Link Coin: A Smart Investment Decision?

Chainlink (LINK) is a cryptocurrency that has been described as one of the hottest cryptos on the market. It is a decentralised oracle network (DON) that fills the gap in Ethereum's inability to integrate real-world data into its smart contracts. Chainlink's oracles act as a bridge between blockchains and off-chain resources like market data, bank payments, and other blockchain cryptocurrencies. This allows smart contracts to act upon real-world information. As demand for decentralised products and services continues to skyrocket, Chainlink has established itself as the go-to DON for integrating real-world data into smart contracts efficiently and securely.

But is Chainlink a good investment?

Chainlink's utility outside the crypto realm

Chainlink (LINK) is a decentralised oracle network built on Ethereum. It is designed to address the "blockchain oracle problem", which is an issue that affects all blockchains.

Chainlink's decentralised oracle network is an open-source technology infrastructure that allows any blockchain to securely connect to off-chain data and computation resources. The network nodes fetch, validate, and deliver data from multiple sources onto blockchains to execute smart contracts. Chainlink's VRF (verifiable random function) can be used for random number generation in decentralised gaming, ensuring that in-game results are tamper-proof.

Chainlink also has applications in smart contract sports betting, options trading, shipping confirmation, supply chain management, and countless other areas. Its core product involves integrating real-world data within smart contracts through DONs (decentralised oracle networks).

With its ability to connect blockchain networks with off-chain information, Chainlink has the potential to be a useful investment.

The token's community

Chainlink (LINK) is a decentralised oracle network (DON) that fills the gap in Ethereum's smart contracts by creating an oracle network that incorporates market data, bank payments, retail payments, web APIs, backend systems, and other blockchain cryptocurrencies. The Chainlink community, which calls itself the "Link Marines", is dedicated to the token's potential.

The Chainlink Network consists of Decentralized Oracle Networks (DONs) that consist of a network of independent oracle node operators that fetch, aggregate, validate, and deliver real-world data on-chain. Each oracle node can specialize in providing different decentralised services on behalf of smart contracts. The LINK token is used to incentivise the proper operation of Chainlink DONs.

The Chainlink token has a fully diluted market cap of $24.2 billion, with 441.5 million tokens mined out of a total of 1 billion. Each transaction is lightning fast, taking 20 confirmations over five minutes. The token is mostly used for processing large-capital movements on DeFi networks.

Chainlink's decentralised oracles mean that no central person or authority could tamper with the oracle data. This allows for fully decentralised products to access real-world information without relying on a central source or point of weakness. The network secures billions of dollars in value for smart contracts across the decentralised finance (DeFi) network.

Chainlink's continued innovation and solid growth signal good things to come for the DeFi project and the industry as a whole.

Chainlink's market performance

Chainlink is a blockchain abstraction layer that enables universally connected smart contracts. It acts as an intermediary between non-blockchain businesses and blockchain platforms, allowing smart contracts to connect with real-world external data. Chainlink fills the gap in Ethereum's inability to integrate real-world data into its smart contracts. Chainlink's oracle network incorporates market data, bank payments, retail payments, web APIs, backend systems, and other blockchain cryptocurrencies.

Chainlink's active developer count doubled between Q3 of 2019 and 2020, making it one of the fastest-growing projects in the blockchain space. The Chainlink 2.0 whitepaper, released in April 2021, details plans to build off-chain networks on top of the oracles to handle heavy computational tasks for the Ethereum mainnet, reducing gas fees.

Chainlink's continued innovation and solid growth signal good things for the DeFi project and the industry as a whole. With its high utility, solid potential, and widespread adoption among the DeFi community, Chainlink is a token that investors can count on.

The token's supply

The Token Supply

Chainlink (LINK) is an Ethereum token that powers the Chainlink decentralised oracle network. It is an ERC-677 token. During its initial coin offering (ICO) in September 2017, Chainlink announced a total and maximum supply of 1,000,000,000 LINK tokens. The current supply is about 453,509,553 LINK tokens, or about 45% of the total supply, as of end-September 2021. The Chainlink price at ICO was $0.11 and a total of 350 million LINK tokens were sold.

The Chainlink token has several uses within the Chainlink Network:

• Node Operators Fees: Smart contracts are required to pay Chainlink nodes using LINK tokens to obtain access to real-world data and other oracle services.
• Implicit Staking: The current and future revenue of Chainlink nodes are denominated in LINK tokens, incentivising the proper operation of the Chainlink Network.
• Explicit Staking: Chainlink nodes in the future can be required to lock up LINK tokens as collateral to back their oracle services, which can be slashed for malicious behaviour.

The Chainlink 2.0 whitepaper, released in April 2021, detailed plans to build off-chain networks on top of the oracles to handle heavy computational lifting for the Ethereum mainnet. This would benefit Ethereum, where large demand for computing power has driven gas prices to unsustainable levels.

Chainlink's co-founder, Sergey Nazarov, believes that the introduction of staking will bring about a shift to cryptographically guaranteed systems. He states:

> "A society powered by cryptographic guarantees needs a system of cryptographic truth to prove what happened, whether that’s about random numbers, market data, weather events, or even just computations that the trust-minimized application needs. This is the world that we’re moving towards."

Chainlink's future price predictions

Chainlink Price Prediction for 2024:

According to one source, Chainlink's price is predicted to be between $6.64 and $10.90 by the end of 2024. Another source gives a more specific prediction for August 31, 2024, stating that the price could reach $11.49. For the month of September 2024, the price is expected to drop to around $9.93, with a potential minimum of $10.04. In October and November, the price is forecasted to recover, reaching a range of $11.52 to $12.90 and $12.24 to $12.95, respectively. By December 2024, the price is predicted to be between $12.82 and $14.07.

Chainlink Price Prediction for 2025:

For 2025, Chainlink's price is expected to be between $6.64 and $26.70. The average price for the year is predicted to be around $20.53. Some sources give a more specific range of $26.47 to $39.58, with an average of $30.32.

Chainlink Price Prediction for 2026 and Beyond:

For 2026, the support level is predicted to be around $28.18, with a maximum resistance level of $39.26. By 2027, the minimum price is anticipated to be $27.58, potentially climbing to a maximum of $39.39. In 2028, the support and resistance prices are expected to be $28.25 and $38.74, respectively. For 2029, the support level is forecasted to be $28.35, with a resistance level of $36.80.

Overall Outlook:

Chainlink's price predictions show a varied outlook, with some sources predicting declines and others anticipating growth. The predictions for 2024 show a potential downward trend, with prices expected to drop below $10 by September. However, the predictions for 2025 and beyond indicate a potential for recovery and growth, with prices reaching the $20s and $30s.

It's important to note that cryptocurrency markets are highly volatile, and predictions can change rapidly. Investors should always conduct their own research and consider their risk tolerance before investing in cryptocurrencies like Chainlink.

Frequently asked questions