Open clearing protocol for Stellar
Clear more.Settle less.
Tobin is an open clearing protocol that helps financial institutions net payment obligations and settle the resulting balances on Stellar.
The problem
Not every payment needs to settle individually.
When institutions owe one another money, settling every obligation separately can create unnecessary settlement volume. Each extra payment adds operational work, even when the obligations largely offset each other.
Clearing looks at the whole picture first, then settles only what is left.
Illustrative example · Not real transaction data
- A owes B $100
- B owes C $80
- C owes A $70
- A pays $30: owes $100, is owed $70
- B receives $20: owes $80, is owed $100
- C receives $10: owes $70, is owed $80
Settled one by one
$250
Gross settlement
After clearing: net positions
$30
Net settlement
How Tobin works
Four stages, from obligation to settlement.
Obligations in, net positions out. Because the calculation is deterministic, the same set of obligations always produces the same result.
Illustrative example · Not real transaction data
+ Built for Stellar
A clearing layer above the rails that already exist.
01
Stellar
Stellar provides the settlement network.
- Stellar network
- The settlement network
02
Soroban
Soroban supports Tobin's on-chain protocol logic.
- Soroban
- Smart contracts holding Tobin's on-chain protocol logic
03
Tobin
Tobin adds a clearing layer above existing payment infrastructure.
- Tobin clearing layer
- Obligations, clearing sessions, net positions
- Institutions and integrators
- Submit obligations and receive net positions
04
SEP-31
SEP-31 stays in place. Tobin is designed to complement it, not replace it.
- Existing standard
- Cross-border payments. Unchanged, and complemented by Tobin.
Simplified architecture for illustration.
Protocol principles
Three ideas the protocol is built around.
An open protocol designed for use by multiple institutions and integrators, rather than a single operator.
Openinfrastructure
Clearing is deterministic: the same inputs produce the same net positions. Cryptographic commitments and participant authorization are part of the protocol design.
Verifiableclearing
Designed to reduce unnecessary gross settlement where eligible obligations can be netted.
Capitalefficiency
Tobin is an open protocol under development. Nothing on this page describes a live production network, completed audits, institutional adoption, or measured savings.
Build on a betterclearing layer.
Explore the protocol, follow development, and help shape more efficient institutional settlement on Stellar.