Pi Network’s native token PI has entered a critical technical phase, climbing 4% over the past 24 hours to trade near $0.09. The move pushed its market capitalization to just under $1 billion and made PI the 65th-largest cryptocurrency, outperforming major assets including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple’s XRP and Solana during the session. The gain coincided with a sharp increase in social media chatter across X and Telegram, although the precise catalyst remains unconfirmed.
Community reports suggest that protocol version 26 has now been deployed, with mainnet node operators having been instructed to complete the upgrade by August 11 to remain connected. X users claimed that Testnet 2 is officially running on protocol v26, marking eight successful upgrades from v19 to v26, with only one more upgrade expected before the network is fully updated. Pi Network’s Core Team has not yet issued an official announcement.
From a technical standpoint, PI is compressing between descending resistance and rising support. Analysts say a clean breakout above $0.10 could trigger a move toward $0.15, a level last seen in late May, while failure at resistance may push the token back toward a recently defended support zone. Trading volume near the make-or-break level is seen as crucial for confirming either a breakout or a pullback, with broader bearish market conditions adding to the uncertainty. PI remains highly speculative and is not yet listed on major exchanges, so secondary market liquidity can amplify price swings.
