Pi Network Expands Into US Market

OKX Opens Pi Network to US Users

Pi Core Team has confirmed that OKX (@okx) has made $PI available to millions of users in the United States for the first time, marking a notable step in the project's ongoing push for mainstream adoption. The move gives Pi Network a meaningful commercial presence in one of the most closely watched regulatory environments in crypto.

Pi Network said the expansion is intended to strengthen ecosystem participation, utility, and real-world user growth globally.

Context: Pi Network's Exchange Journey and Protocol Development

When Pi Network's Open Network launched on February 20, 2025, it was one of crypto's most anticipated debuts. The project had over 60 million engaged users and more than 19 million identity-verified Pioneers at the time of listing, with spot trading for the PI/USDT pair opening at 8:00 am UTC on February 20, 2025. As Bitget and other exchanges followed with listings, the token reached $2.99, briefly valuing the network at over $25 billion fully diluted.

Pi Network is a decentralized blockchain project launched in 2019 by Nicolas Kokkalis and Chengdiao Fan, both Stanford University graduates. Its core premise is lowering the barrier to crypto participation by letting users mine the token directly from a smartphone app. The network runs on the Stellar Consensus Protocol, a federated Byzantine agreement mechanism that validates transactions through trusted nodes rather than competitive computation, making it more energy-efficient than proof-of-work alternatives.

On the protocol side, Pi Network activated its Protocol 23 upgrade on May 18, 2026, introducing native smart contract and decentralized application support. The hard fork shifts the network from a basic mainnet to a programmable Layer 1 blockchain. Whether the upgrade will be enough to catalyze meaningful developer activity and offset persistent token unlocks remains an open question. Analysts largely maintain a neutral stance and urge patience until utility absorbs token inflation.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.

Sources:
OKX Lists PI (Pi Network) for Spot Trading, OKX
Latest Pi Network News and Market Insights, CoinMarketCap
Pi Network (PI) Price and Market Data, CoinMarketCap