Getting started on Stellar

1. Create your Volta Circuit account

Open the dashboard and use Sign Up to register with an email address and password, or Login if someone has already invited you to an organisation. Depending on how your organisation is configured you may be asked to set up two-factor authentication before you can go further; keep your authenticator app to hand.

This account is how you sign in and what your teammates see. It is separate from the Stellar keys that actually control funds — those stay in your wallet, which is the next step.

2. Install a Stellar wallet

Volta Circuit signs Stellar transactions with a wallet you control. Install Freighter if you do not already have it, create or import an account, and make sure it is set to the network you intend to use.

The connect dialog also lists HotWallet. It is no longer maintained, so use Freighter unless you already hold keys in HotWallet and know what you are doing.

Mainnet vs testnet. Stellar's public network and testnet are separate. A vault created on one is invisible on the other, and testnet assets have no value. Check which network your wallet is on before you create anything you intend to keep.

3. Fund the wallet with some XLM

Stellar charges a small fee per transaction and requires accounts to hold a minimum reserve. A few XLM covers creating a vault and voting on transactions for a long time. Signing wallets that run out of XLM cannot submit, even when the vault itself is well funded.

Issuing an asset needs more. That flow creates a temporary Stellar account and funds it from your wallet with about 4 XLM, most of which is returned afterwards. If you plan to issue an asset, keep that much spare.

4. Connect the wallet

In the dashboard, connect your Stellar wallet from the wallet menu and approve the connection request in Freighter.

Connecting asks you to sign a short message. This proves you hold the key for that address; it is not a transaction, it moves nothing, and it costs no fee.

Your keys stay yours. Volta Circuit never receives your secret key or seed phrase. Every transaction is signed in your wallet, by you, and you can disconnect at any time.

5. Check the connection

Your Stellar address should now appear in the dashboard. If it does not, the usual causes are Freighter being locked, the extension being connected to a different account than you expect, or the wallet sitting on the wrong network.