Chainlink

Chainlink is a middleware infrastructure that allows smart contract users on a blockchain to access external data from different sources. This allows developers to design self-executing contracts that can query multiple data feeds from a variety of nodes to cross-check and ensure data consistency. DeFi protocols, such as Aave, Compound, and Nexus Mutual, use Chainlink. For DeFi use cases, Chainlink can be used to obtain off-chain data such as asset prices or even weather information for use in applications such as insurance, derivatives trading, and decentralized exchanges.

In June 2022, Chainlink launched its price feeds on the Solana blockchain to enable DeFi developers to use the feeds within DApps. Chainlink offered seven price feeds (including BTC/USD, ETH/USD, and USDC/USD) upon launch, with plans for more oracle services and price feeds to be offered in the future. Chainlink went on to launch a feature that enabled the staking of LINK (its native token) in December 2022. The pool, which was launched in beta, was capped at 25 million LINK. Notably, the company stated that token rewards would be locked until the next version of the protocol was released in 9–12 months, after which, it planned to scale up to 75 million LINK over time. 

Key customers and partnerships 

In August 2022, Chainlink partnered with Interest Protocol (IP), a borrow/lend protocol launched with Chainlink as the primary oracle, to increase the security of the IP platform. IP will be able to integrate Chainlink Keepersa decentralized transaction automation service and Chainlink Proof of Reserve (PoR)–a system that autonomously verifies off-chain collateral in real-time. IP will also receive strategic advice from Chainlink. 

Funding and financials 

In September 2021, Chainlink raised USD 32 million through the initial coin offering of its LINK token. The raised funds were to be used to continue developing its network.