TL;DR

Pi Network developers have set the Open Network launch condition at 15 million KYC-verified users, with over 9 million already migrated, but some users continue to face verification challenges. The projects popularity remains strong, especially in Asia, with millions of users and a large social media following that surpasses established crypto entities like Ripple.

Whats New?

Pi Network is one of the most controversial and yet most popular cryptocurrency projects. It claims to allow people to mine digital assets directly from their smartphones with minimal energy consumption. Despite being around for almost six years, Pi Network has yet to introduce its native token and open mainnet. 

Many community members have been frustrated by the lack of clarity surrounding the exact launch of those developments. However, Pi Networks team has continuously assured these milestones are on the horizon.

Not long ago, the developers said the first major target was the launch of the Open Network. They said it will go live if 15 million users pass necessary Know-Your-Customer (KYC) verifications and migrate to the mainnet (known as the Grace Period) before the end of this month.

At the beginning of January, Pi Network claimed the project has been making excellent progress, with over 9 million successful migrations. Prior to that, the team maintained that 14 million people had completed the verification procedures.

Despite the claimed progress, some users complained they had experienced issues when trying to abide by the rules. To ease their efforts, Pi Network recently advised them to either spend Pi to update their name or appeal to resubmit their KYC application.

Pioneers who have rejected KYC applications due to differences in their Pi account name and their real name in ID documents can now either spend Pi to update their name or appeal to resubmit their KYC application. Complete this action today if needed, the full guidance reads.

Towards the end of last year, the team issued another advice to struggling users. Specifically, it urged people who cant complete KYC procedures for some reason to join a dedicated Telegram chat where there will be mods to answer your questions.

How Popular is Pi Network?

As mentioned above, the controversy surrounding the project has not stopped it from increasing its popularity in the past few years. Its user base has been particularly on the rise in Asia, in countries like South Korea, China, Vietnam, Japan, Singapore, and others.

Last month, Wu Blockchain revealed that the number of Pi Network users in South Korea reached 1.34 million, which is more than the domestic client base of well-known crypto exchanges like Binance and Coinbase.

Meanwhile, the official X account of the project has more than 3.5 million followers. In comparison, established cryptocurrency entities such as Ripple, for instance, have fewer subscribers.