Chainlink has launched the Chainlink Reserve, locking over $1 million worth of LINK tokens through programmatic conversion of protocol revenue and enterprise payments. The reserve is funded via on-chain service usage and off-chain revenue streams, leveraging partnerships with institutions like Mastercard and JPMorgan through Chainlink's Payment Abstraction technology.
Co-founder Sergey Nazarov described the initiative as a "pivotal evolution", emphasizing multi-year withdrawal restrictions that create sustained buy pressure. Market response included an immediate 14% price surge for LINK, driven by reduced exchange reserves and whale accumulation of 0.67% of total supply (approximately $85 million).
The strategy directly ties protocol revenue to tokenomics, diminishing circulating supply and liquidity while drawing parallels to MicroStrategy's Bitcoin treasury model. This reduction in sell pressure aims to stabilize long-term value, with transparency ensured through Chainlink's smart contract infrastructure.