# CoinTelegraph Got DESTROYED by Casino SEO Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HOCYH0Du50 Recap page: https://rapidrecap.app/video/8HOCYH0Du50 Generated: 2026-01-07T19:32:52.743+00:00 --- ## Quick Overview The presenter showcases how a high Domain Rating (DR) casino affiliate site, CoinTelegraph, was effectively dismantled by a competitor, Finixio, who used a strategy involving aggressive niche edits, high-CTR placements, and low-competition keywords, resulting in the original site's traffic plummeting, as evidenced by dramatic drops in organic traffic charts shown via SEMrush data. **Key Points:** - The site CoinTelegraph, which was a high DR89 casino affiliate site, was 'clapped' (destroyed) by competitor actions. - The competitor's strategy involved obtaining numerous niche edits (links from existing, relevant articles) and using low-competition keywords, many related to 'crypto' or 'casino' in Dutch and English. - SEMrush data for CoinTelegraph showed a massive decline in organic traffic, with the traffic graph showing a sharp drop after September 2023. - The competitor, Finixio, appears to have redirected many of these links to their own sites, such as store.micgadget.com, which subsequently ranked well for keywords CoinTelegraph previously targeted. - The speaker noted that the competitor's links often involved redirects or pointed to specific subdirectories, like a crypto betting subdirectory on CoinTelegraph, indicating highly targeted link acquisition. - The strategy utilized by the competitor included an aggressive amount of link placements, likely through paid guest posts or niche edits, leading to massive CTR gains and ranking improvements for Finixio's associated sites. ![Screenshot at 2:16: The presenter shows the drop in organic traffic for the targeted domain \(CoinTelegraph\) on SEMrush, illustrating the immediate and severe negative impact of the competitor's actions.](https://ss.rapidrecap.app/screens/8HOCYH0Du50/00-02-16.jpg) **Context:** The video features a discussion by a digital marketing or SEO professional, wearing a LocalRank hat, analyzing a competitor's aggressive SEO campaign against a major affiliate site, CoinTelegraph, within the casino niche. The analysis relies heavily on displaying SEMrush data for the targeted domain, illustrating the impact of these external link-building tactics on organic visibility and traffic. ## Detailed Analysis The presenter walks through the downfall of a high DR89 casino affiliate site, CoinTelegraph, after being targeted by a competitor, Finixio. The speaker suggests that Finixio used aggressive link building, specifically focusing on niche edits and exploiting low-competition keywords, which ultimately caused CoinTelegraph's organic traffic to crash. The analysis switches to SEMrush data for CoinTelegraph's domain (cointelegraph.com), showing a steep decline in organic traffic starting around September 2023 (2:21). The presenter then pulls up the backlink profile for CoinTelegraph, noting a high volume of links from niche edits, many of which were likely compromised or redirected to benefit the competitor's properties, such as store.micgadget.com (5:42). The competitor's strategy involved targeting specific subdirectories, like the crypto betting section, and using low-competition keywords in Dutch and English (4:21). The speaker points out that the competitor's sites gained significant traffic and ranked well for terms previously owned by CoinTelegraph, demonstrating a successful hostile takeover of keyword rankings through aggressive backlink acquisition (6:51). The presenter concludes that this aggressive link manipulation, involving many niche edits and high CTR placements, was incredibly effective and easy to execute against the compromised site. ### Initial Incident Analysis - Casino affiliate site CoinTelegraph got 'clapped' by a competitor's aggressive SEO strategy - The attack involved niche edits and low-competition keywords - Finixio is named as the likely perpetrator. ### SEMrush Traffic Analysis - Organic traffic for CoinTelegraph shows a dramatic decline starting around September 2023 - The traffic graph illustrates a sharp drop after a period of high performance (2:21). ### Backlink Profile Examination - The compromised site had a large number of niche edits, many of which were likely exploited for redirection - Competitor sites like store.micgadget.com saw traffic gains after the attack (5:42). ### Competitor Strategy Details - The competitor used a high volume of niche edits, often redirecting links to specific subdirectories like crypto betting - This strategy aimed at low-competition keywords was highly effective (6:51, 8:21). ### Conclusion and Takeaway - The success of this maneuver highlights the vulnerability of high DR sites to targeted link acquisition and manipulation campaigns - The speaker found the case study fascinating (7:08). ![Screenshot at 00:00: The presenter begins the video, wearing a LocalRank hat and speaking directly to the camera.](https://ss.rapidrecap.app/screens/8HOCYH0Du50/00-00-00.jpg) ![Screenshot at 01:38: A slide titled 'Build in Public References' is displayed, listing several past episodes and links, setting the context for the discussion.](https://ss.rapidrecap.app/screens/8HOCYH0Du50/00-01-38.jpg) ![Screenshot at 02:16: SEMrush overview dashboard is shown for a domain, displaying metrics like Organic Traffic and Keyword rankings, used to illustrate the impact of the SEO attack.](https://ss.rapidrecap.app/screens/8HOCYH0Du50/00-02-16.jpg) ![Screenshot at 03:43: A screenshot of the Finixio homepage, identified as the competitor agency responsible for the aggressive SEO tactics.](https://ss.rapidrecap.app/screens/8HOCYH0Du50/00-03-43.jpg) ![Screenshot at 05:03: The presenter shows a Dutch website \('Casino020'\) as an example of the type of affiliate site being discussed in the niche.](https://ss.rapidrecap.app/screens/8HOCYH0Du50/00-05-03.jpg)