Melker Bengtsson
TL;DR
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CoinDesk reported Cointelegraph is up for sale, citing an anonymous source. Cointelegraph responded within hours: they're not for sale.
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Cointelegraph had over 12 million monthly visits in December 2024, just 700,000 as of September 1.
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A Google manual penalty in October last year saw their organic traffic disappear overnight, with SEO experts pointing to site reputation abuse.
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A competitor citing an anonymous source is no evidence of a sale, and their factual slip puts credibility further into question.
CoinDesk reported yesterday that Cointelegraph is up for sale. The source was anonymous and there was no timeline, amount or bidders named. Cointelegraph responded to the article on X within hours, and the message was clear: they’re not for sale.
To @CoinDesk's publisher and editorial leadership, We are not for sale. Your article is based on false information and contains multiple factual errors. We welcome scrutiny, but we will not stay silent when speculation is presented as fact. If manufacturing controversy is your strategy for attracting readers, selling events, or keeping your business afloat, that says more about your business model than it does about ours. Whatever commercial pressures you face, they are not an excuse to mislead your audience. Your readers deserve journalism, not manufactured drama designed to generate a few more clicks. To the publisher specifically: you are responsible for the standards of the publication you operate. Are you building a credible source of information, or simply rewarding whatever produces the most sensational headline? Publishing a story that attracts attention is not an achievement when the underlying facts are wrong. Correct the record, clearly acknowledge the errors, and give the correction the same visibility you gave the original claims. Do not quietly change the wording and pretend the original reporting was sound. Credibility is earned through accuracy and accountability, not sensationalism. Your readers deserve better, and your publisher should demand better.
— Cointelegraph (@Cointelegraph) October 8, 2026
From 12 Million Visits to 700,000
What wasn’t disputed in the post by Cointelegraph: they’ve had a rough time lately. Back in December of 2024 the news site had over 12 million monthly visits, according to Similarweb. As of September 1, according to the same source, they had just 700,000.
Cointelegraph was punished by Google in October last year, something called a manual penalty, which saw their organic traffic from Google disappear overnight. SEO experts have argued that the reason for the manual penalty was something called “site reputation abuse,” a theory strengthened by the fact that between October 7th and 12th, in the days after the assumed manual penalty, the publisher removed their entire archive of iGaming and casino articles.
Additionally, a pretty flat market has meant that traffic to crypto media overall has been down significantly. Outset Media Index has calculated that traffic to crypto media was down around 33% in 2025, from 105.9 million visits in January, to 70.8 million in December.
So, there’s no doubt that the former behemoth has been through some tough times.
CoinDesk Adds a Note, Not a Correction
Since the X post by Cointelegraph, CoinDesk has updated their article, adding a note about the denial. Since 2023, CoinDesk has been owned by Peter Thiel-backed crypto exchange Bullish. It was bought for around $75 million, after their parent company put it up for sale. The motives behind publishing the article were questioned by the X post.
Cointelegraph has not said which errors it means, but Cryptowisser found at least one: Cointelegraph was not last acquired back in 2022. Their MENA franchise, however, was sold to Dubai-based Luna Media Corporation.
A competitor citing an anonymous source is no evidence that the company is up for sale, and their factual slip puts credibility even more into question for this piece in particular.
However, if this wasn’t a cheap stab at a competitor from CoinDesk, and a sale was on the table, it’d be something of a turnaround case. Although Cointelegraph is now back on Google, they’re a long way from where they were back in the beginning of 2025.
