Pi Network Price Prediction Ahead of Protocol 26 Upgrade Deadline

Pi Network price rose for a second consecutive day after its latest decline found support near $0.0713.

PI gained over 3% during the latest 24-hour period, continuing the recovery that began on Tuesday. The rebound placed attention on a possible double-bottom pattern and Pi Network’s continuing protocol upgrades.

However, the Pi Core Team had not confirmed Aug. 11 as the Protocol 26 activation date through its official blog. Its latest official update confirmed that Protocol 25 was scheduled for July 22 and said users should await further information about Protocol 26.

Pi Network Focus Shifts Toward Protocol 26

Pi Network recently upgraded its blockchain to Protocol 25 as part of its plan to align the network with newer Stellar protocol versions.

The Protocol 25 upgrade focused on network stability and privacy-preserving smart-contract capabilities.

It introduced BN254 cryptography and Poseidon hashing, which support zero-knowledge applications. Developers can use these tools to verify claims without exposing all underlying information.

The Pi Core Team also told node operators to upgrade their software to remain connected to the network.

Its July 15 announcement said Protocol 26 would follow. However, it did not provide a confirmed activation date.

The draft’s Aug. 11 date should therefore remain excluded unless Pi Network publishes it through an official communication channel.

Protocol 26 is known as Yardstick on Stellar, the codebase from which Pi’s blockchain originated.

Stellar activated Yardstick on its mainnet on May 6. The upgrade introduced a consensus-based mechanism that allows validators to freeze specified ledger keys during an incident.

It also added checked 256-bit arithmetic and more efficient cryptographic functions for zero-knowledge applications.

However, Stellar’s activation does not mean those functions are already live on Pi Network. Pi must separately adopt and activate each protocol version on its own blockchain.

Pi Coin Price Faces Some Major Challenges

Still, despite the ongoing upgrades, Pi Network token has continued falling this year. It has slumped by 61% this year and by over 50% in the last six months. Also, the token has plunged by 82% in the last 12 months, underperforming Bitcoin and other altcoins.

The ongoing retreat has brought its market capitalization to over $840 million, down substantially from a record high of $19 billion.

This retreat happened as the network continues to face major risks ahead. One of the main risks is that the network continues to unlock tokens. Data shows that the network will unlock 128 million tokens in August after releasing 103 million tokens a month earlier. In total, the project is expected to unlock over 1.7 billion tokens in the next 12 months.

Token unlocks, especially at a time when it is seeing weak demand, are usually risky because it increases those in circulation. More data shows that the token had over $10 million in volume in the last 24 hours.

Pi Network has seen little demand even after being listed on Kraken, one of the biggest crypto exchange in the world. Its volume on Kraken was just $22k in the last 24 hours. BitMart, which was one of the first exchanges to list the token, has filed for bankruptcy.

Pi Network Price Prediction: Technical Analysis

Technical indicators suggest the Pi Network token may be on the cusp of a cautious rebound. It has formed a double-bottom pattern at $0.07132, its lowest level on July 14 and 26. This pattern has a neckline of $0.1032. In most cases, this pattern normally leads to a rebound.

The two lines of the Percentage Price Oscillator (PPO) have crossed upwards and are pointing higher. Therefore, there is a likelihood that the coin is bottoming, which will push it to the key resistance at $0.1032. A move above that level will point to more gains, potentially to $0.1296, its lowest level in February this year.