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.
On February 20, Stellar network validators approved the upgrade to Protocol 20, marking the official launch of Soroban smart contracts on Stellar Mainnet. The Stellar Development Foundation and community spent two years designing and building this functionality, deploying 160+ projects on Testnet and distributing tens of millions in XLM through 24 rounds of the Stellar Community Fund. The rollout will be phased, with validators gradually increasing capacity for smart contract transactions to ensure network stability and performance. Soroban prioritizes security and ease of development by using Rust and WASM, implements innovative fee structures and state expiration mechanisms to solve state bloat, and maintains low transaction costs for financial inclusion. The platform builds on Stellar's decade-long ecosystem of exchanges, on/off-ramps, wallets, and custody providers to enable real-world financial services globally.
