Build Award
Updated 01/9/2026
SCF Build is the core award track for teams building applications and protocols on Stellar. It provides milestone-based funding to help teams bring their projects to mainnet.
SCF Build consists of 3 distinct tracks: Open, Integration, and RFP.
SCF Build Award (or “Build Awards”) is an award of up to $150,000 in XLM* distributed to eligible teams who are building meaningful products, services, and resources on Stellar (each, a “Project”). SCF Build Awards are intended to cover (up to ~4 months of) development costs until the Project launches on Stellar mainnet, or are otherwise available to their target audience.
🧑💻 Who It’s For:
SCF Build supports strong teams ready to deliver and ship in 3-5 months.
The Open Track is for:
All-star teams with a plan to build something brand-new on Stellar.
The Integration Track is for:
Ready-to-build teams who want to incorporate an existing Stellar “building block” into their project.
Teams with existing significant traction (either on Stellar, on another chain, or offchain)
The RFP Track is for:
Developers building tooling or services that fit in one of the open RFPs
Teams prepared to build and ship fast.
If you're looking to fund development and launch of a usable application or protocol, SCF Build is for you.
💰 Award Overview
Award size: up to $150,000 worth of XLM*
Structure: Milestone-based funding (paid in tranches)
Timeline: Typically 3–6 months per project
Deliverables required for each tranche (see Tranches & Deliverables)
Audit support available through the Audit Bank for eligible projects
How to Apply
Submit the interest form on the SCF Website Go to communityfund.stellar.org and tell us a little about what you’re building in the interest form. This is where you’ll tell us what Build Award track you’re interested in, and if you were referred by someone from the Stellar community. These inquiries are reviewed on a rolling basis. If you meet requirements, you will be invited to submit to an open SCF round and given the round deadline via email. If you want to ensure you’re considered to be a part of a specific round, get your interest form in as soon as possible.
Referral Confirmation and Eligibility Review SCF relies heavily on signals from our referrers to determine eligibility. If you listed an SCF referrer, they’ll be asked to confirm that referral and to provide any relevant context about your project. Though a referral is not mandatory to receive an SCF award, SCF relies heavily on referral signals. Learn more about the referral program here. If you don’t have an SCF referrer, your project will still go through an initial review to determine if you’re currently eligible to submit to SCF.
Invited to submit to SCF Build If your project is eligible and aligned, you'll receive an invitation via email to submit a full SCF Build proposal to one of the three Build Award tracks (Open, Integration, and RFP). You’ll also receive the round deadline in this email.
Submit a full Build submission Your application should include:
A detailed technical roadmap and milestone plan
A breakdown of your budget across tranches
Your current traction (on Stellar, other chains, or offchain)
Information about your team’s skills and experience
🧭 SCF Build Review Process
Prescreen
SDF confirms your application is complete and meets the core eligibility criteria.
Panel Review A panel of SDF employees and community reviewers evaluate projects for:
Ecosystem value;
Technical feasibility;
Roadmap clarity and team capability
Revision Window If appropriate, teams may be given the opportunity to make minor revisions to their submissions. In the case of the Open track, this will happen before Community Vote. For RFP and Integration tracks, these minor changes may be requested by reviewers before making a final decision about funding.
Community Vote (for Open Track only) Verified SCF community members vote on all eligible projects. This helps guide final funding decisions and surface community-aligned work. 🗳 Projects with strong panel reviews and community support are selected to receive SCF Build Awards. Want to learn more about how the voting process works, including mechanisms for vote delegation and reputation weighting? Check out the Neural Quorum Governance system overview.
Participant Eligibility & KYC Requirements
If your project is selected to receive an SCF Build Award, you will need to complete a compliance and identity verification process before funds can be issued.
This includes:
Confirming you meet all Participant Eligibility Requirements
Completing a KYC (Know Your Customer) or KYB (Know Your Business) form that collects compliance and tax-related information
SDF uses this information to fulfill regulatory requirements for distributing XLM awards. The KYC form can be accessed at: stellar.org/bd-kyc
Any follow-on awards may also require additional legal and business due diligence.
Who Needs to Complete KYC?
If applying as an individual: you must complete the form
If applying as a team: each individual contributor must complete the form
If your team has completed KYC in the last 2 years: you may not need to repeat the process.
Please refer to the SDF Privacy Policy for details on how your data is handled.
🔁 Didn't Get Selected?
You're welcome to revise and resubmit in a future round. Learn more about resubmissions →
SCF Build Referral Program
The Stellar Community Fund relies heavily on signals from vetted referral sources for project support. If you’ve been in touch with someone in the Stellar Community, an SDF employee, or a partner, make sure to ask them for their unique referrer code, and include it in your interest form. This helps the SCF team to narrow focus and provide high-touch support to high-quality teams.
SCF Referral Program Terms & Conditions
Disclaimer
*To determine the number of XLM equal to the USD value of any Award, the USD valuation of XLM shall be calculated using the CF Stellar Lumens-Dollar Settlement Price as administered, maintained, and reported by the cryptocurrency index provider CF Benchmarks Ltd. (using the ticker “XLMUSD_RR”) (available at https://www.cfbenchmarks.com/indices/XLMUSD_RR), or, if such settlement price is unavailable or reasonably suspected by SDF to be unreliable, the settlement price as reported on a substantially similar and equally reputable cryptocurrency index provider as determined by the SDF in its discretion. The USD valuation of XLM for any particular Award shall be calculated using the CF Stellar Lumens-Dollar Settlement Price (or other agreed upon settlement price) reported on the day such Award is paid. The Participants acknowledge and understand that XLM is a highly risky and volatile asset, and that SDF does not provide any representations, warranties, or guarantees of its value.
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