FAQ — “Every micro-π has its own ID, so you can tell them apart?”

The claim

“Every unit (micro-π) has a unique identifier, and through it you can trace units and tell mined Pi apart from exchange Pi.”

The truth: the data model is misunderstood ❌

Pi Network (built on Stellar) does not use a UTXO model. It uses an Account / Balance model:

Model	How it stores value	Example
UTXO (Bitcoin)	A list of “unspent outputs”, each with a txid:vout id	quasi-ID per piece
Account/Balance (Stellar/Pi)	A single numeric balance per (account + asset)	one number, no pieces

Direct on-chain evidence

// GET https://api.mainnet.minepi.com/accounts/GC55...
{
  "balance": "2.0000000",
  "asset_type": "native"
}

👉 The balance is “2.0000000” — a single number. There is no array of pieces, no per-unit ID, and no txid for each π.

Run examples/coin-id-check.mjs to see it for yourself.

---

What does “micro-π” even mean? It’s just a decimal place, not an ID

• 1 π = 10,000,000 micro-π.
• That’s mathematical division — like saying “1 dollar = 100 cents”. A cent has no unique ID.
• The balance is stored as a scaled integer inside the contract; there is no field per decimal place.

---

The IDs that do exist on Pi/Stellar — and what each identifies

| Identifier | Form | Identifies | |—|—|—| | Account ID | G... | an account — not a coin | | Muxed Account ID | M... | a user inside a pooled account — not a coin | | Contract ID | C... | a smart contract | | Transaction Hash | txid | a transaction | | Operation ID | number | an operation | | Claimable Balance ID | 0000... | a locked balance container — not a coin | | Ledger Sequence | number | a ledger (block) |

⚠️ None of them is “a π unit ID”.

---

A common conflation

People merge three completely different things:

1. Coin ID — exists only in a UTXO model. ← Not present in Pi.
2. Account ID (G/M) — tells you who, not where the coin came from.
3. Transaction ID (txid) — tells you which operation, not the origin of the units.

---

Why it wouldn’t help even if it existed

• In Bitcoin (a UTXO model) each output has a txid:vout — yet chain analysis is probabilistic and limited, because outputs get merged and split.
• In Pi (a balance model) the concept doesn’t exist at all: the moment you receive π, the amount merges into your balance as one number. There is no way to track “which π” you sent.

---

Conclusion

• ✅ True: every account has an ID (G), and every transaction has an ID (txid).
• ❌ False: every micro-π unit has an ID. No such thing exists.
• Result: fungibility holds — a single native asset, with no origin and no tag.

---

Sources

• Stellar — Accounts (balance model + native asset with no issuer): https://developers.stellar.org/docs/learn/fundamentals/stellar-data-structures/accounts
• UTXO vs Account model: https://www.alchemy.com/docs/utxo-vs-account-models https://bitcoin.stackexchange.com/questions/49853/utxo-model-vs-account-balance-model
• Live test: examples/coin-id-check.mjs