Key Insights
- Pi Network‘s price has stayed contained within a tight range since July.
- The network is preparing to roll out the Protocol 28 upgrade in October.
- Pi Coin has experienced subdued demand over the last several months.
Pi Network’s price hovered near $0.091 on September 30, with the cryptocurrency continuing to display minimal momentum as it approaches its next Mainnet upgrade.
The rollout of Protocol 28 is scheduled by Pi Network for October 16. This update follows the September Mainnet debut of Protocol 27 and will further broaden smart-contract development capabilities.
Despite these technical advancements, PI’s market price has not seen a corresponding reaction. Furthermore, trading turnover stays low in comparison to the token’s $1.02 billion market capitalization.
Pi Network Price Wavers Ahead of Protocol 28
Over the past two months, the Pi token has stagnated, settling its market capitalization at $1.02 billion. At its peak, the valuation approached $20 billion, positioning the asset as one of the cryptocurrency sector’s most significant laggards.
Pi Network’s price has largely overlooked several major milestones, including a sequence of network upgrades that progressed the platform from Protocol 19 to the current Protocol 27.
These upgrades have driven substantial architecture modifications across the network. Most notably, the inclusion of smart contracts has enabled developers to construct decentralized applications (dApps). Alongside the addition of Remote Procedure Call (RPC) functionality, these updates have strengthened the network’s position as a viable alternative to established chains such as Ethereum and Circle Internet’s Arc.
The subsequent major milestone in Pi Network’s expansion will be October’s Protocol 28 upgrade. This release brings additional capabilities, empowering developers to upgrade batches of smart contracts simultaneously and modify stored data securely as their applications mature.
Developers behind Pi Network anticipate that these additions will draw more builders from sectors such as decentralized finance (DeFi), gaming, real-world asset (RWA) tokenization, and social media.
In practice, however, Pi Network’s price has shown a muted response to past upgrades, registering little movement upon their release—a pattern that may repeat in October.
Pi Coin Ignored the Crypto Market Rally
The Pi Network token has missed out on the broader cryptocurrency market rally that lifted Bitcoin to multi-month highs. Leading altcoins such as Zcash, Near Protocol, and Venice have all surged by double digits from their yearly lows.
Additionally, the Pi token has disregarded the prevailing risk-on sentiment across the crypto industry. The Crypto Fear and Greed Index has remained in the greed zone for the past two months, a condition that typically benefits altcoin performance.
Persistent pressure on the token stems from several factors, chief among them being subdued demand throughout the month. Data from CoinMarketCap indicates that trading volume has declined to just $6 million—a very small figure for an asset boasting a market cap exceeding $1 billion—keeping the volume-to-market cap ratio down at 0.60.
Another contributing factor is the ongoing and prospective release of locked tokens. With a circulating supply of 11.24 billion, which is much lower than the total supply of 100 billion, the network is set to unlock billions more tokens over the months ahead.
Pi Network Price Prediction: Technical Analysis
The daily chart indicates that Pi’s valuation has stayed locked in a consolidation pattern over recent weeks. Trading at $0.09153, the price sits considerably below its record high of nearly $3.
The token’s consolidation occurs alongside the 25-day and 50-day Exponential Moving Averages (EMAs), signaling subdued volatility. Additionally, the three lines of the Bollinger Bands have compressed.
With the Average True Range (ATR) dropping to 0.0083—its lowest mark since September 7—the token is expected to continue trading within its current range before potentially triggering a bearish breakdown toward its all-time low of $0.030.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Technical levels and upgrade-related price scenarios remain conditional.