Stellar (XLM) SCF 7.0 Overhauls Grant System With AI Screening and Referral Rewards

The Stellar (XLM) Improvement Basis has unveiled SCF 7.0, a major restructuring of its neighborhood grant program that introduces AI-powered software screening and a monetary incentive system for referrers who floor high quality builder groups.

The revamped Stellar Neighborhood Fund replaces the earlier open-application mannequin with a tiered submission course of. Builders can now sign curiosity at any time by way of the neighborhood fund portal, with eligible initiatives getting into open Construct Award rounds. The adjustments goal to chop time-to-decision whereas filtering out low-quality submissions that beforehand clogged the assessment pipeline.

Referral System Creates New Incentive Layer

Essentially the most notable addition is a verified referral pathway. Trusted ecosystem individuals—together with SCF alumni, ambassadors, accelerator packages, and official companions—can now vouch for incoming groups. Referred initiatives obtain stronger belief indicators within the assessment course of and sooner analysis timelines.

Referrers aren’t doing this out of goodwill alone. The brand new system ties monetary incentives to the success of groups they create in, creating skin-in-the-game dynamics that ought to theoretically enhance referral high quality. Tasks arriving with out referrals aren’t shut out—they proceed by way of AI-based prescreening that filters apparent mismatches earlier than human reviewers get entangled.

Timing Aligns With Stellar’s 2026 Push

The grant program overhaul lands as Stellar executes on an formidable 2026 roadmap. Protocol 24, slated for this yr, will introduce zero-knowledge proofs enabling personal transfers on the community. Soroban sensible contract upgrades focusing on cross-chain liquidity are additionally in growth.

CME Group introduced January 15 that it’s going to launch Stellar futures on February 9, probably bringing institutional buying and selling quantity to XLM. The token presently trades at $0.2253 with a $7.3 billion market cap, down 2.81% over the previous 24 hours.

The community has been constructing its real-world asset credentials by way of partnerships with Visa, PayPal, and the United Nations Improvement Programme introduced final September. Extra builders constructing on Stellar infrastructure might speed up these institutional relationships.

What This Means for Builders

For builders contemplating Stellar, the pathway is now clearer however extra structured. Discovering a referrer from the present ecosystem turns into a significant benefit—not a requirement, however a fast-track choice. The AI prescreening ought to cut back wait instances for everybody, although its effectiveness at surfacing genuinely promising initiatives versus people who merely write higher purposes stays to be seen.

Functions proceed to both panel assessment or neighborhood vote relying on the funding monitor chosen. The Basis hasn’t disclosed whole funding allocation for SCF 7.0 rounds, although earlier cycles have distributed thousands and thousands in grants throughout dozens of initiatives because the program launched.

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