Introducing Cygnus: an ecommerce platform built on the Stellar Network Cygnus is a completely browser-based merchant and customer interface that allows for payment on the Stellar Network. The application is designed to be used by conventional merchants, and allows them to take advantage of all the features the Stellar Network offers: fast settlement, extremely low fees, complete ownership of funds, and no risk of chargebacks. I've created a very simple 3 part demo that shows the MVP running on the testnet: A demo dashboard that lists products/sales, used by the merchant. The payment page, displayed to the customer A custom Stellar wallet to send XLM to the payment page address Payment status (completed, pending, expired) is reflected on the demo dashboard http://cygnus.us-east-1.elasticbeanstalk.com/ Also, as far as I know, this is the first and only platform that allows the merchant to 100% own their funds – all they need to do is save their public address into the platform itself, and retain ownership of their secret keys. Development: This is far from a completed product; the main features I am working to add are: Robust merchant API – selling large inventories requires a large amount of automation and organization Customer information storage system – Will add ability for the merchant to attach extra information to sales, such as a customer id on their end that stores the customer's shipping information, email, etc. Alternatively, the merchant can give that responsibility to Cygnus and we will store customer information securely. Ability for the customer to opt-in to an alternative system where Cygnus owns the private key, and has all the XLM received automatically converted into USD and sent to the merchant's bank account (similar to what BitPay does with BTC) Integration of trustlines/stablecoins - so merchants do not have to deal with fluctuating crypto prices Integration into Shopify - easier adoption I am also writing a white paper that details more features; I will post here once completed. Background/Inspiration: I've been using crypto to purchase and sell virtual goods (in game items in CS:GO and Dota 2) for over two years – the majority of my transactions were made in Bitcoin. However, during the Bitcoin price spike in the winter of 2017, many of my clients started complaining about extremely high fees and slow confirmations, which inspired me to begin my search for a better platform. Though I initially explored Ethereum, I realized that the excellent API and speed/cost of Stellar was far superior, leading me to develop Cygnus. Personally, my view is that the Stellar Network has massive advantages compared to conventional payment systems (both centralized and decentralized), and this will lead to adoption. I'm glad to answer any questions/comments/criticism you may have, especially if you are a merchant who would be interested in using the platform in the future.

Cygnus: an ecommerce platform

CygnusJeff

Introducing Cygnus: an ecommerce platform built on the Stellar Network

Cygnus is a completely browser-based merchant and customer interface that allows for payment on the Stellar Network. The application is designed to be used by conventional merchants, and allows them to take advantage of all the features the Stellar Network offers: fast settlement, extremely low fees, complete ownership of funds, and no risk of chargebacks.

I've created a very simple 3 part demo that shows the MVP running on the testnet:

A demo dashboard that lists products/sales, used by the merchant.
The payment page, displayed to the customer
A custom Stellar wallet to send XLM to the payment page address
Payment status (completed, pending, expired) is reflected on the demo dashboard

http://cygnus.us-east-1.elasticbeanstalk.com/

Also, as far as I know, this is the first and only platform that allows the merchant to 100% own their funds – all they need to do is save their public address into the platform itself, and retain ownership of their secret keys.

Development:

This is far from a completed product; the main features I am working to add are:

Robust merchant API – selling large inventories requires a large amount of automation and organization
Customer information storage system – Will add ability for the merchant to attach extra information to sales, such as a customer id on their end that stores the customer's shipping information, email, etc. Alternatively, the merchant can give that responsibility to Cygnus and we will store customer information securely.
Ability for the customer to opt-in to an alternative system where Cygnus owns the private key, and has all the XLM received automatically converted into USD and sent to the merchant's bank account (similar to what BitPay does with BTC)
Integration of trustlines/stablecoins - so merchants do not have to deal with fluctuating crypto prices
Integration into Shopify - easier adoption

I am also writing a white paper that details more features; I will post here once completed.

Background/Inspiration:

I've been using crypto to purchase and sell virtual goods (in game items in CS:GO and Dota 2) for over two years – the majority of my transactions were made in Bitcoin. However, during the Bitcoin price spike in the winter of 2017, many of my clients started complaining about extremely high fees and slow confirmations, which inspired me to begin my search for a better platform. Though I initially explored Ethereum, I realized that the excellent API and speed/cost of Stellar was far superior, leading me to develop Cygnus.

Personally, my view is that the Stellar Network has massive advantages compared to conventional payment systems (both centralized and decentralized), and this will lead to adoption.

I'm glad to answer any questions/comments/criticism you may have, especially if you are a merchant who would be interested in using the platform in the future.