Buy LINK Now? Chainlink Touted As ‘Safest Bet’ For This Mega Trend

Real-world assets (RWAs) are emerging as one of the next mega trends in the crypto space, and according to a recent study by K33 Research, Chainlink could profit in a big way from this trend. In a recent study, the research firm projected that LINK would be the “safest bet” to capitalize on this impending boom. This sentiment reflects the broader industry outlook, especially given BlackRock CEO Larry Fink’s earlier comments in May where he noted the potential of tokenization in securities.

“The next generation for markets, the next generation for securities, will be tokenization of securities,” remarked Larry Fink during a New York Times DealBook event. He further elucidated that tokenization, which is the creation of a digital representation of an asset on a blockchain, would facilitate “instantaneous settlement” and notably reduce transactional fees.

What Makes Chainlink The Go-To Choice?

The growing interest in the tokenization of RWAs, which includes traditional financial instruments like private equity, credit, and bonds, has paved the way for the increasing valuation of LINK. Tokenization is no longer a buzzword but a mechanism to optimize financial transactions by reducing costs, streamlining operations, and enhancing transparency and accessibility.

David Zimmerman, an analyst at K33 Research, mentioned, “If we wish to have exposure to the RWA narrative and avoid being sidelined when it takes off, LINK is the safest bet.”

Global financial institutions and emerging cryptocurrency platforms are gearing up to leverage this trend. A testament to this is JPMorgan’s recent announcement about its first live blockchain-based collateral settlement transaction, which involved industry giants BlackRock and Barclays.

Chainlink, as a project, has strategically positioned itself in this domain, acting as a bridge between blockchains and the external world. The project’s unique system of oracles and an expansive list of partnerships emphasize its pivotal role.

“Chainlink, with its system of oracles and wide partnerships, is well-positioned to connect blockchains with real-world data, making it a strong player in the RWA narrative,” stated renowned crypto analyst Scott Melker, echoing Zimmerman’s insights.

Zimmerman further opined that while Chainlink might not record the highest gains in this RWA movement, its robust infrastructure and pivotal role in the ecosystem make it one of the most well-placed projects to harness the potential benefits.

Despite the undeniable potential and traction that RWAs have gained, Zimmerman highlighted potential challenges in realizing their full potential. Yet, the prevailing narrative’s allure is so compelling that we might witness “an isolated RWA crypto bubble” even before its tangible real-world impacts become ubiquitous.

Zimmerman’s advice to potential investors is to be patient. The recommendation is to wait for the token to hit the long-term support level of around $5.70 before diving into long positions.

LINK Price Remains Trapped In Trend Channel

The Chainlink price has been trading within a descending trend channel since June last year. Even the recent hype around the partnership with Swift and the SmartCon was not enough to push LINK out of the trend channel. In total, LINK has been rejected at the upper trendline six times, last on October 1.

A bullish sign at the moment is that Chainlink is holding above the 50% Fibonacci retracement at $7.19 despite the sharp correction in the broader crypto market. If this holds over the next few days, LINK could attempt a retest towards the upper resistance line.

If the support breaks, K33 Research’s scenario could come true and Chainlink could fall below the $6 price again. Thus, the support is instrumental in determining whether Chainlink is currently a buy or sell.

Chainlink LINK price

Why The Uniswap (UNI) Token Is Almost Worthless: Researcher

In an analysis, Anders Helseth, Vice President at K33 Research, has mounted a strong case against the viability of the Uniswap (UNI) token. His analysis pivots on the intriguing dynamics of the decentralized finance (DeFi) market, fundamentally challenging the current valuation and future potential of UNI.

Helseth begins his argument with a seemingly straightforward question: “The Uniswap protocol generates significant trading fees, but will the UNI token ever capture its (fair) share?” His conclusion is emphatically negative.

Is The Uniswap (UNI) Token Worthless?

For context, UNI is a governance token for the Uniswap protocol, a decentralized exchange that earns a 0.3% fee on trades. However, as Helseth points out, the entire trading fee currently goes to liquidity providers, with UNI holders standing to gain only if governance votes permit fee dividends to UNI holders.

Even in a slow DeFi market, the fully diluted value of the UNI token is 15 times the annualized trading fees paid when using the protocol, currently around $6 billion. If the UNI token could capture all trading fees, it would arguably present an irresistible buy. However, Helseth makes a compelling argument to the contrary.

“The UNI token currently captures 0% of the 0.3% trading fee, which entirely goes to liquidity providers,” Helseth says, emphasizing the token’s current lack of intrinsic value.

The crux of his argument revolves around three players in the DeFi space: the users, the protocol (and hence UNI token), and the liquidity providers. According to Helseth, the interplay between these actors is detrimental to the UNI token’s potential for revenue generation. Helseth explains:

The entire protocol can be exactly copied within minutes at virtually no cost. This argument implies that all the power lies with the liquidity providers in the fight for trading fees.

The primary concern for users is liquidity and cost-effectiveness. If the same protocol can be replicated at a whim, users would inevitably gravitate towards the version with the most liquidity – to minimize slippage when executing trades. This dynamic significantly empowers liquidity providers who, unlike UNI holders, hold real, valuable tokens.

In addition, even though switching to another smart contract may entail some costs, these are relatively low, reinforcing the bargaining power of liquidity providers.

Concluding, Helseth states: “Given this relatively low cost of switching from the users’ perspective, we cannot conclude with anything else than that the power lies with the liquidity providers. Hence, even though the Uniswap protocol generates significant trading fees, we believe the potential for the UNI token to capture any of this revenue to be almost non-existent.”

At press time, the UNI price stood at $6.19 after being rejected at the 200-day EMA yesterday.

Uniswap UNI price