Stellar adds MoneyGram, Figure, and Range as Tier 1 validators

The Stellar Development Foundation quietly upgraded its network’s backbone on July 16, 2026, adding MoneyGram, Figure Markets, and Range as Tier 1 validators. The integration is expected to wrap up by mid-August 2026. Tier 1 status on Stellar is not a ceremonial title. These validators sit at the top of the trust hierarchy inside the Stellar Consensus Protocol, and they are expected to operate multiple geographically distributed nodes, maintain uptime of 99.9% or better, publish complete history archives, and coordinate on system upgrades. What Tier 1 actually means Stellar’s consensus model works differently from most blockchains you’ve heard of. Rather than paying validators through block rewards or transaction fees, the Stellar Consensus Protocol relies on a web of trusted peer relationships. Validators choose which other validators they trust, and the network reaches agreement through overlapping trust sets. The practical consequence is that Tier 1 validators are running expensive infrastructure purely because they have a strategic stake in the network’s reliability. MoneyGram, Figure Markets, and Range are not doing this for yield. They’re doing it because a more reliable Stel...