Stellar Ecosystem
News

Stellar Development Foundation released its Q2 2020 quarterly report highlighting team growth with 10 new hires, Protocol 13 network upgrade with fee bumps and multiplexed accounts, Enterprise Fund investments in Abra and SatoshiPay, and Samsung Galaxy smartphone integration.

Stellar has been integrated into Samsung Blockchain Keystore, becoming the fifth cryptocurrency supported alongside Bitcoin, Ethereum, Tron, and Klaytn. Samsung Galaxy users can now securely store private keys and sign transactions on Stellar dapps.

The Stellar Development Foundation announced Meridian 2020, its second annual virtual conference (November 16-20), designed as a global forum to address systemic challenges through diverse perspectives and collaborative action on financial inclusion, cross-border payments, and equitable access to financial systems.

Stellar Development Foundation launched redesigned developer documentation at developers.stellar.org, featuring improved navigation, updated content, and new learning paths for asset issuance, anchor services, and app development.

Stellar explains how anchors bridge traditional banking and the Stellar network by issuing fiat-backed tokens and providing on/off-ramps. The SDF outlines anchor functions, business opportunities, and the path to becoming an anchor in the emerging global payment standard.

The Stellar public network successfully upgraded to Protocol 13, introducing new features like fee-bump transactions and fine-grained asset authorization. Developers must update their software to avoid compatibility errors.

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.

Ledger Wallet offers a secure way to buy over 80 cryptocurrencies, including Stellar, directly into users' non-custodial hardware wallets using fiat or crypto. It aggregates providers like Moonpay and Ramp for competitive pricing and ensures self-custody from the start. The feature emphasizes ease-of-use, clear transaction signing, and hardware-level security to prevent common risks associated with centralized exchanges.

The Stellar Development Foundation reaffirms its commitment to economic equality and financial inclusion, stating that technology is central to solving systemic inequities and that the organization stands in solidarity with those seeking justice and equality.

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.

SatoshiPay raised $550,000 in XLM via convertible loan from Stellar Development Foundation to launch a B2B instant money transfer service on Stellar, processing transactions in 5 seconds with minimal fees.

The Stellar Development Foundation converted its $550,000 Series A pledge to SatoshiPay into a loan after the coronavirus pandemic derailed the funding round, providing the micropayments firm with 12 months of runway while it develops new B2B solutions.

Stellar Core Protocol 13 introduces three major features: fee bumps for flexible transaction fee management, fine-grained asset authorization for regulated assets, and multiplexed accounts with built-in memos for custodial services. The public network will vote to upgrade on June 18, requiring all ecosystem participants to update their software.

The Stellar Development Foundation released a daily-updated analytics dataset on Google BigQuery, enabling 10-100x faster queries across the entire history of Stellar network transactions. The dataset includes accounts, ledgers, operations, trades, and other ledger state information, with free trial access available through Google Cloud.

Stellar Development Foundation aims to become the global payments standard within 5 years, with CEO Denelle Dixon highlighting CBDCs as a key opportunity. The foundation is pursuing government adoption of CBDCs on Stellar's network, though founder Jed McCaleb acknowledges this remains early-stage. Protocol 13 and Horizon 1.0 upgrades are planned for June.

Stellar co-founder Jed McCaleb stated at Consensus: Distributed that no crypto projects are currently making a real difference in people's lives beyond speculation. He argued crypto startups should focus on building useful products rather than bank partnerships and business development deals.

The Stellar Development Foundation invested $5 million in Abra, a crypto financial services app operating in 155 countries, to support Abra's integration with the Stellar blockchain and expand financial services globally.

The Stellar Development Foundation invested $5 million in Abra, a crypto wallet service, to integrate Stellar's blockchain into Abra's payment and investment products. The partnership aims to expand financial services on Stellar and improve access to on and off ramps for traditional finance.

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.