Stellar is drawing increased attention as its stablecoin activity continues to expand and the network closes the gap with Aptos in stablecoin market capitalization. The shift adds a new layer to the XLM price outlook, with growing on-chain liquidity, network usage, and continued infrastructure development providing broader context for the token's recent price performance.

Stellar Stablecoin Supplyvertakes Aptos as Capital Shifts

The movement in stablecoin supply offers a useful gauge of how capital is rotating across blockchain ecosystems, and stablecoin market capitalization is often used as a proxy for comparing real activity between chains. DeFiLlama currently places Aptos at roughly $950 million in stablecoin market capitalization, down 14% over seven days, according to DeFiLlama data. Stellar, by contrast, holds approximately $961 million, with its stablecoin supply up 4.67% over the same period.

Stellar moved ahead of Aptos in the broader stablecoin ranking after Aptos' supply fell below the $1 billion level.

The development matters for Stellar because stablecoins are closely connected to payments, transfers, liquidity, and decentralized applications. A rising stablecoin base does not automatically translate into higher XLM demand, but it can indicate that more dollar-denominated assets are being issued or used across the network. For a payments-focused network like Stellar, which has long targeted low-cost cross-border transfers and on-chain asset issuance, stablecoin supply rankings are one of the more direct public signals of where dollar liquidity is settling across major chains.

Who Does It Affect?

The change is relevant to XLM holders and traders because Stellar's stablecoin activity adds another metric for assessing network usage beyond the token's market price.

The composition is also significant, as it shows that Stellar's stablecoin activity is not concentrated entirely in a single traditional payment stablecoin. Yield-bearing assets such as USDY, a tokenized, yield-bearing dollar instrument issued by Ondo Finance, have become an important part of the network's stablecoin economy.

The network has likewise continued to build out its infrastructure. Stellar activated Protocol 28 on September 17 following a mainnet vote, while reported throughput exceeded 211 transactions per second across 100 consecutive blocks. XLM briefly climbed toward $0.19 around the upgrade.

These developments give the stablecoin figures broader context. The growth in on-chain assets is occurring alongside continued protocol development and network usage rather than in isolation.

What Does the XLM Price Structure Show?

The longer-term setup is notable. Analyst VERT says XLM has been building the same broad structure for almost eight years, with price repeatedly returning toward a similar liquidity area while a macro trendline continues to rise.

According to the analyst's chart, a breakout from that long-term structure could put the $2 region on the radar. The X post also calculates a potential gain of roughly 7,751% from the projected base.

Source: Analyst VERTIX X post

That figure represents the analyst's chart projection, not a confirmed future price target. For the setup to become relevant, XLM would first need to break the long-standing structure and sustain the move above it.

What Happens Next?

XLM is now trading near $0.22 while Stellar's stablecoin supply continues to approach the $1 billion mark. The immediate focus is whether the network can maintain its recent stablecoin growth — including whether supply pushes through the $1 billion threshold — and whether XLM can hold above its recent trading range.

From a technical perspective, traders will also be watching whether the token can keep building above its major moving averages and eventually challenge the longer-term trend structure identified by 0xVertix. A successful breakout would bring the analyst's projected $2 region into focus, while failure to sustain the current momentum could leave XLM consolidating around recent levels.

For now, Stellar's narrowing stablecoin gap with Aptos provides fresh evidence of changing activity across major blockchain ecosystems. The next phase will depend on whether that network growth continues and whether XLM price action eventually reflects the stronger on-chain positioning.

This article contains market analysis and price predictions. These are not guarantees. Crypto markets are volatile. Always DYOR. Not financial advice.