Chainlink: the partnership with SWIFT to accelerate blockchain adoption

Chainlink is partnering with SWIFT to help it make token transfers and accelerate Blockchain adoption so the technology can become an integral part of the financial system. 

Chainlink and the partnership with SWIFT: blockchain in the financial system

Chainlink and SWIFT have been in sync since 2017, but recently, a full-fledged partnership was announced with the aim of creating a cross-chain interoperability protocol (CCIP) in an initial Proof-of-Concept (PoC).

Essentially, the protocol’s CCIP will be used by the interbank network to communicate and transfer tokens across Blockchain environments. Not coincidentally, SWIFT is an interbank messaging system that connects banks and enables cross-border payments.

This support from Chainlink for SWIFT will increase blockchain adoption. Indeed, through this particular partnership, there is more opportunity for blockchain technology to become an integral part of the financial system. 

Specifically, CCIP will allow smart contracts to communicate between multiple blockchains so that developers can also more easily build their applications.

This would mean new opportunities for SWIFT in that instead of just messaging, it can now do settlements as well, not directly but through the blockchain. Something that usually only banks do. 

Chainlink and SWIFT: the perfect combination to bring Blockchain to the banking system as well

Strategy director Jonathan Ehrenfeld Solé of SWIFT reportedly revealed that Chainlink was one of the first startups they bet on. 

Not only that, speaking about the existing partnership, Solé stated the following in a conference: 

“We connect to 11,000 banks, [Chainlink] connects to 15 blockchains. Then you have these two infrastructures that are secure, that are reliable, that are scalable, that can actually work so that you can buy an asset wherever you want, and you can transact it in whatever country.”

Chainlink Labs was founded in 2014 under the name SmartContract.com, and its WhitePaper was published by Steve Ellis, Ari Juels and Sergey Nazarov in September 2017. 

Generally speaking, Chainlink does not have its own blockchain, but operates on Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)-based chains that can run smart contracts such as Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain, Polygon, Avalanche Mainnet, and Fantom. Not only that, Chainlink also supports non-EVM chains such as Solana. 

Through its protocol, its mission is to help enable the creation of innovative smart contracts and peer-to-peer dApps that can be used by different types of businesses around the world, as well as improve the way people access blockchain technology. 

LINK: the Ethereum-based token that drives the network 

Chainlink also has its own crypto, LINK, which is an Ethereum-based token that drives Chainlink’s decentralized network of oracles.

At the time of writing, LINK ranks 22nd in crypto by market capitalization, with a total market cap of more than $4 billion. 

LINK’s price is currently $8.25, up 18% over the past seven days. Still a long way from its ATH – All Time High (or all-time high) which touched $50 in May 2021. 

Indeed, following the general “long crypto winter” trend, LINK also experienced its price dump in January 2022, dropping from $25 to $15, and never returning above $20 until today. 

For the most part, LINK is used to pay node operators (managed by people) to retrieve data from data feeds outside the chain and then deliver it on the chain to the smart contract. Not only that, LINK is also required to pay for all Chainlink services. 

Staking launch for December 2022

Among the protocol’s latest innovations is Chainlink Staking, a key crypto security mechanism in which stakers commit LINK tokens to smart contracts against certain guarantees of oracle service delivery. 

Chainlink Staking v0.1 is launching this year.

Use the Early Access Eligibility App below to see if you qualify for the early access phase of v0.1 and the opportunity to earn rewards for helping secure the #Chainlink Network. https://t.co/nOhbTwulv1

— Chainlink (@chainlink) October 11, 2022

“Chainlink Staking v0.1 is launching this year. Use the Early Access Eligibility App below to see if you qualify for the early access phase of v0.1 and the opportunity to earn rewards for helping secure the #Chainlink Network.”

The addition of staking in the Chainlink ecosystem, enables Decentralized Oracle Networks (DON) to scale to serve a broader range of applications and higher-value use cases in the traditional Web3 and Web2 domains.

The initial beta version of Chainlink Staking (v0.1) is scheduled to launch on the Ethereum mainnet in December 2022. 

Statements by Eric Schmidt, former CEO of Google

Recently, Eric Schmidt, former CEO of Google and an advisor to Chainlink, made statements about the dedicated smart contract network, calling it the best technology for scalability compared to all its competitors in the market. 

Schmidt was CEO of Google during the very period when the company became the behemoth it is now, namely from 2001 to 2011. 

Whereas at Chainlink, Schmidt has been an advisor to the network for about 9 months, a valuable time to get his exposure and make positive comments about it.