Stellar Ecosystem
News

Decentralife interviews Bernardo Garcia, co-founder of Félix, a WhatsApp-based payments platform using AI and blockchain to enable cheap remittances for U.S.-based Latino immigrants to Latin America. Celebrating 10 years of the Stellar ecosystem, Garcia shares his immigrant journey and motivation to solve high-fee cross-border payment issues. Félix simplifies sending money via chat, delivering fast and affordable transfers.

Yellow Card, Africa's largest stablecoin on/off ramp, is integrating USDC on the Stellar network to enable faster, cheaper cross-border payments and remittances across 20 African countries. The integration offers near-zero fees and 3-second settlement times.

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.

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.

Decaf, a non-custodial wallet built on Stellar, is empowering Latin Americans with seamless fiat-to-crypto on and off-ramps through MoneyGram integration. The article showcases real-world impact in San Francisco, Colombia, where the platform enables financial inclusion for unbanked populations.

Tempo France and nTokens launched a remittance corridor from EU to Brazil using Stellar blockchain, enabling 170+ Brazilian banks to receive funds with lower costs, faster speeds, and enhanced security through the Tempo mobile app.

A World Bank adviser discusses the critical role of remittances in global development, highlighting how they exceed foreign direct investment and development aid combined. The article examines barriers to efficient remittance flows—particularly high fees and currency conversion costs—and explores how mobile technologies and emerging solutions like blockchain could reduce costs and improve financial inclusion.

Stablecoins are revolutionizing global payments and remittances by offering low fees, fast transactions, and stability pegged to fiat currencies like the USD. USDC and USDT, available on blockchains including Stellar, provide secure, 24/7 cross-border transfers. The article explores their advantages, top stablecoins, non-USD options like EUROC, and future potential with CBDCs.

Stellar Development Foundation made a minority investment in MoneyGram International as part of the remittance company's recent buyout, with SDF CEO Denelle Dixon joining MoneyGram's board. The partnership builds on their 2021 collaboration enabling stablecoin payments and USDC settlements on Stellar.

Stellar Development Foundation invested in MoneyGram International as a minority investor, with CEO Denelle Dixon joining MoneyGram's board. The investment aims to support MoneyGram's digital transformation and blockchain exploration to serve underbanked populations globally.

Stellar Development Foundation has published an e-book showcasing case studies of financial institutions and fintechs building on the Stellar network, highlighting applications in cross-border payments, remittances, and financial inclusion.

Félix, a WhatsApp-based remittance platform, partners with Bitso to enable faster and cheaper cross-border payments from the US to Latin America using USDC on the Stellar network. The solution reduces remittance times from hours or days to seconds while dramatically lowering transaction fees.

MoneyGram International has launched MoneyGram Ramps, a cash-to-crypto on and off-ramp service powered by the Stellar blockchain and USDC stablecoin. The service enables unbanked and underbanked populations to convert physical cash to digital assets at MoneyGram's 480,000+ locations worldwide, addressing the critical last-mile problem in blockchain adoption.

Stellar addresses financial exclusion by enabling unbanked and underbanked populations to access digital financial services through on and off-ramps, asset tokenization, and partnerships with services like MoneyGram and Stellar Aid Assist, though 1.4 billion unbanked people globally means much work remains.

Beans is running a video contest offering $50 rewards for the 3 best videos showcasing how users are utilizing the Beans app and MoneyGram cash on/off-ramp functionality for real-world use cases like remittances and bill payments.

Vesseo, a mobile wallet for the unbanked, launched 'Send to Phone' using Stellar's SEP-30 protocol. Users can send USDC to non-Vesseo users via phone number with zero fees and instant settlement, enabling remittances without bank accounts.

Cebuana Lhuillier, the Philippines' largest microfinance provider, integrated with Stellar to offer blockchain-based remittances to 2,500 branches, enabling near-instant settlement and lower fees for cross-border payments.

FinClusive and Anclap launched a pilot program on Stellar demonstrating that blockchain-based remittances between the US and Colombia cost roughly half traditional methods (2.68% vs 5.36%), using stablecoins like USDC for faster, cheaper cross-border transfers.

Coinme integrated USDC on Stellar across its 40,000+ U.S. cash locations, enabling low-fee cash-to-digital conversions and near-instant peer-to-peer payments. The partnership brings financial inclusion to unbanked Americans through Stellar's efficient payment infrastructure.

MoneyGram won the 2023 FinTech Breakthrough Award for Best Use of Blockchain in FinTech, recognized for its on/off-ramp service on Stellar that bridges digital assets and local currency through MoneyGram retail locations worldwide.

Arf, a Swiss-regulated settlement banking platform backed by the Stellar Development Foundation, launched Arf Credit Line, offering unsecured USDC-based working capital financing for licensed financial institutions. The solution enables same-day cross-border settlements without pre-funding, addressing liquidity constraints in the payments industry.

The Stellar Development Foundation joined the CFTC's Global Market Advisory Committee as the only blockchain representative, positioning itself to advocate for stablecoins, remittances, and blockchain-traditional finance integration in U.S. regulatory discussions.

Bitwage, a payroll platform for remote workers, integrated USD Coin (USDC) on Stellar to enable near-zero transaction fees for salary payments. The integration helps workers in Latin America and beyond receive wages faster and cheaper while reducing employer overhead.

Stellar announces Meridian 2022, its 4th annual conference in Rome (October 11-13), themed 'The Urgency of Doing.' The event will bring together developers, entrepreneurs, and policymakers to discuss blockchain solutions for real-world challenges like cross-border payments, financial inclusion, and regulatory frameworks.

MoneyGram and the Stellar Development Foundation launched a global on/off-ramp service enabling users to convert between cash and cryptocurrencies at MoneyGram locations. The service, powered by Stellar and USDC, is now available in Canada, Kenya, Philippines, and the U.S., with global cash-out functionality expected by June 2022.

MoneyGram launched an on- and off-ramp service for digital wallets in partnership with Stellar Development Foundation, enabling users to convert between fiat and cryptocurrency without bank accounts. The service rolls out in Canada, Kenya, the Philippines, and the US using Circle's USDC stablecoin, with Vibrat and Lobstr wallet integration.

Stellar Development Foundation submitted comments to the Federal Reserve on how CBDCs could improve financial inclusion, reduce payment costs, and enable cross-border remittances. The SDF highlighted Stellar's role in CBDC infrastructure, citing examples like Brazil's central bank partnership and cost comparisons showing Stellar's efficiency for remittances.