Stellar Partners with Chainlink to Power the Next Generation of DeFi

According to SDF, the collaboration marks a new phase in Stellar’s evolution from a payments-focused blockchain to a multi-purpose network capable of hosting advanced financial applications. Through Chainlink’s infrastructure, Stellar developers and institutions will gain access to secure, decentralized data and cross-chain connectivity, essential components for building reliable financial tools on-chain.

Raja Chakravorti, Chief Business Officer at SDF, said, “Joining the Chainlink Scale program is a natural next step for Stellar. Chainlink’s data and interoperability standards through Data Feeds, Data Streams, and CCIP will give developers and institutions on Stellar access to the same trusted infrastructure powering much of DeFi today.” Chainlink Labs’ Chief Business Officer, Johann Eid, added that the collaboration “accelerates Stellar’s ability to scale to meet the demands of a unified on-chain financial system.”

By joining the Chainlink Scale program, Stellar will receive access to oracle services and infrastructure support tailored to help its network scale efficiently. This includes Chainlink’s high-reliability data feeds for accurate pricing, real-time data streams for institutional use cases, and CCIP, a cross-chain protocol enabling secure communication and asset transfers between different blockchains. Together, these technologies form the technical foundation for next-generation decentralised finance.

For Stellar, the decision is strategic. The network has long been associated with fast, low-cost payments and asset issuance. However, the integration of Chainlink’s tools positions it for more complex use cases, including tokenization of real-world assets, automated lending and borrowing platforms, and decentralized exchange infrastructure. These capabilities are becoming increasingly critical as institutional participants seek compliant and scalable blockchain environments.

SDF emphasized that the partnership will make it easier for developers to build financial applications without having to manage their own oracle systems or cross-chain protocols, both of which are expensive and prone to error if handled in isolation. Instead, Chainlink’s established network of decentralized nodes will deliver verified data directly to Stellar smart contracts, reducing friction and improving reliability.

The collaboration also reflects a broader industry trend: the convergence of blockchain networks through interoperability frameworks rather than competition among isolated ecosystems. Stellar’s adoption of CCIP suggests that cross-chain communication is becoming a baseline requirement for financial infrastructure rather than an experimental feature. By integrating directly with Chainlink’s interoperability standard, Stellar effectively joins a growing network of chains connected through a common infrastructure layer.

From a developer’s standpoint, this means access to external data such as market prices, economic indicators, or event triggers, all without leaving the Stellar environment. From a business perspective, it signals to institutions and fintech firms that Stellar aims to provide the same level of infrastructure reliability as other leading smart-contract networks. This could open the door to new partnerships focused on tokenization, remittances, and cross-border settlements using programmable assets.

SDF’s blog describes the integration as a foundational step toward “next-gen DeFi applications” that bridge traditional finance and blockchain infrastructure. The combination of Stellar’s speed and Chainlink’s data layer aims to offer both accessibility and security, two priorities often seen as competing in decentralized systems.

While implementation timelines are not specified, the Foundation indicated that the integration will proceed through multiple phases to ensure compatibility and scalability. Once complete, developers and enterprises on Stellar will be able to access Chainlink’s data and interoperability features natively, without relying on third-party bridges.

The announcement reinforces Stellar’s long-term goal of making blockchain technology usable at scale in regulated and institutional contexts. It also underlines Chainlink’s growing role as the interoperability and data backbone for decentralized finance. As both ecosystems continue to mature, their collaboration could form part of a broader shift toward unified financial architecture across blockchain networks.

The partnership represents a natural progression in the decentralization of financial infrastructure, moving from single-network solutions toward cross-chain, data-driven systems that can integrate traditional finance with blockchain-native applications. For Stellar and Chainlink, it is not merely a technical integration, but a strategic alignment aimed at powering the next generation of decentralized finance.