion, the Meridian conference, lumen distribution updates, and new partnerships. Highlights feature SDF's new mandate, Horizon and Core releases, Stellar Community Fund voting, and integrations like Travala.com and BitGo support for XLM. It also announces new hires and job opportunities at SDF.
Saldo, a Mexican government-approved app, enables 20,000 migrant workers in the U.S. to send remittances home via Stellar's network using peso-backed stablecoins. At Stellar Meridian conference, builders emphasized regulatory compliance as essential for real-world adoption, contrasting with crypto's move-fast ethos.
The Stellar Monthly Roundup for September 2019 covers ecosystem updates including collaborations, AMAs, new hires at SDF, developer releases, community fund proposals, and ecosystem projects like Cowrie Systems and Bitbond. Highlights include the upcoming Meridian conference in Mexico City and a proposal to disable inflation. New features on stellarbeat.io and protocol upgrades prepare the network for future improvements.
Major cryptocurrency exchanges formed the Crypto Ratings Council to rate digital assets on a scale of 1-5 based on securities likelihood. Stellar scored 3.75, indicating moderate securities risk, while Bitcoin scored 1 (lowest risk) and XRP scored 4 (highest risk).
Coinbase expanded XLM and LINK trading to New York residents after regulatory approval. Both tokens were previously unavailable in the state due to strict financial regulations, but are now accessible alongside other US jurisdictions.
Anchorage, an Andreessen Horowitz-backed institutional crypto custodian, is now supporting Stellar and Tezos assets. The firm offers staking rewards between 1-7% and aims to compete with Coinbase and BitGo for institutional investors.
The Stellar Development Foundation met with U.S. policymakers and regulators in Washington, DC to discuss blockchain regulation and the Stellar Network. SDF emphasized distinguishing between base protocols (which should remain unregulated) and applications built on top (which should follow existing compliance standards) to enable innovation while protecting consumers.
TokenSoft, a compliance platform for crypto startups, is now officially supporting token launches on the Stellar protocol. The company previously focused on Ethereum-based projects but cited Stellar's maturity and growing demand from entrepreneurs as reasons for expanding support.
The Stellar Development Foundation obtained Sharia compliance certification from the Shariyah Review Bureau, making Stellar the first distributed ledger protocol certified for Islamic finance in money transfer and asset tokenization. This enables Islamic financial institutions across the Gulf Cooperation Council and Southeast Asia to integrate Stellar technology into their compliant offerings.
The Stellar Development Foundation and Luxembourg House of Financial Technology published a 40-page white paper analyzing ICOs, covering technical elements, regulatory frameworks, use cases, and global regulatory developments to educate policymakers and industry leaders.
Lightyear.io counsel Em Lindsay clarifies three common misconceptions about ICO legal compliance: utility tokens can still be securities, the Howey test isn't the only framework courts use, and regulatory compliance extends beyond securities law to taxes, consumer protection, and AML requirements.
A legal dispute over $1 million in XRP held by Bitstamp involves Ripple Labs, Stellar Development Foundation, and founder Jed McCaleb. The case centers on whether McCaleb breached a settlement agreement by selling XRP through his cousin, with both parties seeking the frozen funds and disagreeing on jurisdiction and discovery procedures.
Bitstamp filed a legal complaint over $1m in disputed funds from a 96m XRP sale allegedly made by Jed McCaleb in violation of his agreement with Ripple Labs. McCaleb, who co-founded Ripple before leaving to establish Stellar, claims the XRP were gifted to family members before the agreement was finalized.
A New York Observer investigation details alleged interpersonal conflicts between Ripple Labs and Stellar founders Jed McCaleb and Joyce Kim, claiming the feud disrupted crypto adoption efforts at Wells Fargo and derailed a Stripe acquisition deal.