How to Buy Stellar | Buy XLM in 4 Steps (January 2025)

Stellar (XLM) is a distributed payment infrastructure that features an open-source code.  The platform entered the market with the goal of facilitating a more streamlined approach to international money transfers such as remittance payments.  Today, the Stellar ecosystem is known for its affordable, fast, and reliable transfer capabilities.  Specifically, the platform facilitates frictionless cross-border transactions.

To learn more, visit our Investing in Stellar (XLM) guide.

How to Buy Stellar (XLM) in 4 Steps

1. Uphold

A top exchange in the United States, Uphold is an experienced and extremely innovative trading platform that should be able to meet your needs for trading across a number of cryptocurrencies, including Stellar Lumens (XLM). Beyond the ease of use and innovative features within the trading platform, what stands out about Uphold is the credibility it has gained in the industry.

Uphold offers an extremely intuitive trading experience on both desktop and mobile apps. The trading view is completely customizable with the assets that you trade the most and is very easy to navigate while providing a modern feel on both desktop and mobile. It is a very popular and suitable choice, particularly for new traders.

Besides being visibly appealing, the Uphold trading platform allows you to place your trades with great ease. With just a couple of clicks, you can make trades directly from your deposit method without even having to wait for funds to clear your account. This one-step ordering is another innovation from a company that prides itself on the usability of its platform. Uphold also provides the ability to execute limit orders.

Germany & Netherlands residents are prohibited.

Read our Uphold Review or visit Uphold.

Uphold Disclaimer: Terms Apply. Cryptoassets are highly volatile. Your capital is at risk. Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment, and you should not expect to be protected if something goes wrong.

2. Coinbase

Coinbase (COIN +2.17%), established in 2012, is a leading platform for buying, selling, and managing over 250 cryptocurrencies. As a Nasdaq-listed company, Coinbase offers users transparency and trust. The platform supports advanced trading tools, zero trading fees for Coinbase One members, and rewards programs that allow users to earn up to $400. With $226 billion traded quarterly, Coinbase is a major player in the global crypto market.

Coinbase operates in over 100 countries, including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Netherlands, Singapore, United Kingdom, and United States (excluding Hawaii). With top-tier security, cold storage, and educational tools, it’s a trusted platform for both beginners and advanced traders. Accessible, secure, and user-friendly, Coinbase is a global leader in crypto management.

Read our Coinbase Review or visit Coinbase.

3. Kraken

Founded in 2011, Kraken is one of the most trusted names in the cryptocurrency industry. It has over 9,000,000 users and over $207 billion in quarterly trading volume.

From humble beginnings, Kraken now offers over 200 digital assets, including Stellar Lumens (XLM). For more sophisticated investors, Kraken also offers futures and margin trading.

Kraken has continued to evolve its platform and commitment to the industry by being one of the first exchanges to offer buying opportunities on new tokens.

Kraken provides trading access in over 190 countries, including Australia, Canada, Europe, and the United States (excluding New York and Washington state).

Read our Kraken Review or visit Kraken.

4. Binance

Binance is one of the world's largest and most well-known cryptocurrency exchanges. The benefits of purchasing Stellar Lumens (XLM) here are lower fees than competing exchanges and increased liquidity, enabling you to buy and sell quickly to take advantage of market-moving news.

Use Discount Code: EE59L0QP for 10% cashback on all trading fees.

This exchange is best for investors residing in Australia, Singapore, the UK, and internationally. Canadian and USA residents are prohibited.

Read our Binance Review or visit Binance.

5. KuCoin

KuCoin is a well-known name in the industry and one of the most competitive when it comes to fees and trading costs. The exchange has grown exponentially from its early days of offering only crypto-to-crypto trading. It now offers a varied range of services, including a P2P exchange capability and purchasing with credit or debit cards.

KuCoin currently offers Stellar Lumens (XLM) cryptocurrency trading and over 300 other popular tokens. It is often the first to offer buying opportunities for new tokens.

USA Residents are Prohibited.

Read our KuCoin Review or visit KuCoin.

6. Gate.io

Established in 2013, Gate.io has grown into a reputable trading platform.  While it is not the most popular exchange, it provides users with an easy-to-use interface for beginners while maintaining robust and advanced charts for various skill levels – including technical traders. The exchange boasts many altcoins, including Stellar Lumens (XLM), and is often the first exchange to add new tokens. Notably, Gate.io maintains a strong stance against any type of market manipulation.

This exchange currently accepts Australian & UK residents.

USA & Canada residents are prohibited.

Read our Gate.io Review or visit Gate.io.

What is Stellar (XLM)?

Stellar is an open-source, blockchain-based, network.  Oversight of the Stellar network is performed by a non-profit organization, known as Stellar.org.

The Stellar network is powered by its native token, ‘XLM’ – commonly referred to as ‘Lumens’.

What does Stellar (XLM) do?

Through its structuring, Stellar is able to facilitate cheap, and quick, transfers of value.  Much of the development surrounding Stellar is targeted towards the remittance industry and cross-border transactions.  One of the benefits afforded through the use of the Stellar network is integrated asset conversions.  This means that the network supports a plethora of currencies, and can seamlessly convert between them.

How does it Work?

Stellar makes use of a proof-of-stake protocol.  This means that transaction validations occur through XLM holders ‘staking’ their tokens.  This simply entails the holder to store their asset in a supported digital wallet.  This process is significantly more energy efficient than proof-of-work models and is growing in popularity.

Compared to most networks, Stellar makes use of its native token in a unique manner.  While XLM tokens can be used to complete transactions, their original purpose was to provide ‘friction’ to the network.  This friction is achieved by introducing modest transaction fees (payable in XLM), and minimum wallet holdings.  The purpose of this is to reduce/eliminate spam from being introduced into the network, clogging data blocks.

Is it Legitimate?

Stellar Lumens (XLM) is a legitimate cryptocurrency and blockchain platform designed to facilitate fast, low-cost cross-border transactions. Launched in 2014 by the Stellar Development Foundation, the project aims to improve financial inclusion by connecting banks, payment systems, and individuals. Stellar's decentralized network enables users to transfer digital assets, including fiat currencies, using its native token, Lumens (XLM), as a bridge currency to facilitate efficient exchanges.

The platform is supported by reputable partnerships, including collaborations with IBM and other financial institutions, enhancing its credibility in the blockchain space. Stellar's focus on regulatory compliance and transparency further underscores its legitimacy. With a clear use case, active development, and a solid track record, Stellar Lumens is widely recognized as a trustworthy and functional blockchain project.

Projected Developments?

There are various developments and upgrades expected to be seen on the Stellar network in the coming years.  The following are a few of the largest on the horizon.

• Increase robustness and stability
• Establish Stellar on a world stage
• Develop and improve use cases
• Cross-border transactions
• Securitize assets

Underlying Stellar (XLM) Ideology?

While comparisons will always exist between Ripple and Stellar, it is clear that the guiding factors for development differ between each.  Stellar, in particular, was built with financial inclusion in mind.  By bringing new efficiency to cross-border transactions, a new subset of humans can now gain access to new financial opportunities.  Underlining the idea of financial inclusion is the fact that the SDF is run as a non-profit organization.

Acceptance and Controversies?

For projects of its kind, Stellar has managed to establish higher levels of acceptance than most. The following are but a few of the companies that have partnered with, and utilize Stellar in some shape or form.

• IBM
• Securrency
• Franklin Templeton
• Wirex

Beyond working relationships with these companies, Stellar is one of the most commonly supported assets on cryptocurrency exchanges and is readily accessible for many.

For the most part, Stellar has avoided any real controversy.  There are those, however, that do not agree with the sway that the Stellar Development Foundation (SDF) holds over the network – due to the SDF controlling 30M of the 50M XLM in existence.

Aside from this, many view Stellar in the same vein as Ripple.  Much of this stems from the fact that the founder of Stellar, Jed McCaleb, was also a co-founder of Ripple.  Due to variances in network structuring and actions by the SDF, Stellar has managed to avoid much of the same criticisms of Ripple, as most do not view it as likely to be a security.

Regulation?

To date, no official statements have been made by regulators on the status of XLM.

Outside of commentary by regulators, an independent group known as the ‘Crypto Ratings Council (CRC)’, has provided its input.  Based on its assessment of the Stellar network, utilizing assessment tools similar in nature to those that would be used by regulators, the CRC has given it a score of 3.75 out of 5.  This indicates that the project does indeed share various traits with that of a security.  For comparison's sake, the CRC gave similar scores to rival projects, like Tezos (3.75/5) and Ripple (4/5).

As with any investment or asset, always practice caution with assets surrounded by unknowns.  While there are various arguments pointing towards Stellar not being a security, there is always the chance that regulators such as the SEC will have a differing perspective.

Who Made Stellar (XLM)?

Stellar was first launched in 2015 by Jed McCaleb.  However, this endeavor was not the first foray into blockchain by McCaleb, as he is also the co-founder of Ripple and the infamous Mt. Gox exchange.