Altcoin Review: ChainLink

Currently, there are more than 5,000 cryptocurrencies registered on the Coinmarketcap website. And although many of them are nothingOther than "shitcoins", some altcoins have ambitious plans and are developing truly innovative solutions. We invite you to familiarize yourself with one of these projects.

The Chainlink cryptocurrency network was launched in2017 by SmartContract. The developers describe their technology as middleware designed to connect smart contracts on the blockchain with external resources. The ChainLink platform is developed on the basis of Ethereum, that is, LINK is an ERC-20 token. 

The initial offering of the LINK coin took place on 19September 2017. At that time, the token price was $0.11; two days later it rose to $0.15. At the peak of the 2018 bull run, the price of the asset reached $1.28, and the project’s capitalization increased to $1.5 billion. Despite the general market decline, LINK's price has since doubled and at the time of writing is $2.73. 

Total number of LINK tokens – 1 billion 350 million were sold during the ICO, the rest goes to pay for the services of node operators and for the further development of the project.

Differences from other cryptocurrencies

The creators of ChainLink are confident that smart contractscan replace most existing traditional legal contracts and agreements. However, today transferring data from external sources to the blockchain is extremely inefficient. 

Developers are trying to solve this problem using an “oracle” system that connects smart contracts with external sources of information. 

The ChainLink network consists of off-chain and blockchainplatforms. Both platforms must be able to communicate for the network to operate effectively. The off-chain platform consists of oracle nodes connected to the Ethereum network. These nodes independently collect information from external sources. Such a node can belong to any centralized company or institution. 

The ChainLink ecosystem allows smart contracts to interact with payment systems, API services, market data, or other blockchains.

ChainLink developers have created technology thatwhich forms channels for transmitting information between various data providers using blockchain technology. Currently, any project using the API can connect to ChainLink and start earning LINK tokens based on how often they use the data they provide. 

ChainLink tokens are not mined through mining.

Where to buy LINK

The LINK token is now traded on most major exchanges – Binance, Bittrex, Huobi, Bitforex. Additionally, as previously reported, the Coinbase Pro platform has also added token support. 

You can store LINK on any wallet that supports ERC-20 tokens. 

Chainlink Price Movement Overview

In the summer of 2019, the Chainlink price reached a historical high around 5.00 USD, and in September the pair marked a minimum, from which the LINK/USD pair began to recover. 

Last November, customer successlimited in the resistance area of ​​3 dollars per token, after which the pair rolled back below the 55-day moving average. At the beginning of 2020, the pair returned above the average price level, and today the bulls broke through the Point of Control line (2.67 USD) of the Volume Profile indicator. In the near future, a retest of resistance in the area of ​​3.00 USD is expected and an update of the yearly maximum to 3.17 USD.