What is Stellar Lumens (XLM)?
Stellar (XLM) fact sheet with live price · reviewed November 4, 2026
Stellar is a payments blockchain launched in 2014, and lumens (XLM) are its coin. It's built to move money across borders cheaply, often as stablecoins such as USDC, and is overseen by a nonprofit, the Stellar Development Foundation. There's no mining: about 50 billion XLM exist and no new ones are created.
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Key facts
| Launched | July 2014 |
|---|---|
| Created by | Jed McCaleb and Joyce Kim |
| Run by | Independent validators; the nonprofit Stellar Development Foundation (SDF) guides development |
| How it's secured | Stellar Consensus Protocol (no mining or staking) |
| Supply | About 50 billion XLM; inflation ended in 2019, when SDF also burned about 55 billion |
| Settles in | About 5 seconds |
| Account minimum | 1 XLM (two base reserves of 0.5 XLM) |
| Smart contracts | Soroban, since February 2024 |
Who runs it
Anyone can run a validator, and banks, universities and companies do. The Stellar Development Foundation, a nonprofit, maintains most of the software and holds a large reserve of XLM for grants and partnerships. Co-founder Jed McCaleb also co-founded Ripple; see XRP vs. Stellar.
What it's used for
Cross-border payments and remittances, issuing stablecoins (USDC and others run on Stellar), and tokenized funds and other real-world assets. Businesses called "anchors" connect Stellar to bank accounts and cash pick-up points. XLM itself pays tiny fees and keeps accounts open.
How it works
Each validator chooses which other validators it trusts; overlapping groups of trust let the network agree on the next ledger every few seconds without mining. Fees are tiny (the minimum is 0.00001 XLM) and exist mainly to stop spam.
Where things stand (November 2026)
Stellar keeps adding protocol upgrades through validator votes, most recently in 2026, and is used for stablecoin payments and tokenized funds. No new XLM is being created.
Risks to know
- The Stellar Development Foundation holds a large share of XLM and strongly influences development.
- Competition from other payment networks and stablecoin chains.
- Sending to an exchange without the required memo can lose or delay funds.
- Price is volatile.
Buying and storing it
If you decide to buy, use a regulated exchange you reach directly, check fees with the true cost calculator, and store long-term holdings in a wallet you control, with the seed phrase written down offline. Read how to buy crypto safely. This page isn't a recommendation to buy.
Questions
What's the difference between Stellar and lumens?
Stellar is the network; lumens (XLM) are its coin.
Is Stellar the same as Ripple?
No. They share a co-founder and similar goals, but they're separate networks with different coins and organizations.
Can you mine or stake XLM?
No. All XLM already exists, and the network isn't secured by staking.
Compare Stellar
See it side by side, with live data: XRP vs. Stellar. Track it in the private portfolio tracker.
Where to next
Sources
- Lumens (XLM) (Stellar developer docs)
- Stellar Consensus Protocol (Stellar developer docs)
- Stellar Development Foundation
- Stellar Foundation burns over 50% of XLM supply (The Block, 2019)
Facts checked against the sources listed, as of November 4, 2026. Live price data by CoinGecko. Educational only; not financial advice. How we write and check pages.