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Stellar is a decentralised payment network launched in 2014 by Jed McCaleb, who previously co-founded Ripple. The project is overseen by the Stellar Development Foundation, a non-profit with a stated mission of creating equitable access to the global financial system. Where Ripple originally targeted banks and large financial institutions, Stellar was more built to address individual remittances and financial inclusion in underserved markets.
The network uses the Stellar Consensus Protocol (SCP), a federated Byzantine agreement mechanism that enables fast, low-cost transactions without mining. Lumens (XLM) serve as the native currency, used to pay transaction fees and to act as a bridge asset when converting between different currencies on the network. In Australia, individuals can purchase Stellar using AUD through PayID transfers on AUSTRAC-registered platforms like Swyftx.
How Stellar differs from XRP
Both networks were designed for cross-border payments, and share a co-founder in Jed McCaleb. The key differences are governance, target market, and philosophy.
Stellar is run by a non-profit foundation and positions itself as open infrastructure for anyone to build on, with a particular emphasis on serving developing economies. XRP is associated with Ripple, a for-profit company that is often aligned with institutional banking. Stellar’s consensus mechanism (SCP) is also architecturally distinct from the XRP Ledger Consensus Protocol.
| Feature | Stellar (XLM) | XRP (XRP) |
| Governance | Non-profit foundation | For-profit company (Ripple) |
| Target market | Individuals, developing economies | Banks and financial institutions |
| Consensus | Stellar Consensus Protocol (federated) | XRP Ledger Consensus Protocol |
| Smart contracts | Soroban platform | Hooks and native support |
| Supply event | 55 billion tokens burned in 2019 | Periodic escrow releases |
What drives XLM's price?
Partnerships and integration
Stellar's value proposition is tied to real-world adoption by payment providers and financial institutions. Partnership announcements, pilot programmes for central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), and integrations with remittance corridors have historically influenced market attention for XLM.
Supply history
Stellar had an initial supply of 100 billion XLM. In 2019, the Foundation permanently burned approximately 55 billion tokens, reducing the total supply to around 50 billion. No new XLM tokens are created. Circulating supply increases only through the Foundation's managed distribution programmes, which are publicly disclosed.
Macro and sentiment
As a globally traded asset, XLM is sensitive to macroeconomic conditions, developments in cross-border payment regulation, and comparative progress among competing payment networks.
How to store Stellar
After purchasing XLM, assets can remain on a regulated custodial exchange or be withdrawn to a compatible wallet for direct ownership. For more information, refer to our crypto wallet guide.
