What to Know
- Grayscale’s new LINK ETF pulled $41M on day one, boosting institutional demand and creating direct buying pressure.
- LINK shows bullish technical momentum, but faces strong resistance near $14.63.
- Whales accumulated 4.73M LINK before the ETF launch, tightening supply.
Chainlink (LINK) is back in the spotlight after rising 2% in the last 24 hours, matching the strong momentum it has shown over the past week with an 8.1% gain.
The launch of the first-ever U.S. Chainlink ETF made it possible for more traditional investors to get LINK. Technical charts is getting better, and on-chain data shows that whales were buying a lot of coins before the ETF launch. These things helped LINK go up even though the rest of the market was being careful.
First U.S. Chainlink ETF Launch
The launch of Grayscale’s spot Chainlink ETF (GLNK) on NYSE Arca on December 4 is the main reason LINK is moving. The ETF made an impressive $41.5 million on its first day, showing that there was a lot of demand right away. It directly holds LINK, which means that every dollar put in puts real buying pressure on the token.
Market analysts called the ETF launch a major milestone. Bloomberg’s Eric Balchunas described the early trading volume around $13 million on day one as an “insta-hit,” noting that it shows healthy liquidity for a brand-new product. ETFs make it easier for institutions and traditional investors to buy crypto without holding the tokens themselves. This usually leads to increased demand, as seen when Bitcoin ETFs helped drive prices higher earlier this year.
Technical Breakout
On the technical side, LINK has also made progress. It recently moved above important price levels, such as the 50-day simple moving average around $14.19. Traders see this as a sign of positive momentum. The token also reclaimed the 50% Fibonacci retracement level at the same price, showing strength after rebounding nearly 30% from its November lows.
LINK has, however, hit a wall near $14.63, which is still a key level of resistance. The RSI is about 68, which means there are a lot of buyers, but it also means the market might be getting too hot. If LINK closes above $14.63, it could move toward the next target at $15.52. But analysts say that if it goes below $14.19, some traders may start to take profits, especially after the recent rise. The chart did show a small drop from $14.84 to $14.38 earlier today, which was a sign of profit taking. However, LINK is slowly going back up. At the time of writing, LINK is worth about $14.50.
Whales Scoop Up 4.73M LINK
Aggressive buying from whales is another big reason why $LINK price is going up. Whales bought 4.73 million LINK worth about $68 million in the 48 hours before the ETF launch, according to data. This kind of buying makes the supply on exchanges smaller, which usually makes prices go up.
Exchange reserves of LINK are at their lowest levels in months. Chainlink’s own Reserve also bought 109,663 LINK worth about $1.6 million using money made from the protocol, making the supply even tighter. However, traders should be careful because a lot of holders are sitting at breakeven near $15 and may decide to sell.
Conclusion
The recent rise of Chainlink is due to a strong mix of factors, including excitement about the first U.S. Chainlink ETF, better technical indicators, and a lot of whales buying up the coin. All of these things have made LINK stand out from the rest of the crypto market this week.
But the next test is very important. The $14.63–$15 range is still a major resistance zone. The question now is whether LINK can break through and turn this short-term momentum into a longer-term trend.
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