Chainlink (LINK) is attracting attention from crypto whales and institutional investors alike, reflecting confidence in the oracle token's recovery amid broader market uncertainty
Latest on-chain data reveals increasing accumulation activity, with both small-scale whales and major fund managers seriously increasing their LINK holdings
Whales accumulate Chainlink while Grayscale holds and Bitwise prepares to launch the Spot ETF.
Data from Arkham shows that one whale withdrew 171,000 LINK (approximately 2.36 million USD) from Binance on Tuesday, adding to their existing holdings of nearly 790,000 LINK accumulated over the past month at an average price of 12.72 USD.
This large accumulation indicates a positive long-term outlook, as investors believe LINK may outperform in the coming months.
At the same time, the derivatives market reflects significant speculative interest, as OnChain Lens reports that a newly created wallet has deposited 5 million USD into Hyperliquid DEX, which opened a leveraged long position in LINK (5x) and DOGE (10x).
Although the total value of the position currently stands at 28.2 million USD, it is still facing an unrealized loss of approximately 600,000 USD.
This movement indicates the demand from professional traders looking to leverage their exposure to LINK, despite short-term volatility.
Institutional confidence and ETF approval support LINK towards scarcity.
Accumulation from the institutional side remains a key driver of LINK's momentum, as Grayscale’s LINK Trust recently set a new all-time high (ATH) in net assets, with data from SoSoValue indicating net assets nearing 90 million USD, currently holding at 87.15 million USD.
Meanwhile, data from Coinglass shows that over the past 2 years, Grayscale has firmly held 1.31 million LINK coins, reflecting a holding strategy without selling, commonly referred to as a diamond hand.
Accumulation by whale groups and HODLing by institutions is leading to LINK balances on exchanges being at historically low levels. Data from CryptoQuant confirms this, as having fewer coins on exchanges often indicates scarcity. Therefore, this can support prices while reducing selling pressure in the market.
Additionally, the positive momentum has been boosted as Bitwise received approval from the SEC to launch the Chainlink spot ETF (CLNK) on NYSE Arca, with trading expected to begin within this week, marking Chainlink's first direct entry into the US stock market.
The assets for the LINK ETF will be held by Coinbase Custody and BNY Mellon, allowing investors to access LINK through a regulated and easy channel without having to hold the tokens themselves.
The launch of CLNK may attract institutional capital flows and expand the base of LINK holders, which could help support the price of Chainlink. However, despite this good news, the price of LINK has only increased by 0.8% to 13.84 USD at the time of writing this article.
Considering these events, they all come together to create an environment conducive to LINK.
Accumulation by whales reflects confidence among professional traders.
Grayscale's long-holding strategy reflects institutional confidence in the token.
The launch of the regulated spot ETF is expected to provide opportunities for conservative investors to invest more in Chainlink, potentially increasing demand and further pressuring liquidity on exchanges.
While LINK balances on exchanges have hit historically low levels, and both whales and institutions continue to accumulate, the market seems to be preparing for a potential upward movement.
However, translating this positive fundamental factor into sustained price growth still depends on the overall market conditions, particularly the investment demand from investors in both leveraged and spot forms.