Stellar Ecosystem
News

ApiCharge, a Stellar-based API monetization platform, announces x402 compatibility and positions itself as a metachain abstraction layer for stablecoin payments. The service unifies server and facilitator roles, enabling AI agents and lightweight clients to purchase API access with just a signing key.

ApiCharge launches public beta for stablecoin-native payments on Stellar, letting users transact in USDC and EURC without managing native tokens or gas fees. Available on mainnet across 180 countries with settlement in seconds.

COCA launches version 2.0, shifting strategic focus from wallet to stablecoin banking ecosystem for everyday payments with simplified UX. The update introduced rewards program featuring 6% APY staking, cashback, and tier-based loyalty, supported by $10M airdrop and partnerships with Ramp Network and Everstake.

The Stellar Community Fund Growth Hack is running active promotional campaigns across payments, DeFi, and infrastructure projects. Users can earn rewards through ROZO, Myaza, Seevcash, Soroswap Earn, and Allbridge by participating in user acquisition activities like deposits, transfers, bridging, and referrals.

An essay arguing that blockchain protocols and traditional payment systems will coexist and complement each other rather than compete. The author, from the Stellar Development Foundation, advocates for building bridges between code-based coordination (open protocols) and committee-based coordination (legacy financial rails) to serve different use cases and global financial needs.

Myaza launched a 1% cashback campaign for USDC deposits via Stellar, offering users a simple way to earn rewards while accessing fast, low-cost cross-border payments built on Stellar's efficient network.

At Davos 2026, Arf, LuLu Financial Holdings, and the Stellar Development Foundation presented PayFi as a production payments layer. Moving beyond pilots, the framework integrates programmable liquidity, embedded compliance, and autonomous settlement directly into transaction execution. The panel demonstrated how this enables live cross-border payment flows without prefunding or manual orchestration on Stellar infrastructure.

This article introduces Stellar blockchain as a solution to slow, expensive cross-border payments, highlighting its fast 3-5 second confirmations, minimal fixed fees, and real-world focus via anchors and SCP consensus. It covers Stellar's origins, differences from other blockchains, tools like Stellar Laboratory for testnet experimentation, and the recent Soroban smart contracts launch. The piece promotes the first episode of 'Hola Stellar' video series for beginners.

At Stellar House Miami, the Stellar Development Foundation hosted a panel discussion featuring Crossmint, Airtm, and MoneyGram on revolutionizing cross-border payments. The panelists highlighted how blockchain infrastructure enables instant settlement, faster than traditional finance, and discussed the key ingredients for building trust in financial systems: speed, predictability, and security.

The article critiques the false dichotomy between privacy and compliance in crypto, arguing that neither extreme—full anonymity nor total transparency—will enable mainstream onchain payments. It highlights Stellar Development Foundation's stance that privacy must be compliance-ready from the start, and promotes Fairblock's selective disclosure model as a balanced solution. This approach offers confidential transactions with onchain, condition-based disclosure for regulators and auditors.

Trustless Work presents an escrow-as-a-service platform built on Stellar that enables freelance and gig platforms to offer Upwork-style escrow flows without custodial burden or high fees. The platform uses stablecoins and smart contracts to facilitate milestone-based payments between clients and workers at ~0.3% fees versus traditional platforms' 5-8%.

Range recaps its 2025 achievements in building stablecoin payments infrastructure, highlighted by the launch of Faraday for real-time routing, screening, and compliance, and the Stablecoin Explorer for cross-chain observability. The company expanded support across ecosystems like Solana, Stellar, and others, while publishing in-depth research on stablecoin usage, including USDC on Stellar. Amid major hacks and regulatory shifts like MiCAR, Range positioned itself as a leader in proactive security and enforcement for maturing stablecoin rails.

The Marshall Islands launched USDM1, a Stellar-based sovereign bond token, through the Lomalo digital wallet to disburse universal basic income to citizens. The token generates yield for holders and addresses the nation's reliance on physical cash after banking sector collapse.

VIA and the Stellar Development Foundation announced a collaboration to distribute over $200,000 in USDC stablecoins to 325 mothers in Haiti through Hope for Haiti's poverty alleviation programs. The six-month initiative leverages Stellar's blockchain network and VIA's secure mobile technology to enable direct, transparent aid disbursement while reducing cash-related safety risks.

The Stellar Development Foundation announced its facilitation of the world's first onchain universal basic income program in the Republic of the Marshall Islands, disbursing USDM1 (a sovereign digital bond) through the Lomalo wallet powered by Crossmint on Stellar.

Token Terminal's weekly Snapshot analyzes Circle's expansion beyond USDC into transaction-based revenues via CCTP, yield-bearing assets with USYC, and EU markets through EURC on Stellar and other chains. It highlights new project listings like Starknet and Deliswap, stablecoin additions, and platform updates including Queries SQL access. The newsletter showcases data-driven crypto insights with charts and product improvements.

AirTM, a cross-border payments network built on Stellar, reduces international payroll processing from days to minutes while saving companies 20-25% on fees. The company processes over $1 billion in stablecoin payments and serves 650,000 people across 192 countries by converting USDC to local currency in six minutes across 488 payment methods.

Stronghold's SHx token is now tradeable on Uphold, a multi-asset platform supporting both Stellar and Ethereum. The listing expands retail access to SHx, which powers payments, settlements, and governance within Stronghold's ecosystem.

U.S. Bank, the fifth-largest U.S. commercial bank, has begun testing custom stablecoin issuance on Stellar with PwC and the Stellar Development Foundation. The pilot explores how Stellar's asset freezing and transaction reversal capabilities can meet regulatory and compliance requirements for mainstream bank adoption.

Stellar Meridian 2025 in Rio showcased the evolution of Stellar's blockchain into production-grade infrastructure for payments, identity, RWAs, and stablecoins. Key sessions highlighted open systems, regulatory progress, privacy innovations, and real-world applications from partners like MoneyGram, Nubank, and Ondo Finance. LATAM and Africa emerged as blueprints for financial inclusion and efficient money movement.

Raja Chakravorti, Chief Business Officer at the Stellar Development Foundation, describes Stellar as invisible blockchain infrastructure that seamlessly integrates with existing financial systems to drive real-world financial inclusion. He highlights key partnerships with MoneyGram and Franklin Templeton, enabling crypto-to-cash services across 430K locations in 175+ countries. Stellar's focus is on scalability, institutional adoption, and making money accessible without users noticing the blockchain.

Wirex, a Visa principal member, has launched dual-stablecoin settlement using USDC and EURC on Stellar, enabling real-time card payment settlement directly on-chain without intermediary banks.