Stellar is a decentralized protocol built on open-source code, designed to move digital assets into fiat money to virtually any location around the world. Its blockchain token is called the Lumen, which trades under the ticker XLM.

The core goal of Stellar is to bring together financial institutions and blockchain capabilities, aiming to enable lower-cost transfers in developing regions. Stellar was created by Ripple co-founder Jed McCaleb in 2014, which is why the two ecosystems share certain fundamental traits. Over the past five years, Stellar has grown into one of the stronger altcoins, with a market cap now exceeding $1 billion.

 Even with these overlaps, Ripple and Stellar target different groups. Ripple focuses on banks and major enterprises, while Stellar is geared more toward individuals and small businesses.

At the same time, Stellar maintains a wide-reaching partner ecosystem. This network includes banks and supports near-instant currency conversion across much of the world.

Stellar has a maximum supply of 50 billion Lumen. The Stellar Foundation initially held more than 100 billion lumens, but about half of its circulating coins were burned in November 2019. That token burn led to a brief increase in the price of XLM, though the effect did not last.

What are XLM key features and how does it work?

Stellar relies on a federated byzantine agreement (FBA) mechanism rather than a conventional mining setup to confirm transactions. Because moving lumens does not depend on approval from traditional cryptocurrency miners, Stellar can process transfers faster than some other blockchain-based networks. 

What can Stellar be used for?

As stated, Stellar is designed for cross-border payments. Its mission is to make sending money quick, affordable, and easy to use. The system operates by converting the currency being sent into Lumens, then converting from Lumens into the destination currency.

For instance, when a user sends GBP from the UK to Russia, the GBP is transformed into Lumens and then into rubles. End users typically don’t interact with the blockchain directly; instead, they rely on partner platforms. Examples include Stripe or Wirex services that support bank cards. The transfer is processed in roughly 5 seconds.

Where can you buy XLM?

Stellar is available for purchase on the CEXs and DEXs listed here.