Send XRP/XLM - What is a destination tag for XRP / memo for XLM?
Destination tag/Memo is an additional address feature necessary for identifying your recipient beyond the XRP/XLM wallet address on a centralized exchange or wallet.
Currency | Feature name | Format |
XRP | Destination tag | Numbers only |
Stella (XLM) | Memo | String and/or numbers |
Tokens like XRP/XLM use the destination tag technology to determine what is the actual individual account a transaction should be assigned and credited to. As most centralized solutions use one address for all users for these cryptocurrencies. Failure to include destination tag/memo when sending XRP/XLM to a centralized address would lead to loss of funds and it’s irreversible.
When is destination tag/memo required?
Follow the checklist below to decide whether a destination tag/memo is required for your recipient
Ask your recipient whether is there a destination tag/memo for the XRP/XLM address
Is the receiving address generated by a centralized or decentralized wallet? (The recipient would own the recovery phrase if it’s a decentralized wallet then a destination tag/memo is not required)
If you are still unsure, we strongly advise you to send a small testing amount first to ensure your recipient is able to receive the crypto.
We will not be able to locate/reverse the funds if you fail to include the destination tag/memo when sending to a centralized wallet.
Why is there a minimum balance required for XRP and XLM?
XRP and Stella (XLM) are special crypto assets that have built-in requirements on minimum balances in order to activate the addresses - this is essentially similar to certain bank accounts that would require a minimum deposit to maintain for funds storage and management.
Once you have at least received 1 XRP/1 XLM in your Crypto.com Wallet in one transaction, the token wallets will be activated and you may start sending funds - while maintaining the minimum balance of 1 XRP/1 XLM in your Wallet.
This is also why your maximum send amount for XRP/XLM = your XRP/XLM balance - minimum balance required.
XRP’s official statement on minimum balance
The XRP Ledger applies reserve requirements, in XRP, to protect the shared global ledger from growing excessively large as the result of spam or malicious usage. The goal is to constrain the growth of the ledger to match improvements in technology so that a current commodity-level machine can always fit the current ledger in RAM and the full ledger history on disk.
To submit transactions, an address must hold a minimum amount of XRP in the shared global ledger. You cannot send this XRP to other addresses. To fund a new address, you must send enough XRP to meet the reserve requirement.
The current minimum reserve requirement is 1 XRP. (This is the cost of an address that owns no other objects in the ledger.) Each new account must set aside this much XRP, which cannot be recovered or sent to others.
You can learn more here.
Stellar’s (XLM) official statement on minimum balance
To prevent ledger spam and maintain the efficiency of the network, Stellar requires small transaction fees and minimum balances on accounts. Transaction fees are also used to prioritize transactions when the network enters surge pricing mode.
Receive XRP/XLM
Why am I not seeing my XRP/XLM balance that’s confirmed on the blockchain?
Please refresh your wallet by pulling down the screen on the Home Page to sync the latest balances and transactions.
If your XRP/XLM wallet is a new wallet, you will need to receive at least 1 XRP/1XLM in your first receive transaction to activate the wallet due to the minimum balance requirement of the XRP and XLM Ledger.
You will not be able to receive any balances before your wallet is activated with a first top-up or receiving 1 XRP/1XLM in one go.
Why is there no destination tag/memo for the Crypto.com Onchain XRP/XLM receive address?
Crypto.com Onchain is a decentralized (non-custodial) wallet where you’re the one and only custody of your wallet and crypto-assets. Your XRP/XLM addresses are unique to you and aren’t shared with other wallet users, that’s why there isn’t a destination tag/memo in addition to your XRP/XLM address to identify your wallet.
Learn more about what is a destination tag/memo here.