PI climbed back above $0.19 on March 20, rising more than 7% in the session after a sharp three-day drop. Trading interest centered on two immediate catalysts: Pi Network’s upcoming v21 protocol update and the latest token unlock figures.
PI rebounds after losing nearly half its value in about 72 hours
Price swings were already elevated at the start of March. PI moved from below $0.175 to above $0.23 by March 9 as activity picked up around protocol updates and exchange-related developments. Momentum accelerated after Kraken said it planned to list PI on March 13, pushing the token to nearly $0.30, a five-month high.
Once trading opened on the exchange, the move reversed. PI fell hard and slipped back to roughly $0.175 earlier this week. The decline wiped out close to half of the token’s value in roughly 72 hours, fitting the “buy the rumor, sell the news” pattern often seen in digital asset markets. Buyers returned later, lifting PI back above $0.18 on March 19 and then above $0.19 a day later.
March 20 unlock stands out as daily releases look lighter afterward
According to PiScan data, the average number of PI tokens scheduled to unlock over the next month remained below 5.5 million per day. One date stood apart: March 20, with about 16 million coins expected to be released. After that, the rest of the month appeared less heavy from a supply perspective.
Unlock schedules matter because they can change short-term trading behavior by increasing the number of coins available to the market. A larger one-day release may add immediate supply, while a lighter schedule across most remaining days may ease some of that pressure. As PI attempted to recover from the recent sell-off, traders were weighing both the post-Kraken pullback and the prospect of lower day-to-day unlocks later in the month.
v21 stays in focus after recent updates laid groundwork for smart contracts
Pi Network has pushed out several updates in recent weeks. Version 19.6 arrived on Feb. 20, version 19.9 followed on March 4, and version 20.2 was completed before March 14, a date the community marks as Pi Day. Version 20.2 drew attention because the team said it established the base for smart contract capabilities.
The rollout, according to the team, will be gradual and focused on categories linked to utility-driven product innovation and operations. The next item on the roadmap is version 21. Details remain limited, but the team has asked node operators to keep their systems updated as preparations continue, keeping the upcoming release at the center of market attention while PI tries to stabilize.