Stellar (XLM) drops below $0.20 but on-chain activity reaches a new ATH

Stellar (XLM) has fallen below the $0.20 mark, erasing all the recovery gains from last year. However, a series of positive signals indicate that many investors still maintain a presence within the Stellar ecosystem.

Notably, tokenized real-world assets (RWA) and stablecoins could become key drivers boosting demand for XLM in the near future.

Positive signals still exist despite XLM’s plunge

According to DefiLlama, the amount of XLM locked in DeFi protocols on the Stellar network reached a record high in early February 2026, surpassing 900 million XLM. This milestone reflects the expansion of the Stellar DeFi ecosystem, even as XLM’s price continues to weaken and break through key support levels around $0.20.

Total value locked on Stellar in XLM | Source: DefiLlama Although TVL in USD is currently around $163 million, the significant increase in locked XLM indicates long-term community and investor confidence in the network’s application potential and acceptance level.

Capital is mainly concentrated in two major protocols: Blend (a liquidity protocol allowing the creation of flexible lending markets on Stellar) and Aquarius Stellar (an AMM protocol also serving as a liquidity governance layer). These two platforms now contribute nearly 70% of the total TVL across the network.

Another noteworthy indicator comes from Artemis: the number of weekly active users within the Stellar ecosystem remains stable around 60,000 for many weeks, with no significant decline despite the sharp drop in XLM’s price. History also shows that at the end of 2024, when XLM dipped below $0.10 before bouncing back to $0.60, user activity not only remained steady but also tended to increase.

New and existing users on Stellar | Source: Artemis This suggests that Stellar users are not abandoning the network amid overall capital outflows from the cryptocurrency market. However, the lack of new user growth could be a reason why XLM has yet to recover quickly.

In the derivatives market, data also hints that XLM may be entering a phase of rebalancing/sideways movement. Open interest (OI) has fallen to its lowest level since November 2024, reflecting a significant reduction in leveraged positions.

Impressive open interest trading volume | Source: Coinglass As leverage decreases, volatility tends to subside, creating conditions for a new accumulation zone. Nevertheless, accurately identifying the bottom and timing the recovery remains a challenging task in the current environment.

RWA and stablecoins could be the main growth drivers in 2026

A report published last month indicated that the total value of tokenized RWAs on Stellar (excluding stablecoins) reached $1 billion earlier this year. Additionally, Santiment noted that Stellar ranks among the top 4 RWA projects in terms of development activity on GitHub since the beginning of the year.

Scopuly— a Stellar wallet provider— emphasized the “infrastructure” role of XLM within the network:

“XLM is not an additional speculative asset. It is an essential element for transactions, account operations, and network activity. As RWA volume increases, $XLM usage also rises — not cyclically, but as a foundational platform.”

Meanwhile, the market capitalization of stablecoins on Stellar remains relatively modest, around $200 million. Nevertheless, MoneyGram— a major player in international remittances and P2P payments— recently reaffirmed the stability of its USD-pegged stablecoin tool and announced ongoing testing on Stellar.

Based on these factors, demand for RWA and stablecoins could become crucial support for the accumulation trend of XLM, especially as the token continues to face strong selling pressure around the current bottom zone.