"Despite promises to accelerate the process, Pi Network users are still stuck at the ninth step of identity verification"

"I mined Pi in the early days but still have not passed identity verification," Hai Nguyen of Quang Tri Province said. "I deleted the app last year after repeated failures to verify, but reinstalled it after the project announced plans to accelerate the process for the Open Network."

"I mined Pi in the early days but still have not passed identity verification," Hai Nguyen of Quang Tri Province said.

"I deleted the app last year after repeated failures to verify, but reinstalled it after the project announced plans to accelerate the process for the Open Network."

But his disappointment has not been allayed.

"The ninth step in the process still shows orange, and my nearly 4,000 Pi tokens are still locked as they have not been transferred to my wallet," he added.

In Pi Network’s nine-step know your customer (KYC) process, the final step turns green when approved, orange when in the queue and gray when rejected or pending.

Huy of Binh Dinh Province said his KYC status turned green late last year and 1,000 of the 3,000 coins he mined became transferable. But his status recently changed back to orange.

"I am disappointed and increasingly skeptical about how the Pi Core Team manages KYC," he said.

Pi Network logo on a smartphone with Pi coins and U.S. dollar notes in the background. Photo from X

On social media, users have called the process the most challenging part of the project.

"Other crypto platforms make KYC simple using ID documents and facial recognition, but with Pi it feels arbitrary," Van Thanh, a user who has traded crypto for over five years and joined Pi in 2021, said.

"Even after submitting personal data and passing KYC, your status can change, showing how much control the developers exert over the system."

Earlier this month the Pi Core Team introduced a new KYC option through Banxa, a crypto identity verification platform. The process takes five to seven minutes, but requires users to spend US$5–10 to purchase Pi before it becomes available.

"Although I passed KYC two weeks ago, my tokens still have not arrived in my wallet," Nguyen said.

Huy said he paid for the process through Banxa but has received nothing in his mainnet wallet.

On Pi community forums, users have criticized the development team for a perceived lack of transparency and for forcing users to spend money without enabling token withdrawals.

"Every day, there are five to 10 posts calling for boycotts, urging others to delete the app, and even sharing videos of users deleting their accounts in protest," an admin of a Pi Network group with more than 50,000 members said. He admitted he restricts such posts to prevent negativity.

On April 17 Pi Network announced it had successfully distributed tokens to 12 million users who completed the KYC. The team also released a roadmap of upcoming priorities, but without specifying timelines.

Beyond verification issues, users are also discouraged by falling prices. According to CoinGecko, the token has fallen from a peak of $3 to around $0.60, at times dipping to $0.40.

Another Pi group admin lamented: "A new user now might need a month just to mine one Pi. Even long-time users struggle to earn.

"With prices so low, it is easier to buy Pi on an exchange, and so fewer people are logging in daily to claim free tokens."

Tran Vinh, a Pi owner in Quang Binh Province, said his referral network once had over 1,000 members, but now only a few dozen check in regularly.

"Most left because of the price drop or failed KYC."

Launched in 2019 Pi Network promoted itself as a way for users to mine Pi for free by tapping a button in its mobile app daily. Vietnam is among the countries with the most miners.

The project has been controversial, taking nearly six years to launch its mainnet before finally allowing users to transfer Pi to exchanges for trading on Feb. 20 this year.

The project has drawn scathing criticism from several prominent figures in the crypto space. Bybit CEO Ben Zhou called Pi "more dangerous than meme coins" and said his exchange would not list it. Justin Bons, founder of Cyber Capital and a well-known crypto analyst, has labeled Pi Network a "scam" and warned users to avoid it.