Chainlink (LINK) price has finally risen. After weeks of sideways cutting, the leading oracle network fell more than 14% on Wednesday, touching $9.35: its highest price since early February. The move pushed its market capitalization back to more than $6.6 billion, bringing much-needed relief to owners.
But whenever a token raises double digits in a single day, the immediate question is whether it is sustainable. Is this a real utility-driven boom, or a “dead cat bounce” (temporary recovery from a dying situation) to ride on Bitcoin’s coattails? The answer appears to be a mixture of market pressure and radical institutional change.
Here’s something that moves the needle.
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Is Canton Network Integration The Real Deal?
While the broader market is certainly helping, Bitcoin itself is recovering amid a major scare, LINK has its own catalyst today. The price action coincides with the announcement that Chainlink is merging with Canton Network.
If you are new to this corner of crypto, think of the Canton Network as a private highway for heavy institutional traffic. Designed for large banks and financial asset managers who want to tokenize real-world assets (like stocks or bonds) but need privacy and strict controls. Together, Chainlink becomes the bridge that connects this private highway to the rest of the blockchain world.
Specifically, the integration uses Chainlink’s Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP) and Evidence of Data Storage. Chainlink verifies that asset banks claim to have on-chain actually exist.
JUST SIGN IN: @CantonNetwork accept Chainlink data and interoperability standards to unlock institutional tokens.
Data streaming (including 24/5 assignments)
Canton
Chainlink pic.twitter.com/49UV9NNxJ3
-Chainlink (@chainlink) February 25, 2026
The vision of a $50 trillion token economy depends entirely on reliable data. With the exception of oracles like Chainlink, smart contracts are invisible to the outside world. This integration reinforces LINK’s status as an institutional DeFi pipeline, rather than just a dealer casino chip.
It also helps that institutional players put their money where their mouth is. Data from SoSoValue shows that spot LINK ETFs (such as Greyscale’s GLNK and Bitwise’s CLNK) have accumulated over $10 million in assets this month alone.
While institutional demand has failed in other altcoins, LINK is seeing a sticky rally.
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Real Valuation Test: Can LINK Price Reach $10?
The hype is great, but let’s run the numbers. At $9.25, Chainlink has an estimated market capitalization of $6.6 billion. To break its $10 psychological resistance, we don’t need a miracle: we just need current momentum to hold a few daily closes.
The real test is at the level of $11-12: before it worked as a support, but now it works as a resistance after the price breaks below this level.
This rally needs to turn previous resistance levels into support to prove it is false.
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What the Charts (and the Feds) Say.
Beyond the price hike, the context of the ecosystem is changing in Chainlink’s favor. Interestingly, it’s not just about code: it’s about compliance. Chainlink’s former deputy general manager, Taylor Lindman, was recently appointed as Senior Counsel to the SEC’s Crypto Task Force.
Although this does not guarantee good treatment, having a Chainlink veteran inside the SEC certainly guarantees the regulatory standing of the project compared to meme coins or many experimental protocols. It shows that Chainlink is considered a critical infrastructure.
Technically, traders are looking at Open Interest (OI), which has increased to $170 million. When the OI rises near the price, it usually confirms that the trend is supported by new money entering the market rather than just short sellers hedging their bets. However, unless Bitcoin maintains its foothold above $67,000, LINK will struggle to push $10 alone. If the price of LINK holds as support, the path to $11 is open. If it fails, we probably go back to the phone.
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Key Takeaways
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LINK’s price jumped 14% to $9.35, driven by a partnership with Canton Network to acquire real-world assets for institutions.
Institutional inflows into LINK ETFs reached $10 million this month, but the price must hold above $8 to avoid a “bull trap” situation.
The post LINK Price Still Up Finally: Chainlink Exit? appeared first on 99Bitcoins.
