This article is an SEO case study analyzing the potential causes of a Google manual penalty (estimated at 80%) and algorithmic changes (estimated at 20%) affecting the Cointelegraph website.
What Happened to Cointelegraph on Google?
In August 2025, the Cointelegraph website appeared to be deindexed by Google, resulting in a significant loss of organic traffic and ranking for keywords.
At the time of writing, even searches for its branded term, “Cointelegraph,” show limited or no visibility for the official website in Google’s search results.
Instead of the official domain, search results primarily surface Cointelegraph’s social media channels and third-party publications such as CoinDesk, indicating a severe loss of brand-level search visibility.
Based on industry observations, Cointelegraph has been alleged to have violated Google’s Site Reputation Abuse policy, which may have contributed to the deindexing and subsequent traffic decline.
Impact on Cointelegraph
From over 4 million monthly organic visits to approximately 75,000, one of the largest and most established crypto news sites experienced a significant decline in Google organic traffic.
Using online SEO tools such as Semrush, Ahrefs, and SimilarWeb to analyze organic traffic and keyword rankings, we can clearly observe a sharp decline in both traffic and ranked keywords starting in August 2025.
SEO & GEO Note:
As shown by Ahrefs’ AI Citations data, Cointelegraph’s deindexing from Google’s search results has also significantly affected its AI citation visibility. This suggests that traditional SEO fundamentals remain the foundation for GEO or AI SEO, regardless of how these concepts are labeled.
Before we dive into the potential root causes and allegations or inferences drawn from multiple sources, let’s first take a brief look at what Cointelegraph is and how its business
Cointelegraph’s business and its role in the Crypto, Blockchain, and Web3 industry
Cointelegraph is one of the most established digital media platforms in the cryptocurrency, blockchain, and Web3 niche.
Founded in 2013, it serves as a global news source covering market developments, technological innovation, regulation, and adoption across the crypto ecosystem.
Beyond news reporting, Cointelegraph plays a broader role in shaping industry narratives, educating both retail and institutional audiences, and acting as a key information bridge between Web3 builders, investors, and the general public.
Potential Root Causes & Allegations
June 2025:
Cointelegraph launched casino, iGaming, and crypto betting directory sections. From a revenue perspective, expanding into high-commission verticals is understandable.
July–August 2025:
These sections were populated with low-quality content linking to little-known gambling websites, some of which appeared to have little or no domain authority.
The site also published articles related to casino reviews, betting, and gambling platforms, including content such as “Best Casino Apps in 2025” and “Top US Casino Apps.”
September 2025:
Google rolled out a Spam Update that explicitly targeted scaled content and site reputation abuse.
One of the stated principles of this update was that publishers should not leverage established authority to promote low-quality or highly commercial content that is not a genuine part of their editorial purpose.
Google Manual Penalty?
October 2025:
Cointelegraph’s search visibility began to decline sharply, accompanied by a significant drop in organic traffic.
The official domain showed limited visibility in Google search results, including for branded queries. This pattern suggests the possible impact of both a manual action and algorithmic adjustments.
Post-update impact: Ahrefs and Semrush data show a sharp decline in Cointelegraph’s organic traffic following the Spam Update.
Aftermath:
Cointelegraph appears to have initiated a cleanup process. The /casino, /crypto-betting, and /igaming directories were removed and redirected to the homepage, based on archival records from the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine.
Conclusion:
What SEO Professionals can learn from this case study
This case study offers an important lesson for the crypto niche, particularly for trusted brands and high-authority websites that attempt to leverage their credibility in unrelated or high-risk sectors. The Cointelegraph case illustrates how even well-established media outlets can become vulnerable when editorial direction drifts away from core expertise.
A sharp drop in search visibility does not necessarily mean a complete shutdown. Cointelegraph remains an active brand; however, its presence in Google’s organic search results, especially for broad queries, has been significantly reduced.
Lesson #1: Stay omnichannel
The case also highlights the importance of an omnichannel strategy. As organic search visibility declines, users increasingly engage with Cointelegraph through direct visits, social media platforms (such as X, LinkedIn, and Instagram), mobile applications, and newsletters. Brands must recognize that reliance on a single traffic channel introduces platform-specific risks.
Lesson #2: YMYL Reminder
For YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) niches, such as finance (including crypto), legal, health, pharmaceuticals, and medicine, content quality standards are especially strict. SEO practitioners must be cautious with wording and avoid misleading claims, exaggeration, over-promotion, low-quality content, and spam-like practices.
Lesson #3: Play by its rules
Ultimately, one of Google’s core principles is to provide users with the most trustworthy and helpful content. Aligning with this principle is essential. For SEO specialists and content writers whose businesses depend heavily on organic search, this case serves as a clear reminder: if your business relies on Google, it is critical to operate within its guidelines.
What is YMYL (Your Money or Your Life)?
YMYL refers to content that can directly impact a person’s financial stability, health, safety, or well-being. Because mistakes in these areas can cause real-world harm, Google applies much stricter quality and trust standards to YMYL pages.
Common YMYL categories include:
💰 Finance & investments (including crypto)
⚖️ Legal advice
🏥 Health, medical, and drug-related topics
🏦 Banking, loans, and insurance
📰 Major news and public safety information
Why it matters for SEO:
YMYL content must demonstrate high accuracy, expertise, and trustworthiness. Low-quality, misleading, or overly promotional content in these niches is more likely to be penalized or lose visibility in search results.
What is Site Reputation Abuse?
Site reputation abuse occurs when third-party content is published on a website primarily to take advantage of the host site’s established authority and ranking signals. Instead of earning visibility on its own merits, this content relies on the host site’s reputation to rank higher in search results than it otherwise would.
Why it matters:
Google considers this practice problematic when the content is low-quality, overly commercial, or unrelated to the site’s core editorial purpose, as it can mislead users and undermine search quality.
References/ Sources:
- Crypto News: Cointelegraph’s traffic was destroyed by Google’s algorithm, and crypto media is in trouble | Opinion
- Cryptorank .io: Cointelegraph Traffic Collapse Sparks Industry Debate
- Good Money Guide .com: Why was Cointelegraph banned from Google?
- Edward Sturm (YouTube): Why Google Erased Cointelegraph Overnight
- Pere Monguio Montells (LinkedIn Post)
- The Holy Coins:
CoinTelegraph Traffic Drop and iGaming Section Removal Suggest a Possible Manual Google Penalty