Memo Field (Critical)

• Exchanges require memo for deposits — sending without memo loses funds
• Memo can be text, ID, or hash — use exactly what exchange provides
• Memo is NOT optional for exchanges — different from self-custody wallets
• Personal wallets don't need memo — only centralized services
• Verify memo type matches — text memo vs ID memo are different

Account Requirements

• Minimum balance: 1 XLM base reserve — required to activate account
• Each trustline adds 0.5 XLM reserve — locked, not spendable
• Sending to new account must include 1+ XLM — creates the account
• Merging account recovers reserve — must remove all trustlines first

XLM Token

• Native asset of Stellar network — used for fees and reserves
• Extremely low fees — 0.00001 XLM per operation (~$0.000001)
• Fast finality — 3-5 seconds
• No mining — Stellar Consensus Protocol (SCP)

Trustlines

• Must trust an issuer before receiving their tokens — explicit opt-in
• Trustline costs 0.5 XLM reserve — locked until removed
• Remove trustlines to recover reserve — must have zero balance first
• Scam tokens can't be forced on you — trustlines required

Anchors and Assets

• Anchors issue fiat-backed tokens — USDC, yXLM (yield), various fiats
• Stellar has native USDC — issued by Circle directly
• Verify anchor reputation — not all are trustworthy
• Path payments convert automatically — send USD, receive EUR

Addresses

• Public keys start with "G" — 56 characters
• Secret keys start with "S" — never share
• Federated addresses: user*domain.com — human-readable, resolves to G address
• Muxed addresses encode account + memo — M prefix, newer format

Transaction Features

• Multiple operations per transaction — batch actions
• Sequence number like Ethereum nonce — must be sequential
• Time bounds optional — transactions can expire
• Fee bumping available — increase fee on pending transaction

DEX and Trading

• Built-in decentralized exchange — native to protocol
• Order book model — limit orders, not AMM
• Path payments find best route — automatic conversion
• Swap aggregators exist — StellarX, Lobstr markets

Wallets

• Lobstr — most popular, mobile and web
• StellarTerm — web-based trading
• Solar Wallet — Keybase team, desktop
• Ledger support — hardware wallet via compatible apps
• Freighter — browser extension for dApps

Common Issues

• "Destination account does not exist" — account not created, needs 1+ XLM
• "Missing memo" — exchange requires memo, transaction may be lost
• "Insufficient balance" — must keep minimum reserve
• "Trustline not established" — must add trustline before receiving token
• Transaction stuck — rare on Stellar, usually instant

Cross-Border Payments

• Designed for remittances — fast and cheap
• Anchor network for fiat on/off ramps — varies by country
• MoneyGram partnership — cash pickup locations
• USDC corridors — stablecoin transfers between countries

Soroban (Smart Contracts)

• Smart contract platform on Stellar — newer addition
• Different from traditional Stellar operations — Rust-based contracts
• Expanding Stellar capabilities — DeFi, NFTs becoming possible
• Still maturing — ecosystem growing

Security

• Seed phrase standard — 24 words
• Multisig available — require multiple signatures
• Sep-10 authentication — standard for web auth
• Verify transaction details — XDR can be decoded before signing