Pi Network’s Mainnet Launch Triggers Market Chaos and Investor Backlash

Early Hype Turns to Disappointment as Pi Coin Crashes

Pi Network’s long-awaited Mainnet launch on February 20, 2025, was expected to mark a new era for the ecosystem, but the transition to an open network quickly turned chaotic. As PI tokens became tradable on centralized exchanges, the market reaction was anything but optimistic. Within hours, Pi Coin suffered a staggering 65% price drop, leaving early adopters in shock. 

Analysts pointed to low trading volumes and the absence of institutional support as key factors behind the collapse, with most transactions involving no more than a few hundred PI tokens at a time. Blockchain expert Kim Wong highlighted the weak liquidity, noting that the highest recorded trade size barely surpassed 1,000 tokens per transaction. 

The sluggish demand underscored broader concerns about Pi Network’s sustainability, fueling skepticism among investors who had hoped for a bullish post-launch performance. Instead, the coin opened at a much lower-than-expected price, shattering the expectations of those who had mined PI for years in anticipation of a profitable debut.

The initial trading frenzy saw Pi Coin surge to a peak of $2, but a wave of sell orders quickly reversed its gains. By the end of February 21, the token had plummeted to $0.66, a staggering 67% drop from its highest valuation on launch day, before slightly recovering to $0.76 at the time of writing. Long-term holders, many of whom had spent years accumulating PI through mining, rushed to cash out amid fears of further depreciation. 

Pi Network’s ongoing liquidity issues further dampened any prospects of a swift recovery, as large investors remained hesitant to enter a market that lacked stability. While Pi Network has consistently touted a user base exceeding 60 million, on-chain data by ExplorePi suggests that only 10.7 million users are actively engaging with the ecosystem. 

The disparity between claimed adoption and real engagement has raised concerns that the project’s success may be overstated. Many early pioneers expressed frustration with the listing price, arguing that their years of mining efforts had yielded minimal financial returns. Dr. Picoin, a well-known Pi advocate, voiced his discontent, questioning why longtime supporters were left with undervalued holdings while new users were able to accumulate large amounts at a fraction of the expected price. 

The dissatisfaction deepened as accusations surfaced that Pi Network’s developers had reserved an outsized share of tokens for themselves, drawing criticism for what some described as an unfair distribution model.

Pi Coin’s listing on OKX, Bitget, MEXC, and Gate.io provided some trading avenues, but controversy quickly followed. Binance conducted a community vote on whether to list Pi, with 85% of respondents currently supporting the move. 

However, Bybit CEO Ben Zhou took a strong stance against the project, labeling Pi Network a scam and vowing that Bybit would never support its listing. Zhou referenced prior warnings from Chinese authorities in 2023, which had flagged Pi Network as a potential threat to vulnerable investors, particularly the elderly. 

The exchange dismissed rumors that it had been rejected for a Pi listing due to Know-Your-Business (KYB) failures, insisting that it had never made such a request. Zhou went further, publicly challenging Pi Network’s transparency and urging the project’s developers to directly address allegations of fraud. 

His remarks on X (formerly Twitter) added to the growing skepticism, as he accused Pi Network of dodging accountability while spreading misleading claims about exchange listings. The backlash from Bybit’s leadership added another layer of reputational damage to a project already facing intense scrutiny.

The Mainnet launch also triggered a surge in fraudulent Pi-branded tokens, flooding decentralized exchanges with illegitimate assets. The Pi Core Team issued an urgent warning on February 20, cautioning users against engaging with unauthorized Pi trading pairs on DEXs. The team reaffirmed that only OKX, Bitget, Gate.io, and Pionex were legitimate trading venues for Pi Coin. 

Despite the warnings, a fake Pi-themed meme token launched on Pump.fun saw its market cap implode from $5 million to a mere $112,142, illustrating the risks posed by unofficial projects. In response, Pi Network reiterated its stance, advising users to steer clear of any decentralized trading activity, warning that those who ignored the advisory risked falling victim to scams and financial losses. 

While the project’s ecosystem continues to expand, questions linger about the long-term viability of Pi Network’s ambitions. The transition to an open network aims to enable interactions with external blockchains, but skepticism persists over whether the network is delivering real economic value beyond speculation and trading. 

According to the Pi Core Team, over 19 million pioneers have successfully completed KYC, exceeding the 15 million target set in December 2023. More than 10.14 million users have migrated to the Mainnet, and the ecosystem now hosts over 100 decentralized applications (dApps). These milestones suggest that Pi Network is making strides in adoption, but critics argue that true financial utility remains elusive. 

The network’s future hinges on several key factors, including improving liquidity, addressing regulatory scrutiny, and enhancing transparency regarding token distribution. Market analysts believe that securing listings on major exchanges like Binance or Coinbase could restore confidence, but without clear resolutions to its existing challenges, Pi Coin risks further depreciation and loss of investor trust. 

The fallout from the Mainnet launch has left Pi Network at a crossroads, with its next steps likely to determine whether it can recover from its rocky debut or fade further into uncertainty.

This article has been refined and enhanced by ChatGPT.