Chainlink ushered 2021 with a feral momentum that saw it set a new price record of $26.16, which later topped in May to $52.88. Today, one can’t help but wonder about its next move. Will it go up, will it stagnate, or should we expect its prices to fall?
In answering these and more questions, crypto industry experts and Chainlink investors have come up with multiple and often conflicting LINK price predictions. And we shall be sampling a few in this Chainlink prediction guide.
The most optimistic Chainlink prediction estimates that the coin may peak above $50 by the end of 2022. Some are quite pessimistic about the future of Chainlink and expect it to drop to as low as $15 by the end of the year.
But what is Chainlink, and how does it work? How can you acquire LINK tokens, and for how much? How has the coin performed since its ICO launch, and what direction can you expect it to take moving forward?
What Chainlink?
The Chainlink website defines the blockchain as a “decentralized Oracle network.” It was developed by Sergey Nazarov and Steve Ellis and is specially designed to help you “connect your smart contracts to the outside world.” It is built on an open-sourced technology whose development work started in 2014, only to fruition in 2017 with the launch of Chainlink blockchain and the LINK cryptocurrency.
Today, Chainlink stands out as one of the most unique blockchain technologies, especially considering the fact that it currently doesn’t have any direct competition.
LINK, on the other hand, refers to the native cryptocurrency powering the Oracle network. And given that the Chainlink network is centered around the Ethereum network, LINKs are considered third-generation ERC20 tokens.
So, how does the Chainlink blockchain work?
How Does It Work?
To understand how Chainlink works, we first need to look at the dynamics of the Ethereum blockchain. It is revolutionary, it is popular, and it seeks to rebuild online trust and make online interactions safer through smart contract technologies. Just one problem: These smart contracts and all other benefits are on-chain and, therefore, out of reach for the rest of the world and off-chain internet.
Chainlink has been designed to provide a solution to this by establishing a decentralized network of oracles. These facilitate smooth interactions between on-chain and off-chain software, programs, and data sources.
Oracles, in this case, refer to programs that guide Chainlink programmers who create bridges that connect Ethereum’s smart contracts to off-chain data. They make it possible for smart contracts to integrate with Web APIs, data sources, enterprise systems, IoT technology and devices, payment systems and providers, cloud services, non-Ethereum blockchains, and general information like weather conditions or news.
Put simply, Chainlink bridges smart contracts with any data source that hosts information required to trigger the contract.
To link with Chainlink off-chain networks and programs, you first need to create a smart contract requesting connectivity to off-chain data. The contract will be matched with an appropriate contributor who executes it by developing the data bridge. These interactions and transactions often involve the exchange of LINKs – the tokens powering the Chainlink network.
But where do you get these LINK tokens, and for how much?
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Chainlink Trading And Acquisition
At the time of writing this Chainlink price prediction guide, the token is trading at around $26. It has a market capitalization of $12 Billion and is currently ranked #16 on the list of top 100 crypto assets. There is a circulating supply of about 467 million LINK tokens, which represents 47% of its maximum supply of 1 billion LINKs.
Currently, the easiest method of acquiring Chainlink tokens is buying them using fiat currency or exchanging them for other digital currencies on crypto exchanges. Some of the popular exchanges where you can buy LINK tokens include Coinbase, Gemini, and Kraken. Cryptographers may also acquire LINK tokens freely when they execute smart contracts on the Chainlink network. Similarly, one may consider investing in LINK token mining hardware or by joining a LINK mining pool.
Chainlink In 2021: Integration With Other Blockchains And The Ethereum Effect
Chainlink tokens closed the first day of 2021, trading at $12. At the time, the ERC token was still bullish and would go on to set a price record on 20th February when its value peaked at $36.83. For the better part of March, however, the token struggled to sustain the high prices in a move that saw its value slip and trade around the $28 mark during the last week of March, which is 233% higher than its value at the beginning of the year.
The first three months of 2021 saw the Chainlink token prices rage wildly, a phenomenon that most investors hope will continue well into the year. During this time, numerous crypto industry players and LINK token enthusiasts have come up with different theories that seek to explain the digital asset’s jumpy but up-trending price movements.
The main explanation for this, and one that keeps popping up, is that the token may be enjoying a ‘crypto market moment’ similar to the one it experienced in the last quarter of 2017 and early 2018. At the time, crypto markets were largely bullish, and virtually all currencies experienced a burp in price as more people rushed to buy and acquire a piece of the ‘digital gold.’
Other possible explanations for the token’s wild price rally may include:
Rise in value of Ethereum:
Experts are conceived that Ethereum’s price jump has inspired the upward price movement for tokens like LINK that are hugely dependent on the ETH blockchain.
They base this argument on the uncanny similarities in both altcoin’s price charts. For instance, they both peaked on the same day, 20th February 2021 – with ETH punching above $2000 and LINK trading above $35 for the first time ever.
Additionally, ETH has reported a 152% price jump in the last 90 days while LINK recorded a close 148% price increase during the same period. Market observers are, therefore, convinced that as long as ETH prices continue to soar, LINK will always be following closely.
Mass adoption:
The demand for Chainlink network services has soared. Global brands have flocked the network in a bid to marry their off-chain data and services with the revolutionary Ethereum blockchain.
Some of the big names in the world that recently turned to Chainlink services include Google that sought to use the power of Chainlink oracles to help ETH program developers make use of the off-chain google systems and cloud services.
Note that it is not just off-chain brands that are appreciating Chainlink’s revolutionary role. Tezos and Filecoin blockchains have also reportedly tapped into Chainlink’s oracle services.
Ethereum adoption:
Ethereum recently overtook Bitcoin as the most actively used blockchain. And if history has taught us anything – it is that high demand in Ethereum blockchain services will ultimately drive the demand for Chainlink oracles up, which in turn, pushes the prices of both LINK tokens up.
Chainlink Price History: Bridging The Off-chain On-chain Data Sharing
Chainlink blockchain and the LINK tokens were launched through an ICO on 19th September 2017. The ICO price for the utility token was set at $0.11, with only 35% of the total LINK coins being availed for sale to the public.
And as soon as the token hit the ground running, there was no stopping it, seeing that it closed its fast day of trading – 20th September 2017 – valued at $0.19 – a 727% price jump within 24 hours.
Since then, Chainlink’s price has never bottomed below its ICO price. We must also mention that this launch was timely, given that it coincided with the most significant crypto market rally of the last decade. The Chainlink sought to ride this wave that saw the peak of its price, at around $1.30 in the second week of January 2018.
This market rally was closely followed by a year-long correction period that saw most cryptocurrencies, LINK included, shed significant value as fast as it was acquired.
By mid-March 2018, LINK had lost more than 60% of its peak price and was now trading at around $0.4. This signalled the start of a mediocre price performance that continued for the rest of 2018 before extending well into the first quarter of 2019. In the close to two years, the token prices raged between $0.20 and $0.60.
At the time, and with Chainlink’s ambitious plans of bridging on- and off-chain technologies notwithstanding, there was little use for LINK tokens or any other cryptocurrency.
The number of merchant stores accepting Bitcoin payments was insignificant. These coins and tokens were only viewed as speculative investment vehicles and their purchase, especially during the 2017 crypto boom.
To a large extent, the maddening sale of these cryptocurrencies was inspired by the fear of missing out, which preceded a massive sell-out in 2018. Chainlink’s depressing prices for the better part of 2018 can, therefore, be attributed to this ugly market correction.
In the last half of 2019, however, Chainlink’s price started up-trending and set a new record of $3.50 in the first week of July. The move can, to a large extent, be attributed to Chainlink’s planned partnership with Google (In June, Google had announced plans to use Chainlink oracles in facilitating the seamless transfer of data between Ethereum developers and its Google Cloud services). The ensuing LINK price uptrend persisted well into 2020, and in the first week of March, LINK tokens were trading at around $4.70.
2020 proved to be a rather busy year for the coin. The LINK token price not only pierced above the $5 price level in July, but its value neared $20 by September the same year. In the last weeks of September, however, LINK prices skid briefly, trading below $10, before rekindling and sustaining the bullish momentum we are witnessing today.
According to Chainlink CEO Sergey Nazarov, the overwrought price movements recorded by Chainlink in 2020 can, to a large extent, be attributed to its unabated linkages with multiple on-chain -and off-chain projects. He mentioned that in 2020, more than 300 projects integrated Chainlink’s oracles and that the network secured more than 70 popular price feeds. Importantly, it had launched a funding program, and its use cases within the gaming and insurance industries had more than doubled.
Can we expect this trend to continue? How high up or low can the LINK token prices rise or fall this year?
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Chainlink's Price In 2021
The Chainlink rally that started gathering pace in Mid-2020 reached its highest peak in early 2021 when one LINK token closed the day trading at $36.83 on 20th Feb. In May LINK reached its current all-time high of $52.88. While explaining the 2020 boom in Chainlink price, the network CEO Sergey Nazarov had fingered strategic partnerships and massive adoption as the token’s key price triggers.
2021 was no different, and Chainlink analysts believe that major news about the cryptocurrency and further extensions of its already broad network may have helped it set the historic price level. Key among these is the introduction of a Chainlink Trust by Grayscale Investments and the news about ChainLink’s integration with Filecoin.
And as we put it rightly hereinabove, LINK token prices have almost perfectly mirrored ETH price performance, which has also been enjoying a massive uptrend.
Chainlink Price Predictions 2022 – 2023
Trading beasts
Tradingbeasts.com is conservatively bullish about the future of the Chainlink token. Their recent month-by-month analysis report on the future of the cryptocurrency indicates the coin price will continue soaring for the next two years before the eventual price correction.
According to this analysis, the value of Chainlink tokens may rise steadily and peak at $29.804 in December 2022. In 2023, however, the token price will start falling and end the year trading at around $28.491.
Digital Coins price
The analysis conducted by DigitalCoinsPrice.com on the future price of Chainlink suggests that the token’s ongoing rally will continue in 2022 and beyond. The analysis indicates that the LINK token prices will rise to about $35.79 by the end of the year 2022 and probably double its current price by the end of 2023, when it is expected to end the year valued at around $46.78.
Changelly
The crypto exchange is also hopeful about Chainlink’s future price movements. A price analysis report by the company indicates that the token might hit the highs of up to $50 by mid-year 2022 and continue rising steadily going into 2023.
Prevision Bitcoin
The Chainlink price analysis report by Previsioni Bitcoin, a crypto-education website, is by far the most optimistic LINK price forecast we have come across. The site suggests that the value of Chainlink tokens will have risen to about $106.52 by December 2022 and $100.85 in 2023.
Chainlink Price Predictions 2024 – 2025 And Beyond
Crypto-rating.com
The Chainlink price prediction report published by the Crypto-rating.com website starts by arguing that LINK is an integral component of the future of blockchain technology. It goes on to state that the general outlook of the token is hugely positive and that its prices will continue to grow exponentially into the foreseeable future.
By 2024, Crypto-rating analysis indicates that Chainlink (LINK) token prices will have reached $450 and that by December 2025, this value will shoot to $863. It goes on to state that the token will tear above the $1000 price level sometime in 2027 and trade between $1200 and $1300 in 2030.
Wallet investor
The digital asset price forecast company – Wallet Investor – is equally optimistic about the future of Chainlink token prices. The price forecasting website that uses a mix of Fundamental analytics, technical indicators, and Artificial intelligence to come up with price predictions indicates that one LINK token may be valued at $103.840 by 2026.
CryptonewsZ
CryptonewsZ is a cryptocurrency review, industry news, and forecasting website. And though its price prediction for Chainlink tokens is largely bullish, it isn’t as optimistic as the analysis reports published by Wallet Investor and Crypto-rating.com.
By December 2024, CryptonewsZ.com expects the LINK token value to have risen to about $60. In the 12 months that follow, this price will increase by another $15 to close the year 2025, trading at around $75.
Chainlink Price Predictions That Came True
There aren’t as many vocal Chainlink promoters and price prediction experts as there are Bitcoin or Ethereum promoters and critics. Most of the price prediction efforts for the LINK token have, therefore, been taken over by crypto analysis and price forecasting websites.
Most of these seem to have been fooled by the show put up by Chainlink between 2018 and 2019, which may have misled them to write LINK Tokens off as a non-starter.
The ongoing rally, however, proves them and their LINK token price predictions wrong as it has surpassed what would have been considered the wildest forecast two years ago.
However, this doesn’t mean that all the price forecasting websites got their predictions wrong. In late 2018, at a time when Chainlink held position 30s on the CoinMarketCap list and its price predictions less than $1, Coin Fan predicted that the LINK price would climb to about $3.18 in 2019. Seven months later, the LINK token price tore above $3 for the first time.
The Future Of Chainlink
Crypto experts and coin price analysts are by and large bullish about the future of the LINK token price. Though the extent to which the coin is expected to rise varies from one expert to another, there is an unofficial consensus between different Chainlink’s future analyses that its price will continue to uptrend.
They also caution that the exponential increase in LINK token price isn’t guaranteed. Rather, it is conditional and pegged on several factors that include:
Ethereum price: Starting 2020, Chainlink’s price movements have consistently mirrored Ethereum’s performance. Moving forward, experts are confident that any triggers (positive or negative) to the Ethereum blockchain and its price will have a direct and proportional impact on the price of Ethereum.
More valuable partners: For the most part, Chainlink has capitalized on collaborating with brands that increase brand visibility. Moving forward, however, and Chainlink hopes to advance its work and that of its digital currency, it needs to start building partnerships that extend beyond visibility and focus on value.
Bottom line
Chainlink’s unabated price uptrend in the past few months and the setting of a historic price seem to have caught most industry players and crypto analysts by surprise. It was sudden and quickly grew ninefold from under $4 in Feb 2020 to its current record of $52 in May 2021.
The meteoric rise defied even the wildest price forecasts that most experts claimed were backed by both fundamental and technical analysis.
According to the Chainlink network founder and CEO, Sergey Nazarov, much of this unprecedented spike in price draws inspiration from Chainlink’s massive adoption within the blockchain industry and by leading off-chain brands.
Observers were, however, quick to note several other factors that they believe played an equal role in kicking off the ongoing Chainlink rally. These include its close association with Ethereum that is also riding its own bullish wave today, and its adoption by other blockchains.
Chainlink price has always been up-trending. Unlike most cryptocurrencies (popular and otherwise), LINK token value has never dipped below its ICO price. Moving forward, its price is expected to continue with its upward trajectory.
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Crypto asset investing is highly volatile and unregulated in some EU countries. No consumer protection. Tax on profits may apply.