Pi Network Pioneers at Risk of Losing PI Coins Due to KYC Issues as Pi Day Approaches

As the Pi Day approaches, many Pi Network users or Pioneers may lose the accumulated Pi coins.

This risk arises after numerous complaints about the inability to complete the Know Your Customer (KYC) verification process.

Increasing disappointment in the Pi Network user community

In a late February announcement, the Pi Network team stated that users who do not complete KYC and transfer their balances to the Mainnet within the extended grace period — ending at 8:00 AM UTC on March 14, 2025 — "risk losing the majority of their mobile balances."

"...the end of the Grace Period is unavoidable to ensure the network can progress to the next stage without unverified and unclaimed mobile balances. Therefore, this is the final opportunity for any Pioneer to complete the necessary steps to avoid losing their previous mobile balances," read the announcement.

This announcement has caused widespread disappointment in the Pioneer community. Based on the frustrations shared on X (Twitter), many claim they have tried but failed to complete the KYC. Crypto enthusiast Rod Thompson called this the biggest crypto scam, with up to 10,000 PI Coins threatened for him.

"Pi Network has earned advertising revenue from every daily mining session of mine, but I will lose over 10,000 pi coins because people I haven't spoken to in two years haven't done KYC. At least one of them passed away over a year ago. That's over $10,000 of my effort," Thompson lamented.

Thompson is not the only Pioneer questioning the fairness of the Pi Network system. Another user, S.O.H., described the situation as "mass social engineering on the blockchain." Meanwhile, others, like Ahmady Ala, reported that despite mining Pi for six years, they have still not been allowed to complete the KYC.

In a similar tone, some users have had KYC documents pending for over two years without a resolution.

"My KYC verification has been pending for 2.5 years. Shouldn't there be an option to resubmit it even if it's not approved?" user H. Ibrahim asked in frustration.

Unfair reward distribution, centralization, and delayed migration

Aside from the disappointments related to KYC, many users have reported inconsistencies in their balances. They claim that their unverified balances are constantly increasing, while their transferable balances have decreased significantly.

This makes the migration process confusing, and the lack of transparency has led some to call Pi a "scam network." Another major concern is the unfair distribution of rewards.

"I have been mining consistently for 4 years, loyal to the Pi Network, invited 39 people, and even completed KYC for 17 of them — but I received nothing. Meanwhile, others with no referrals and irregular mining have more Pi than me. Is that fair?" another user, Mango Fan Token, stated.

Meanwhile, although claiming 60 million users, on-chain data indicates that only around 11 million users are active. This raises concerns about the actual adoption rate of the Pi Network.

Additionally, questions about centralization have emerged. Some critics argue that the project's control mechanisms limit the potential for a truly decentralized network. Another issue plaguing the network is that many users are unable to migrate their Pi coins to the Mainnet.

BeInCrypto recently reported that Pioneers are facing difficulties in transferring their balances, even after completing all the necessary steps. Some disappointed users, frustrated by the prolonged lockup period, have had to sell their PI Coin accounts on unofficial markets, raising concerns about the platform's reliability and long-term viability.

Although the criticism of this network continues to grow, Pi Coin has recently witnessed double-digit growth as investors prepare for Pi Day. Some analysts speculate that this growth is driven by optimism surrounding potential developments on March 14.

Data from CoinGecko shows the price of PI Coin is $1.71 at the time of writing, up nearly 15% in the past 24 hours. However, whether this price surge can be sustained amid the ongoing technical issues and community dissatisfaction remains uncertain.