Chainlink (LINK) Surges Toward $30: Whale Moves & SWIFT Collab Fuel Bullish Frenzy

Whales are circling and institutions are waking up—Chainlink's price action just got interesting.

SWIFT's nod to blockchain's 'oracle problem' sends LINK flying

Forget 'quiet accumulation.' On-chain data shows whales gobbling LINK at levels not seen since the last bull run. Meanwhile, SWIFT's experimental use of Chainlink to bridge legacy finance with DeFi has traders whispering about $30 targets.

Of course, Wall Street's sudden love affair with crypto only ever lasts until the next Fed meeting. But for now? The smart money's betting on the blockchain's most battle-tested oracle network.

TLDR

• Chainlink has surged over 27% in the past week, breaking above $21 with strong institutional support
• SWIFT partnership now connects over 11,000 financial institutions to blockchain networks through Chainlink
• Technical analysis shows breakout from long-term descending trendline with $30 target in sight
• Whales have purchased over $13 million worth of LINK recently, including 510,000 LINK withdrawal from Binance
• Trading volume has spiked to over $1.29 billion in 24 hours with daily active addresses jumping to 9,400

Chainlink price has experienced strong upward momentum over the past week, climbing more than 27% to break above the $21 level. The oracle network token currently trades around $21.20 after reaching highs NEAR $22.70 during recent sessions.

The price surge comes as institutional adoption continues to expand for Chainlink’s oracle services. At the recent SmartCon event, the network demonstrated its Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol connecting SWIFT’s messaging system with multiple blockchain networks.

SWIFT partnership trials have included major banks such as BNY Mellon and BNP Paribas. These tests showed the potential for moving tokenized assets across different blockchain chains using Chainlink’s infrastructure.

No

Swift is working with @Chainlink to enable its 11,500 bank member network to connect to blockchains using their existing Swift infra and messaging standards (ISO20022)

Chainlink has worked with Swift since 2016 and their product is now in the pre-production stage pic.twitter.com/wwAB0iEPrz

— Zach Rynes | CLG (@ChainLinkGod) December 17, 2024

The institutional roster keeps growing with collaborations involving DTCC, Mastercard, and several central banks. Intercontinental Exchange, which owns the NYSE, recently integrated its forex and precious metals data with chainlink oracles.

Trading data shows chainlink price experienced a 2.21% decline in the past 24 hours within a range from $21.00 to $22.00. This consolidation follows the recent breakout and represents normal price action after strong gains.

Volume remains steady at approximately $1.15 billion, showing continued interest from traders and institutions. The support level near $21.00 has held firm while resistance around $22.00 remains a key level to watch.

Chainlink Price Prediction

Daily chart analysis reveals Chainlink broke above the upper Bollinger Band at $22.22, showing strong momentum. The Chaikin Money Flow indicator stands at +0.17, indicating net capital inflows and buying pressure.

The breakout occurred after testing support around the $18.00 to $20.00 zone multiple times. This area served as an accumulation phase before the current rally began.

Technical analysts see $24 as the next key resistance level to clear. A MOVE above this price could trigger acceleration toward the $30 to $35 range based on current chart patterns.

The token has broken out of a long-term descending trendline that capped price action since December 2024. This breakout followed a double-bottom formation at the $18 level.

Some analysts point to more aggressive targets of $95 to $100 if Chainlink sustains its breakout from a multi-year symmetrical triangle pattern. These projections depend on continued institutional adoption and market conditions.

Whale Activity Shows Growing Interest

On-chain data reveals whales have purchased over $13 million worth of LINK tokens in recent trading sessions. One transaction involved a withdrawal of 510,000 LINK from Binance to the Compound protocol.

The number of daily active addresses has jumped from 5,500 to over 9,400, reflecting increased participation from both retail and institutional players. This growth indicates expanding network usage beyond speculative trading.

Decentralized exchange volumes have spiked above $1.29 billion in 24 hours. The volume increase suggests demand for Chainlink’s oracle services is driving legitimate trading activity.

With a market cap of $15 billion, Chainlink secures over $59.5 billion in assets across various DeFi protocols. Analysts argue this ratio shows the token remains undervalued compared to the value it secures.

The current price sits near $21.33 with resistance at recent highs around $22.70 and support maintaining above the $20.00 level.