What Pi Network promised
When Pi Network came to the scene for the first time in 2019, it had a simple but convincing tone: what would happen if you could extract cryptocurrencies directly from your phone, without expectation equipment, without massive electricity bills, just a touch a day in an application?
He caught fire. Millions of people got on board, attracted by the idea of ”free” mobile mining and the opportunity to enter early in the next big thing. The application facilitated it: it was recorded, invited some friends, took advantage of a button every 24 hours and observed its PI (PI) balance. With the social reference model that promoted growth, it did not spend much time before some 70 million users had registered worldwide.
Did you know? PI Network uses the star consensus protocol (SCP), whose objective is energy efficiency and decentralization, the difference in Bitcoin’s intensive energy test.
What delivered the Pi Network
The road map was supposed to be gradual: it begins with mobile mining, then advances towards a deployment of testnet, KYC and, finally, the complete mobile launch with real trade and utility. But that last step much longer than anyone expected.
After years in Limbo, the PI network finally opened its net Printa to external trade in February 2025. That should have taken a great victory. But it wasn’t without problems. On the one hand, not all users were able to migrate their balances. Know the verification of his client (KYC) became a bottleneck, and many were wondering when, or if, they can access the tokens they had extracted for years.
Then was the price. When PI began to operate on external platforms, the price increased, reaching up to $ 2.98 at the end of February. But the hype did not last. As the first users began selling their chips and the real -world use cases remained thin, the price slid hard. At the beginning of May 2025, it had fallen to around $ 0.58, eliminating more than 70% of its value.
There is also no real utility. You cannot spend PI in much (only on small community markets and pilot programs). And although the team talks about the construction of a complete ecosystem of applications and services, it is not clear how fast or how seriously, that is progressing.
Why the cryptographic community became skeptical
As the months became years, more and more red flags began to appear, and the community began to resound difficult questions.
1. I’m still waiting in the main
Pi was launched in 2019, and for years, users continued to listen that the Netnet Open was “just around the corner.” First was the test network. Then the “main netnet attached.” Then a road map update. The real open network did not reach the early 2025, six years later. And by that moment, many early believers had begun to lose faith.
2. All roads lead to the central team
Despite the decentralization conversation, the reality is that the Pi Core team has retained almost total control over the project.
- Each main active node? Controlled by them.
- Most tokens supply? Still in your hands.
That does not feel good with cryptography users who believe in distributed power and community -driven networks. At this time, PI feels more like a private company than as a decentralized protocol.
3. Where is transparency?
Another conflict point has been the lack of details on how Pi really works under the hood. The white paper is vague. There is no clear or tokenomic breakdown, there are no timelines on when to unlock tokens, or the burning mechanics and no idea of supply control. Without that information, it is difficult for anyone to judge the health or future value of the project.
4. Exchange listings
Despite the years of exaggeration, PI is not yet in the main exchanges such as Binance or Coinbase. It can be negotiated on some platforms such as OKX and Bitget, but the same there, things are unstable. Some users have reported problems withdrawing their tokens, with exchanges blaming “traffic peaks” and other vague technical reasons. Everything feels a bit fragile.
For example, a user in BitT reported depositing 1,500 tokens Pi, but found them inaccessible, without a clear timeline for resolution. In OKX, the withdrawals were suspended for approximately 24 hours, and users requested that they provide an identification and verification by email, but a vague response from Givence, as “their request will be completed within 24-48 hours.”
By April 2025, users reported that Mexc, another exchange that lists PI, suspended pi retreats, generating coneros about the mismanage and reliability of the platform. This was aggravated by reports of large transfers of Pi de Mexc, Gate.io and Bitget to the OKX wallets, which increases the suspicions of coordinated price manipulation or problems at the exchange level.
5. FALSE VOLUME AND DISENSION PUMP
At its peak in February 2025, Pi quoted almost $ 3 and generated billions in volume. Fast advance for a few months, and that volume has left a cliff, up to around $ 40 million. This type of collapse raises serious questions: was the demand real or was inflated for speculation, bots or manufacture of domestic market?
6. Users trapped in a closed circuit
Even now, many users cannot use or withdraw their tokens Pi. Without access to real exchanges or spending options, they are trapped in a limbo of a child or token, observing that a number rises in an application but without a way to turn it into nothing useful.
Did you know? While PI Network claims around 70 million users, Blockchain data indicates that there are only around 9.11 million wallets, with approximately 20,000 that show daily activity.
Is Pi Network a scam or simply a failed vision?
Not all encryption projects that stumble is a scam. Some are simply anonymous ideas that do not work at all. So where does the Pi network fall?
On the surface, PI does not conform to the classic scam mold. There was no initial (ICO) currency offer, an initial investment was not required, only an application that allows you to “undermine” Pi playing your phone daily. That is a low bar for the entrance, and attracted millions.
But fall a little more and things become more murky. The whole system leans heavy in references, encouraging users to attract more people to increase their mining rate. That structure child begins to resemble a several level marketing scheme more than a decentralized cryptographic project.
Then it is the monetization angle. The application is full of advertisements, and users must complete the KYC verification, delivering personal data. So, although you are not paying money, pay your attention and information.
Given these developments, critics such as Ben Zhou, CEO of Bybit, and Justin Bons, founder of Cyber Capital, have publicly expressed skepticism regarding the legitimacy of Pi Network.
PI Network might not be a shameless fraud, but the combination of opaque operations, aggressive reference tactics and questionable monetization strategies certainly raise eyebrows.
Did you know? Pi Network officially launched on March 14, 2019 – Pi Day – symbolizing the constant mathematics π (3.14).
Can Pi recover or are it?
Is there a forward path for Pi Network? Possible, but it is an steep climb.
First, transparency is key. The open source would allow the community to verify what is under the hood and generate trust.
Second, PI needs real utility. At this time, Hold Pi does not offer much beyond the hope of future value. The integration of Pi in real use cases, such as decentralized payments or applications, would give a purpose of the token.
Third, the largest exchange listings are crucial. Currently, PI is available in a limited number of exchanges, which hinders liquuidity and price discovery. The main exchanges such as Binance and Coinbase have not yet listed PI, citing concerns about transparency and regulatory compliance.
Fourth, decentralization must be more than a fashion word. Currently, the Pi Core team maintains significant control on the network, which contradicts the principles of decentralization. The implementation of decentralized governance would distribute the decision -making power and align with the spirit of Blockchain technology.
But even if all these boxes are marked, time is a factor. Since its main launch in early 2025, the price of PI has decreased significantly, and user participation has decreased. The reconstruction of the impulse is a challenge.
Without significant changes, the PI network runs the risk of fading in the dark, remembered more for its promises not fulfilled than their achievements.
