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Stellar FAQs - Learn more about XLM
Stellar FAQs - Learn more about XLM

Learn more about the Stellar (XLM) network. Information on minimum balances, base reserves, activation and how Stellar works in Exodus.

Updated over a week ago

Everything you need to know about Stellar (XLM) inside of Exodus.

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In this article:


What is the Stellar network?

Stellar is an open-sourced payments network created in 2014 by the Stellar Development Foundation. Stellar provides low transaction fees and fast settlement time to improve the speed and efficiency of international payments.

To keep the network efficient, the Stellar ledger requires a minimum balance at XLM addresses.


What is Stellar's minimum balance?

Stellar enforces a minimum balance requirement. Implementing a minimum XLM balance requirement introduces a financial cost that limits widespread spam and malicious attacks, ensuring the network is manageable and prioritization can continue.

An account must be created before submitting any transactions or conducting operations on the Stellar ledger. To do so, you must send enough XLM to meet the minimum balance requirement.

The current minimum balance for a new account on the Stellar global ledger, with no other data, is 1 XLM.

You can read more information on the Stellar (XLM) reserve requirements in Stellar's official documentation.

What are base reserves?

A base reserve is a unit of measurement used to calculate the XLM minimum balance. The size of a base reserve is determined in a vote by Stellar validators, which occurs every few years.

Currently, a base reserve equals 0.5 XLM. The cost of creating and activating an XLM account amounts to 2 base reserves, or 1 XLM, for an account with no other operations or associated data.


How does Exodus handle XLM minimum balances?

As the Stellar network requires a minimum balance of 1 XLM, Exodus also enforces a minimum balance of 1 XLM.

When using XLM in your Exodus wallet:

  • Your XLM address requires a 1 XLM minimum balance.

  • If it is your first time using XLM, you will need to send 1 XLM or more to your XLM wallet.

  • It is impossible to withdraw the 1 XLM minimum balance from your wallet.


How do I activate my XLM address?

To activate your Stellar address and use XLM in your Exodus wallet, you must first deposit 1 XLM or more to your Exodus Stellar address.

If your first deposit is less than 1 XLM, your transaction will be auto-rejected on the Stellar (XLM) Ledger.

Mobile

If you have not yet activated your Exodus Mobile XLM address, you will see a warning about the XLM minimum reserve requirement when you attempt to receive XLM.

After your balance exceeds the minimum 1 XLM requirement, this warning will disappear.


Desktop

In Exodus Desktop, if you have not yet activated your XLM account, you will a) see a warning regarding the minimum balance requirement. You will also b) see a low balance warning if your XLM wallet contains less than 5 XLM.

If you see the Low Balance warning, you will still be able to transact with your XLM but should remain mindful of the 1 XLM minimum balance requirement. It's impossible to withdraw the minimum balance of 1 XLM from your wallet.

Once your balance exceeds 5 XLM, these notifications will disappear.

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