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Chainlink (LINK) has been making significant strides in the crypto market recently, with a surge of over 3% in the last 24 hours. This growth is fueled by institutional adoption and several recent developments that have propelled LINK to new heights.
According to data from CoinGlass, open interest in LINK futures has skyrocketed to a record $1.5 billion, marking a 60% increase since the start of 2025. Additionally, on-chain data reveals a substantial spike in activity, with a whopping 9,625 new LINK wallets created on August 18, the highest daily figure of the year, followed by 9,813 active addresses transacting just a day prior.
The surge can be attributed to three primary factors driving the momentum behind this growth: the Chainlink Reserves Program, Wall Street Integration, and SWIFT Partnership.
Firstly, it’s essential to note that the project has recently launched the Chainlink Reserves system. This innovative approach involves purchasing LINK tokens on the open market and locking them away for extended periods. Funds for these purchases come from a combination of decentralized finance (DeFi) revenues and enterprise clients like Mastercard. By reducing the circulating supply, the reserves act as a vacuum, which is likely to support long-term price growth.
Secondly, there’s been significant progress in terms of Wall Street integration. The Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, has collaborated with Chainlink to bring foreign exchange and precious metals data on-chain. This move could be the first step towards broader Wall Street integration, eventually extending into major exchanges like NYSE and NASDAQ.
Lastly, the partnership with SWIFT is another crucial factor driving growth. Instead of individual banks experimenting with different blockchains, SWIFT is adopting Chainlink as a single “abstraction layer.” This allows financial institutions such as Citibank, BNP Paribas, and BNY Mellon to seamlessly connect to blockchain infrastructure using Chainlink as the bridge.
Looking ahead at price levels, immediate resistance lies around $29-$31, while support remains near $21-$22. If LINK can reclaim the $26 mark and maintain its position, analysts suggest it could propel higher into lighter liquidity zones. For the long-term outlook, many are wondering if LINK could potentially reach $100 in the future. While bullish logarithmic projections do forecast wild predictions as high as $600, these are widely regarded as overly optimistic.
In conclusion, a more realistic target suggests $70-$80 this cycle, with $100 feasible should adoption accelerate faster than anticipated.
Source: coinpedia.org
