The Stellar Growth Basis (SDF) introduced at Consensus Hong Kong that TopNod, a non-custodial pockets, will combine with the Stellar community. The transfer is a part of SDF’s broader push into Asia — a area the place it faces stiff competitors from Solana, TON, and XRP within the funds and tokenization markets.
TopNod’s pockets makes use of key sharding and Trusted Execution Surroundings (TEE) expertise to get rid of the necessity for seed phrases. The platform focuses on tokenized real-world belongings (RWAs) and stablecoins relatively than speculative tokens, although it stays a comparatively younger challenge with restricted model recognition outdoors Web3 circles.
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SDF Bets on Rising Markets
In an unique interview with BeInCrypto, Stellar CBO Raja Chakravorti known as Asia Pacific “a essential development driver” and stated SDF plans to construct out anchor networks in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam over the approaching yr.
“We introduced staff within the area targeted on Singapore first, however we’ve actually been specializing in increasing quickly,” Chakravorti stated, including that extra APAC monetary establishment partnerships could be introduced over the following two quarters — although he declined to share specifics.
SDF has additionally partnered with MarketNode, a Singapore-based tokenization platform, and stated it’s in discussions with monetary establishments about tokenizing cash market funds within the area.
The ambition is obvious, however execution stays the query. Stellar’s on-chain RWA worth crossed $1 billion over the previous yr, and its DeFi TVL tripled. But XLM has fallen roughly 71% from its 2025 excessive of $0.52, underperforming each Bitcoin and Ethereum. Each day transaction volumes have held regular, however common transaction values have dropped, suggesting that core cost use circumstances persist whereas speculative and high-value capital flows have dried up.
2026: The Distribution Drawback
Chakravorti acknowledged that tokenization alone is now not the differentiator.
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“Final yr was actually about proving that tokenized merchandise may be constructed at scale. This subsequent yr is de facto going to be about specializing in discovering the appropriate distribution outcomes for these belongings,” he advised BeInCrypto.
That is arguably Stellar’s greatest problem. Franklin Templeton’s tokenized cash market fund stays the community’s flagship RWA product, and US Financial institution lately introduced a stablecoin partnership. However competing chains are shifting quick — Solana and Polygon are each founding members of the identical Blockchain Funds Consortium (BPC) as Stellar, and networks like Ethereum and Avalanche proceed to draw institutional tokenization initiatives.
Privateness vs. Compliance
Stellar’s current X-Ray improve (Protocol 25) launched native zero-knowledge cryptography. Chakravorti framed this as an institutional necessity relatively than a privacy-maximalist play.
“Privateness components could embody ship, obtain, who’s the holder — however importantly, these should be auditable,” he stated. “The privateness could look barely totally different relying on who you’re speaking to.”
Whether or not this configurable method satisfies each regulators and privacy-conscious customers in Asia’s various regulatory panorama stays to be seen.
What’s Subsequent
SDF confirmed its annual Meridian convention will transfer to Abu Dhabi in October 2026. The TopNod integration is anticipated to go stay throughout the Philippines, Singapore, Japan, and different Asian markets, although no particular timeline has been offered.
For Stellar, the system is acquainted: robust infrastructure, rising institutional curiosity, and a transparent narrative. The lacking piece — as Chakravorti himself admitted — is distribution at scale.