“After rigorous reviews, CoinEx will list PI (Pi) on March 18, 2025,” the exchange stated in its announcement.
With this latest listing, Pi Coin is now available on 12 exchanges, as per Coinranking data. Despite this expansion, the possibility of a Binance listing remains uncertain.
“The failure to get listed on Binance, despite 86% of the community voting in favor, raises serious concerns about public trust in the project,” a pioneer wrote on X.
Pioneers Demand Transparency on Pi Network’s Funding Sources
An investigation by one of Pi Network’s pioneers uncovered that SocialChain Inc., the company behind Pi Network, has received investments from three firms: 137 Ventures, Ulu Ventures, and Designer Fund. However, the investigation revealed a key issue: two of these investors have not included Pi Network in their official investment portfolios.
Additionally, none of these firms have disclosed the amount of money they have invested in Pi Network despite being forthcoming with investment details for other companies.
“Why is Pi Core Team keeping this under wraps? Pioneers deserve transparency. If Pi Network aims for long-term sustainability, the team must be more open about its financial backing and key partnerships,” the post read.
Notably, a previous lawsuit by former co-founder Vince McPhillip against Pi Network offers additional insight into the project’s funding methods. The complaint outlined a series of claims, including wrongful termination, intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress, and breach of fiduciary duty.
Nonetheless, it detailed that the project had raised funds by selling financial instruments called SAFE (Simple Agreement for Future Equity).
According to the lawsuit, Pi Network sold SAFE agreements in September 2019 with a maximum valuation of $20 million. During this fundraising round, the project raised $500,000. A few months later, in February 2020, Pi Network conducted another fundraising round at the same $20 million valuation, raising an additional $300,000.
Despite these fundraising efforts, the lack of clear financial disclosure continues to fuel concerns within the Pi Network community.
This drop has pushed the coin further down the cryptocurrency rankings, with PI falling from 12th to 21st place on CoinGecko. While the broader cryptocurrency market has also faced a downturn, PI’s losses have been more pronounced. At press time, PI was trading at $1.1, down 16.5% in the past 24 hours.
Despite this, Pi Network’s community engagement remains vibrant, particularly through PiFest 2025. The event has attracted 100,000 registered sellers worldwide, including 49,000 active participants on the Map of Pi.
Social media posts highlight strong participation from communities in Vietnam, Indonesia, and beyond, where users exchange goods and services using PI tokens.
Over 50% of all cryptocurrencies ever launched since 2021 are now defunct. An even more alarming trend is emerging in 2025, where the percentage of failed tokens launched this year has reached the same level in just the first five months.
That percentage will naturally rise with more than half of the year left. Representatives from Binance and Dune Analytics told BeInCrypto that these failures are just another reminder of the need to launch viable projects, backed by solid tokenomics and a robust community.
Ghost Tokens Skyrocket
A recent CoinGecko report revealed some jaw-dropping data. Of the approximately 7 million cryptocurrencies listed on GeckoTerminal since 2021, 3.7 million have subsequently died.
Several factors are considered when evaluating whether a coin has reached its end.
“A coin is classified as ‘dead’ when it loses all utility, liquidity, and community engagement. Key indicators include near-zero trading volume, abandoned development (no GitHub commits for 6+ months), and a price drop of 99%+ from its all-time high. Teams often vanish without warning—social media accounts go dormant, domains expire,” Alsie Liu, Content Manager at Dune Analytics, told BeInCrypto.
Half of all tokens launched since 2021 have died. Source: CoinGecko.
A significant 53% of listed cryptocurrencies have failed, with most collapses concentrated in 2024 and 2025. Notably, the over 1.82 million tokens already stopped trading in 2025 significantly outpaced the approximately 1.38 million failures recorded throughout 2024.
With seven months out of the year ahead, this trend of increasing failures in the current year will continue to grow.
CoinGecko specifically suggested a potential link between economic concerns like tariffs and recession fears, noting a surge in meme coin launches after a certain election, with subsequent market volatility likely contributing to their decline.
However, not all responsibility can be placed on a greater economic downturn. Other aspects can contribute to these project failures.
“Common factors include inability to find product market fit leading to negligible interest from users or investors, or project teams that focus too much on short-term speculation with no long-term roadmap, and sometimes abandonment by developers (rug pulls). Broader issues like fraudulent intentions, weak user traction, novelty-driven hype, financial shortfalls, poor execution, strong competition, or security failures also contribute to project failure,” a Binance spokesperson told BeInCrypto.
The rapid rise in ghost tokens also came with the exponential launch of projects en masse, particularly since the start of 2024.
Analyzing the Life-Death Ratio
Last year was novel in its own right following the proliferation of meme coins. This new narrative emerged particularly after the launch of Pump.fun, a Solana platform that allows anyone to launch a token at a minimal cost.
According to CoinGecko data, 3 million new tokens were listed on CoinGecko in 2024 alone. Half of these projects died, but the other half survived. However, the situation in 2025 appears less stable.
The difference between token launches and failures in 2025 is minimal. Source: CoinGecko.
While the number of new token launches remains high, the number of failures is nearly equivalent, with launches only marginally exceeding deaths by about a thousand.
“Ecosystems with low barriers to token creation see the highest number of ghost coins. In general, platforms that make it very easy and cheap to launch new tokens see the most abandoned coins. During this cycle, Solana’s meme coin surge (e.g., via token launchpads like Pump.fun) drove a flood of new tokens, many of which lost user traction and daily activity once initial hype faded,” Binance’s spokesperson explained.
As of March 5, the meme coin market capitalization had sharply decreased to $54 billion, marking a 56.8% drop from its peak of $125 billion on December 5, 2024. This downturn was accompanied by a significant decrease in trading activity, with volumes falling by 26.2% in the preceding month alone.
Certain token categories have been hit harder than others.
Music and Video Tokens Among the Hardest-Hit Categories
A 2024 BitKE report indicated that video and music were prominent categories with many failed cryptocurrency projects, reaching a 75% failure rate. This outsized percentage suggests that niche-focused crypto ventures often face challenges in achieving long-term viability.
“These niches face adoption and utility gaps. Music tokens struggle to compete with Spotify/YouTube, while ‘listen-to-earn’ models often lack demand. As more mainstream celebrities get into the space without knowing much about blockchain technology, tokens have become the new cash-grab business,” Liu explained.
Binance’s spokesperson noted that legal and technical hurdles, such as music licensing and the significant resources needed for video delivery, complicated the scaling of decentralized alternatives.
They further explained that many projects struggled to remain sustainable without substantial user adoption or strong network effects.
“This highlights that a good concept alone is not enough; crypto projects must also compete with entrenched Web2 platforms, navigate complex industry challenges, and deliver real-world utility to succeed. Without aligning with user behavior and market needs, even well-intentioned initiatives risk fading into ghost tokens,” Binance told BeInCrypto.
Despite the discouraging number of failed tokens, this situation offers important insights into building resilient projects that withstand unfavorable market conditions.
What Can We Learn From Catastrophic Token Collapses?
Prospective token creators can learn significant lessons from once-popular projects that ultimately failed. The negative outcomes experienced by these ventures, particularly in severe instances, can motivate the development of new projects responsibly and avoid similar pitfalls.
Binance referred to notorious ghost coin cases BitConnect and OneCoin.
“BitConnect, once a top-10 coin, collapsed in 2018 after being exposed as a Ponzi scheme promising ~1% daily returns. Investors lost nearly $2 billion. OneCoin, raising ~$4 billion, never had a real blockchain and relied on aggressive multi-level marketing before collapsing. Both cases highlight the dangers of projects built on hype, unrealistic promises, and lack of verifiable technology,” Binance’s spokesperson explained.
While concerning, the rising number of ghost coins serves as a crucial reminder that discernible warning signs often precede the downfall of these cryptocurrencies.
These cases underline the necessity of rigorous research, validating underlying principles, and maintaining a cautious perspective, especially when investment gains appear unrealistically high. Prioritizing risk management and sustainable long-term factors should outweigh short-term speculative trading.
Binance particularly highlighted the importance of “Do Your Own Research” (DYOR) when evaluating crypto projects.
“Practically, this means reviewing the whitepaper, assessing whether the project solves a real problem, verifying the team’s credibility, examining tokenomics and supply distribution, and checking community and development activity,” Binance said, adding that “In essence, DYOR is about empowerment and protection. It helps investors identify solid projects and avoid scams or ghost tokens by spotting red flags early. Given how fast crypto markets move, personal due diligence remains essential for navigating the space safely and successfully.”
Ultimately, the prevalence of ghost tokens highlights a critical truth for crypto participants: thorough research and fundamental value are paramount for identifying lasting projects.
Pi Network’s native token, PI, has bounced back following a few days of decline. It has noted a 6% gain in the past 24 hours to trade at $1.47 at press time.
The recovery comes ahead of Pi Day on March 14. There is also growing market speculation about a potential Binance listing.
PI Gains 21% as Traders Gain Confidence
PI has jumped 21.3% over the past 24 hours, driven by growing speculation over a potential Binance listing and the upcoming Pi Day announcements on March 14.
This date also marks the deadline for KYC completion and the migration of PI holdings from the mobile app to the Mainnet. These upcoming developments have triggered a new wave of PI demand, putting upward pressure on its price.
The steady rise in PI’s Relative Strength Index (RSI) reflects the surge in buying activity among spot market participants. The momentum indicator is in an upward trend and poised to break above the 50-center line at press time.
When an asset’s RSI is attempting to cross above its 50-neutral level, it signals a shift in momentum from bearish to bullish. This suggests that buying pressure is increasing, potentially leading to further price gains if the trend continues.
A confirmed move above 50 would reinforce positive sentiment around PI and attract more traders looking for upward momentum.
Furthermore, its positive Chaikin Money Flow (CMF) confirms this bullish outlook. This indicator, which tracks how money flows into and out of PI, is above zero at 0.16.
This trend indicates that buying pressure is stronger than selling pressure among PI traders. It signals that investors are confident in the asset, increasing the likelihood of further price appreciation.
PI Eyes Recovery After Steep Drop—Can It Reclaim $2?
PI has steadily declined, plummeting over 19% in the past week. This has pushed its price under a key price level of $1.62, which forms significant resistance. If the bullish trend persists and the demand for PI soars, its price could attempt to breach this level.
A successful break above $1.62 could propel PI above $2 and closer to its all-time high of $3.
On the other hand, a resurgence in profit-taking would invalidate this bullish projection. If selloffs spike again, PI’s price would resume its downtrend and fall to $1.34.
