XLM recorded $873 million in trading volume over the past 24 hours, a 303% increase according to CoinMarketCap data. The move stood out because broader market activity was moving the other way. Bitcoin’s trading volume fell 20% in the same period, Ethereum dropped 15%, and Dogecoin slipped about 26%, leaving Stellar as a clear outlier.
Protocol 27 goes live on Stellar mainnet
The surge arrived as Stellar’s development team officially activated Protocol 27 on mainnet. Inside the community, the upgrade is known as “Zipper.” It adds delegated authentication authority for specialized accounts and introduces smart contract credentials linked to addresses. The report says the exact cause of the volume spike has not been identified with precision, but some market observers have tied the renewed attention to Stellar’s third major protocol upgrade of 2026.
Delegated authentication authority lets certain accounts assign their transaction approval rights to another address under defined rules. The feature is aimed in part at smart contract-based accounts. Protocol 27 also adds two major functions and a new credential type, while keeping existing contracts and credential types valid. That preserves backward compatibility instead of forcing a break with older structures.
Credential redesign cuts transaction size
A key technical change in the upgrade is a new credential format. Under the new structure, all signers and their related signatures can be compiled into a single authorization record for delegated authority. That removes the need to create separate authorization entries for each signer. The result is smaller transaction size and a simpler simulation process for network operations.
Protocol 27 also brings address-linked Soroban credentials using the same signature payload structure. Soroban is Stellar’s smart contract platform. According to the source material, these adjustments are expected to make complex account management more efficient even as the network adds more capabilities.
Higher liquidity reshapes trading conditions
The rise in volume points to a pickup in short-term market participation around XLM. The article notes that stronger liquidity allows larger trades to be executed with lower price impact, which can improve order execution conditions. For traders and investors, that generally means less disruption from big orders and a healthier trading environment while interest in the asset remains elevated.