Whales Accumulate Chainlink as Bitwise Prepares NYSE Spot ETF

Beincrypto reports Chainlink is drawing attention as crypto whales have withdrawn millions in LINK and Bitwise has secured SEC approval to list a spot LINK ETF (CLNK) on NYSE Arca, with trading expected to begin this week.

On-chain data cited by the outlet shows a single whale withdrew 171,000 LINK (about $2.36 million) from Binance and added to an existing holding of nearly 790,000 LINK bought over the past month at an average price of $12.72. Derivatives activity also rose: OnChain Lens says a new wallet deposited $5 million in USDC on Hyperliquid DEX and opened leveraged longs in LINK (5x) and DOGE (10x), a combined position now valued at $28.2 million with a floating loss near $600,000. Institutional accumulation is notable too—Grayscale’s LINK trust is approaching $90 million in total net assets (reported at $87.15 million) and has held about 1.31 million LINK without sales—while CryptoQuant data show historically low LINK exchange balances. The ETF’s assets are set to be held by Coinbase Custody and BNY Mellon.

The planned CLNK launch could further boost institutional inflows and tighten exchange liquidity, potentially supporting price, but LINK was only up 0.8% to $13.84 as of this writing. Whether these accumulations and the ETF translate into sustained price gains depends on broader market conditions and investor appetite for leveraged and spot exposure.

Key Topics

Crypto, Chainlink, Bitwise, Nyse Arca, Grayscale, Coinbase Custody