Stellar Looking to Supercharge DeFi with Soroban Smart Contracts

Soroban smart contract platform will be integrated on the Stellar mainnet in 2023

Stellar’s integration of Soroban marks a milestone in advancing DeFi innovation, because it will allow developers to deploy smart contracts and build DeFi dapps on a proven network with prime access to new markets through worldwide on- and off-ramps. With a focus on addressing the challenges of blockchain’s growth barrier, Soroban offers developers an array of user-friendly tools and a robust environment. Dapp developers are invited to explore Stellar and the power of Soroban to drive the next wave of DeFi adoption.

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Navigating the growth barrier of blockchain

Despite the impressive growth of DeFi in recent years, the sector still faces a significant obstacle on its path to unlocking further expansion. This challenge arises from a shared issue experienced by all blockchains: the growth barrier referred to as ledger bloat. This issue is not unique to Ethereum or its forks; it affects all blockchain networks due to the fact that they rely on shared databases that store data permanently by default. As those databases grow, it becomes more and more expensive to run a network validator, and transaction throughput decreases because it gets harder for those validators to find the information they’re looking for.

In most blockchains, state is growing unbounded, which is not sustainable in the long run.

To address the problem, Ethereum developers are actively working on solutions, such as sharding, but those solutions tend to be partial because while they slow state growth, they don’t stop it entirely.

To stop state growth entirely, inactive entries need to be removed from the ledger, but existing blockchains have a hard time doing that because it would not be backwards compatible with what they have already built, and so it would break many existing contracts.

Within this context, Soroban is designed from the beginning to prevent state growth through a system that allows unused ledger entries to expire. This novel solution will allow Stellar network participation to remain cost effective, which can improve decentralization and network longevity.

After rigorous testing, Soroban, the modern smart contract platform, will soon join Stellar’s mainnet. It brings a compelling option for building more efficient and scalable DeFi projects.

Introducing Soroban smart contract platform

Soroban, a smart contracts platform native to the Stellar network, capitalizes on the unique strengths of the Stellar environment. It aims to overcome the shortcomings of patchwork smart contracts that are expensive, complex to implement, and lack consistent quality in tooling.

Soroban caters specifically to Rust developers, tapping into a growing ecosystem of secure and efficient tooling. By utilizing Soroban, developers can leverage the cost-effective and high-capacity operations offered by Stellar.

An essential feature of Soroban is its compatibility. Soroban allows developers to access the same set of Stellar assets across the network, ensuring seamless integration and interoperability. This flexibility is particularly valuable for DeFi projects, as it enables the smooth flow of assets and fosters a thriving ecosystem.

Learn more about Soroban

Gain insights into Soroban’s strengths by exploring the informative videos provided below.

Soroban guides and videos

Soroban empowers builders to create accessible DeFi solutions

Stellar has been dedicated to innovating the financial industry since its inception, addressing real-world challenges in cross-border payments, FinTech, asset tokenization, CBDCs, and more. These innovations aim to make financial services more inclusive and accessible to all.

The introduction of Soroban combined with Stellar’s unique features like the anchor network’s on/off ramps further locks the network’s practical utility and unleashes innovation in DeFi.

Enhanced accessibility

With Soroban, builders can create services that are accessible to a larger audience, providing straightforward ways to transfer value in and out of the Stellar network. For example, builders can leverage Stellar-based stablecoins such as USDC, ARST, and AUDD to offer the option to allow users to add value to wallets using fiat, and through integrations including Moneygram Access, they can even allow users to access their products via cash

Improved liquidity

While Stellar has long served as an effective platform for cross-border, cross-currency payments, the absence of smart contracts previously limited developers’ ability to build innovative decentralized protocols, products, and services such as AMMs and lending/borrowing marketings to improve asset exchange by bolstering liquidity . By integrating DeFi protocols built on Soroban, the network can become self-sustaining. Users have the ability to bring assets into the network and access liquidity for asset conversion. This integration is essential for unlocking the complete potential of the Stellar network.

Soroban developer docs

Start building the future of DeFi with Soroban

The launch of Soroban on Stellar in 2023 will revolutionize DeFi development. It promises to simplify the process of building DeFi dapps with fewer obstacles and a vibrant developer community.

What developers can anticipate is a more efficient and seamless development experience with a robust testing framework and effective tools such as plug-and-play SDKs, RPC server, and Soroban CLI.

In addition, the Stellar ecosystem is backed by the $100 million Soroban Adoption Fund, which offers ample resources and support to supercharge developers’ innovation and includes the Stellar Community Fund, an open-application awards program aiming to boost development for startups built on Stellar and Soroban.

Soroban’s integration with Stellar ushers in a new era of DeFi and blockchain innovation. Builders are now invited to explore Soroban’s capabilities and contribute to the growth of the next-gen DeFi ecosystem.