CoinGecko Explores $500M Sale as Crypto M&A Accelerates

Source: CoinEdition Original Title: CoinGecko Explores $500M Sale as Crypto M&A Accelerates Original Link:

• CoinGecko has started a sale process targeting a valuation of $500 million.
• The move comes as crypto M&A hit $8.6 billion in 2025.
• Traffic has fallen sharply as users increasingly source price data from AI tools.

CoinGecko is exploring a sale at a valuation close to $500 million, according to people familiar with the matter. The process began in late 2025. Investment bank Moelis has been hired to advise on the transaction.

Interestingly, discussions remain private, and no final valuation has been set. CoinGecko has not made a public statement.

The timing is not random. Crypto mergers and acquisitions accelerated hard over the past year. Large firms are buying data, trading, and infrastructure platforms to gain scale and lock in users.

M&A Surge Sets The Price Range

Crypto deal activity reached about $8.6 billion in 2025, with 133 completed transactions. That figure is higher than the combined total of the previous four years. The increase came from larger deal sizes, not just more deals.

Recently, a certain head tier exchange agreed to acquire Deribit for $2.9 billion. Another major exchange paid $1.5 billion for NinjaTrader. Smaller acquisitions across data, payments, and infrastructure followed.

These deals show buyers are willing to pay large amounts for platforms with strong brand reach and existing users.

CoinMarketCap provides the closest comparison. A certain head tier exchange acquired the CoinGecko rival in 2020 for a reported price of up to $400 million, partly paid in tokens. A $500 million figure for CoinGecko places it above the CoinMarketCap deal, but still within range, given inflation and market growth.

Traffic Decline Changes Leverage

On the other hand, user traffic has dropped sharply. CoinGecko monthly visits fell to about 18.5 million in December 2025. In 2024, that figure was near 43.5 million. CoinMarketCap saw a similar trend, with traffic down to roughly 64 million from about 157 million a year earlier.

The cause is clear. Traders and casual users now pull prices, charts, and token data directly from AI chat tools. This cuts page views and weakens ad revenue. For independent data sites, scale matters more than ever. Selling into a consolidating market reduces long-term risk.