Established in 2017, Chainlink serves as a blockchain abstraction layer that facilitates universally connected smart contracts. By means of a decentralized oracle network, Chainlink enables blockchains to securely engage with external data feeds, events, and payment systems. This interaction provides the essential off-chain information required for complex smart contracts to emerge as the prevalent form of digital agreement. The Chainlink Network is supported by an extensive open-source community, encompassing data providers, node operators, smart contract developers, researchers, security auditors, among others. The organization prioritizes guaranteeing decentralized participation for all node operators and users interested in contributing to the network. For more information about this project, refer to our in-depth analysis of Chainlink on Eulerpool.

Sergey Nazarov is a co-founder and CEO at Chainlink Labs. He earned a degree in business administration from New York University, focusing on philosophy and administration. His professional journey began as a teaching fellow at the NYU Stern School of Business. In 2009, Nazarov co-founded ExistLocal, a peer-to-peer marketplace for authentic local experiences. In 2014, he co-founded CryptaMail, a completely decentralized, blockchain-based email service. That same year, Nazarov collaborated with Steve Ellis to launch SmartContract, a platform that brings smart contracts to life by connecting them to external data and widely accepted bank payments. SmartContract was one of the ventures that led Sergey Nazarov to establish Chainlink. Steve Ellis graduated with a degree in computer science from New York University in 2010. Immediately after graduating, he joined Pivotal Labs as a software engineer. In 2014, he co-founded the Secure Asset Exchange, a company designed to facilitate easy web access to a decentralized asset exchange. For further details on Chainlink, please visit Eulerpool.

Chainlink is among the pioneering networks enabling the integration of off-chain data into smart contracts. With numerous trusted partners, Chainlink stands as a prominent entity in the data processing sector. Through the incorporation of off-chain data, Chainlink has garnered attention from several reliable data providers, including Brave New Coin, Alpha Vantage, and Huobi. These data providers have the opportunity to directly sell access to their data to Chainlink, thus monetizing the information they possess. Operating as a decentralized network, Chainlink allows users to become node operators, providing them the opportunity to earn revenue by managing essential data infrastructure that is vital for the success of blockchains. Chainlink employs a vast array of node operators to collectively support a wide spectrum of decentralized Price Feed oracle networks that are in active production. These networks currently secure billions in value for leading DeFi applications such as Synthetix, Aave, Compound, and others.

Chainlink has faced criticism due to its reliance on a limited number of trusted nodes, despite its efforts to maximize decentralization. Nonetheless, LINK staking is designed to address and mitigate this concern. The introduction of LINK staking aims to motivate correct behavior within the Chainlink oracle network through a system of rewards and penalties. This initiative is expected to improve the ability of node operators to accept tasks and earn fees within the Chainlink ecosystem. This mechanism requires participants to lock their LINK tokens as collateral. Should a node provide inaccurate data, this collateral can be taxed or "slashed." The LINK tokens taxed from dishonest validators will then be redistributed as rewards to the honest ones. Chainlink's developers anticipate that this crypto-economic security framework will make it costlier to attack the network's price oracle than any profits such an attack might yield. This approach aligns with the gamification strategies used by major blockchain networks like Bitcoin and Ethereum. Additionally, LINK holders who do not run their own node can engage in staking by delegating their tokens to a dependable node operator. Chainlink developers predict the staking program will initially offer a 5% return, driven by a combination of emissions from the Treasury and fees paid by Chainlink's data feed users. Over time, it will rely solely on the fees generated by the network. Community member involvement in staking will further encourage node operators to act with integrity. Participants can choose where to delegate their stake, guided by reputation scores assigned to node operators who consistently deliver valid data feeds.

During the initial coin offering (ICO) for LINK in September 2017, Chainlink announced a total and maximum supply of 1,000,000,000 LINK tokens. As of the end of September 2021, the current supply is approximately 453,509,553 LINK tokens, representing about 45% of the total supply. The Chainlink price at ICO was $0.11, with a total of 350 million LINK tokens sold. This marks an over 200-fold increase from the ICO price to the current Chainlink price. Chainlink experienced a significant bull run from mid-2019 to mid-2020. Enthusiasts of Chainlink, often playfully called “LINK Marines,” became a popular meme within the crypto community. Chainlink's price reached an all-time high of $52.88 on May 9, 2021, driven by a broader crypto market rally and ongoing developments in the Chainlink ecosystem. According to the ICO documentation, 35% of the total token supply is allocated to node operators and the incentivization of the ecosystem. Another 35% of LINK tokens were distributed during public sale events. The remaining 30% of the total token supply was reserved for the company to support the continued development of the Chainlink ecosystem and network.

Chainlink, an ERC-20 token built on Ethereum, is secured using the proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus mechanism. Unlike the proof-of-work (PoW) system used by Bitcoin, PoS selects node validators based on the number of tokens staked. PoS protocols were developed to address the significant power consumption associated with PoW systems. These models are gaining popularity due to their lower energy requirements and scalability. While PoW remains a dependable consensus approach, Ethereum and other ERC-20 tokens are experiencing rapid growth and are establishing trends within the industry.

Chainlink and the LINK token are among the most renowned cryptocurrencies in the market. As a result, numerous exchanges have moved to offer trading in LINK. A leading platform to purchase Chainlink is Binance. Other exchanges providing trading in LINK include: * Huobi Global * Coinbase Pro * Gate.io * Kraken It's essential to recognize that investing in cryptocurrencies involves risk, similar to any other type of investment. To view the current Chainlink price in your preferred fiat currency, you can use Eulerpool's converter feature directly on the Chainlink currency page. Alternatively, use the dedicated exchange rate converter page. Prominent Chainlink price pairs include: LINK/USD, LINK/GBP, LINK/AUD, and LINK/EUR. For further information on how to enter the market and purchase BTC, LINK, or any other token, you can explore Eulerpool’s educational portal — Alexandria.

Chainlink has evolved from aggregating and providing cryptocurrency price data to DeFi protocols like Aave, to encompassing much more. The ecosystem currently accesses over 1 billion data points, securing over $75 billion in value through 1,000 project integrations with 700 oracle networks. Prominent organizations such as AccuWeather, FedEx, FlightStats, and the Associated Press have partnered with Chainlink for data verification. Notably, one of Chainlink's significant achievements is bringing Eric Schmidt, former Google chairman and CEO, on board as a technical advisor to the oracle network protocol. Schmidt stated, "Chainlink is a secret ingredient to unlocking the potential of smart contract platforms and revolutionizing business and society," and expressed his interest in helping Chainlink build a world powered by truth. Schmidt joins other esteemed Chainlink advisors, including former LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner and DocuSign co-founder Tom Gonser. In the 2022 roadmap, Chainlink plans to roll out staking for LINK holders to secure the network and earn rewards. Chainlink has been developing a staking solution for years, although oracle networks are not a blockchain but rather a form of decentralized computing. Co-founder Nazarov explained that Chainlink does not produce blocks but instead "makes consensus on hundreds of oracle networks about price data." He mentioned that the team is finally satisfied with the security and scalability of the consensus mechanism and is ready to launch staking this year.

In December 2021, the Chainlink oracle network introduced LINK token staking to enhance "sustainable growth and security." Through LINK staking, Chainlink aims to introduce an additional layer of "crypto-economic" security to the oracle network. This initiative enables ecosystem participants, such as node operators and community members, to bolster the security of Chainlink's oracle services by supporting them with staked LINK tokens. This process is similar to other crypto-staking platforms where participants in a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) network are required to lock up a certain amount of tokens to contribute to the network's security.

The initial version of LINK staking, referred to as version 0.1, is anticipated to be launched by the end of 2022. Its success will influence the launch timing for version 1.0, followed by a comprehensive version with full functionalities, designated as version 2.0. The introduction of LINK staking will officially commence the Chainlink Economics 2.0 era. Chainlink's co-founder, Sergey Nazarov, asserts that this era will facilitate society's inevitable transition to systems with cryptographic guarantees. "A society driven by cryptographic guarantees requires a system of cryptographic truth to verify occurrences, whether related to random numbers, market data, weather events, or even computations required by trust-minimized applications. This is the direction in which we are headed," Nazarov stated in an interview.