Stellar (XLM) Price Chart and Market Data

This overview details early development funding, supply and inflation mechanics, exchange trading venues, and the current token vesting framework.

What is Stellar (XLM)?

Stellar is a decentralized, open-source protocol built to process fast, low-cost cross-border transfers. Launched in 2014, it uses the Stellar Consensus Protocol (SCP) instead of standard Proof-of-Work. It's incredibly efficient. The native token, XLM, pays for on-chain transaction fees, covers smart contract storage rent, and acts as a bridge for illiquid fiat pairs. Every account on the ledger must maintain a minimum 0.5 XLM base reserve.

What is the XLM launch date and who backed its early development?

Stripe led the seed round in September 2014 with a $3 million loan. In exchange, they received 2% of the initial supply (2 billion XLM). A few months later, the project held a public sale in March 2015 that raised $2.02 million. Here is the deal with the original distribution: 50% went to a direct sign-up program, 25% to partnerships, 20% to a Bitcoin program, and 3% to the Stellar Development Foundation.

How does the XLM supply and inflation work?

The supply is completely non-inflationary today. At genesis, 100 billion tokens were minted with a 1% annual inflation mechanism. You might wonder why that stopped. In October 2019, validators voted to disable inflation entirely, and the foundation subsequently burned over 55.4 billion non-circulating tokens. As a result, the maximum supply is permanently capped at roughly 50 billion XLM. Transaction fees don't go to validators; they are locked into a non-circulating fee pool.

Where can you trade XLM for USDT and track 24h volume?

You'll find XLM listed across almost every major centralized exchange globally. Popular venues include Binance, Coinbase, Upbit, BYDFi, WhiteBIT, and Bitrue, offering pairs against USDT, USDC, and local fiat currencies. It's highly accessible. Beyond centralized platforms, Stellar also features a built-in decentralized exchange (DEX) on the ledger itself. The protocol's native path payment feature automatically routes trades through the best available on-chain liquidity pools.

Is there a traditional vesting schedule for team tokens?

No, it doesn't use a standard automated smart contract unlock schedule. The Stellar Development Foundation actively manages the remaining non-circulating supply, which was around 21.25 billion XLM in late 2024. These funds are released as needed under a self-imposed mandate rather than a fixed calendar cliff. They deploy these tokens to fund developers, support ecosystem grants, and bootstrap on-chain liquidity for tokenized real-world assets.