Chainlink (LINK) to launch staking rewards “second half of 2022”

What

Chainlink (LINK) has published a report outlining its plans for a staking program to launch later this year

Why

In its report announcing a realignment of its roadmap objectives, Chainlink outlined the benefits of staking, including increasing security for the network, fostering greater community participation, rewarding holders and “empowering node operators”

What next?

Chainlink’s staking rewards are expected to launch sometime in the second half of 2022, with more details to be added to its roadmap along the way

The story

Staking rewards will be awarded at a 5% annual yield (APY). This will likely decrease sell-side pressure for Link’s price as holders will now be incentivised in holding for longer timeframes.

Stakers will also be able to take part in Chainlink’s Partner Growth Program (PGP), which will reward stakers with tokens gathered by Chainlink on its transactions. The exact details will be announced sometime down the road according to the report.

Link’s price has responded positively to the news, reporting a 9% rise in the last 24 hours.

Chainlink’s updated roadmap includes detail on more features due to arrive over the next few months, such as user fee rewards and new node delegation features. With V1 slated for release later this year, Chainlink has plans to continue expanding its staking features to bring the project to its V2 stage, which will include more services and security features for the network.

Part of Chainlink’s reasoning for rolling out staking at this stage is the increased use of oracles for cross-compatability with other blockchains. By having a staked pool of LINK tokens the protocol can use, Chainlink can ensure cross-chain contracts and transactions can remain as secure as possible. The report reads that staking means, “If an oracle network fails to meet the obligations outlined in its on-chain service-level agreement (SLA), then a portion of staked LINK can be slashed and redistributed.”

To learn more about Chainlink Oracles, check out our learning resources here.