LINK price eyes $12 as Chainlink ETF demand and volume surge higher

The cryptocurrency market has turned bearish over the past 24 hours, with Bitcoin dropping below $80,000 once again.

Ethereum has also dropped below $2,300, while XRP failed to defend the $1.45 support level.

LINK, the native coin of the Chainlink blockchain, has lost 3% of its value since Wednesday and is now trading at $10.2.

The bulls have defended the $9.91 support level, and this could allow the buyers to step in.

Despite the recent pullback, improving on-chain metrics, with rising social dominance and trading volume, suggest bullish sentiment may be building for LINK. 

Furthermore, steady flows into US-listed spot LINK Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) indicate growing institutional demand. 

On-chain data support a rally for LINK

Data obtained from Santiment currently supports a bullish outlook for Chainlink. The index measures the share of LINK-related discussions across the cryptocurrency media. 

Currently, the index is in an upward trend, reading 0.232% on Thursday, reaching a new yearly high and levels not seen since November 2025.

This rise indicates growing market interest and sentiment among LINK investors.

Furthermore, Chainlink’s trading volume reached $741.06 million on Thursday, rising steadily since the end of April.

The surge in trading volume suggests a growing interest in LINK, boosting its liquidity in the process. 

In addition to that, SoSoValue data shows that spot LINK ETFs recorded inflows of $2.44 million on Wednesday, after $1.91 million on Monday.

If the ETF inflows persist, LINK’s price could surge higher in the near term. 

On Wednesday, Chainlink announced via X that Fidelity International, a global asset manager with $1+ trillion total client assets, launched FILQ, its first tokenized fund powered by Chainlink.

Chainlink price forecast

The LINK/USD 4-hour chart is bearish thanks to the broader crypto market’s underperformance over the past few hours.

LINK is trading at $10.2 on Thursday, holding below the longer-term Exponential Moving Average (EMA).

However, the 100-day EMA around $9.91 and the 50-day EMA near $9.55 sit comfortably beneath the spot, reinforcing a recent bullish bias. 

Momentum indicators remain supportive, with the Relative Strength Index (RSI) hovering just above 60 and the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) line still in positive territory.

If the market selloff persists, sellers would encounter support at the $9.91 region, aligning with the 38.2% Fibonacci retracement. 

A daily candle close below this level would expose the 50-day EMA at about $9.56 and the prior trendline break zone near $9.20.

However, if the buyers regain control, they would face initial resistance at the 50% Fibonacci retracement near $10.78.

If the rally persists, the 200-day EMA is around $11.42, and the 61.8% retracement at $11.63 would form advanced resistance levels.

A push above these levels is needed for Chainlink to establish a long-term bullish bias.