Cointelegraph, a crypto media outlet established in 2013, is reportedly seeking a buyer. This follows a significant decline in its US web traffic, which dropped by approximately 82% during the second half of 2025.
Data shows that US visits fell from 6.03 million in September 2025 to 1.43 million in December 2025. At its peak in mid-2025, the site recorded between 5 and 8 million monthly visitors. The decline accelerated in October 2025, coinciding with the conclusion of a global Google Spam Update.
While the broader US crypto media sector experienced a traffic decrease of 27% to 34% during the same period, Cointelegraph faced a much steeper drop. Reports attribute the penalty to the use of blackhat SEO techniques and gambling-related affiliate marketing, though Google has not confirmed these specific reasons.
Jon Rice, who returned as editor-in-chief in August 2025, resigned on December 31, 2025, citing an existential threat to the business. By mid-2026, total visits remained in the hundreds of thousands, with organic search traffic from Google staying near zero despite signs of limited recovery in regional editions.
