Pi Coin Trades on Major Exchanges After 6-Year Wait

Pi Coin, launched on March 14, 2019, by Stanford graduates Dr. Nicolas Kokkalis and Dr. Chengdiao Fan, aims to create "the world’s most inclusive peer-to-peer ecosystem" by breaking down technical and financial barriers to entry. Unlike Bitcoin, which relies on energy-intensive mining via Proof-of-Work (PoW), Pi Coin uses a lightweight mobile method inspired by the Stellar Consensus Protocol (SCP). Users, known as "Pioneers," can mine Pi by tapping a button in the app once every 24 hours, requiring no specialized hardware, minimal battery drain, and low data usage. This process involves participation in "Security Circles," groups of trusted contacts that help secure the network.

The Pi ecosystem features four roles: Pioneers mine tokens daily via the app, Contributors secure the network through Security Circles, Ambassadors earn referral bonuses for inviting new members, and Node Operators run desktop software to validate transactions. The total supply of Pi is capped at 100 billion, with 80% allocated to community rewards and 20% reserved for the core team. Mining rates gradually halve to limit inflation.

Ask Aime: Can Pi Coin be my next crypto success?

The project progressed in phases, starting with the Beta phase in 2019, which focused on mobile mining and user growth. The Testnet phase in 2020 involved network testing and limited node setup. The Enclosed Mainnet phase in 2021 saw wallets go live internally, but Pi remained non-transferable. The Open Mainnet phase, which began on February 20, 2025, made Pi fully tradable, with exchanges like OKX, Gate, Bitget, and MEXC listing it. With the Open Mainnet, Pi can now be sent between wallets and used in decentralized applications (dApps) via the Pi Browser.

Pi Network’s long-term vision includes enabling decentralized apps (dApps) using the altcoin, building a Pi-based marketplace for peer-to-peer transactions, and integrating identity and payments through the Pi Browser and On-chain capabilities. The network has shown strong community-driven growth, boasting over 60 million users globally.

Despite its ambitions, Pi Coin faces several criticisms and concerns. While claiming decentralization via SCP and Security Circles, multiple sources report that all mainnet validator nodes are still run by the Pi Core Team. The project lacks a detailed white paper, leaving tokenomics and distribution information opaque. Pi saw a price spike of approximately $1.60 on May 12, 2025, followed by a plunge of over 50% in days, sparking allegations of insider dumping from core wallets. The referral model has drawn comparisons to pyramid schemes, and although mobile wallets use encryption and secure enclaves, KYC data is stored centrally, raising security and privacy concerns.

Pi Coin is available on centralized exchanges like OKX, Gate, Bitget, MEXC, and Pionex, requiring users to migrate Pi to the mainnet and pass KYC. However, major platforms like Binance and Coinbase have not yet listed it, limiting liquidity. Pi Coin is an ambitious experiment to democratize cryptocurrency via mobile mining and social consensus. Its approachable design and massive user base are impressive, but its success is clouded by centralization issues, unclear technical documentation, and significant token volatility. The true test will lie in whether the token can mature into a widely adopted, decentralized platform with real utility. The answer depends on roadmap delivery and community-driven transparency in the next 12–24 months.