Bitcoin crashed 9% on Friday, falling in synch with a sharp fall for Wall Street stocks and then tumbling further at the start of the European session.
The largest cryptocurrency fell to $83,645 on Friday, having stood at just over $91,000 before US markets opened the day before and seemed to stabilise at $86,000 at the end of the US stock market session.
Bitcoin has fallen roughly 33% from its all-time peak just above $126,000, which it hit six weeks ago.
Analysts suggest a crypto crash may also force investors to liquidate other positions, such as their tech bets.
The fall hit listed major bitcoin holders, including Strategy Inc (NASDAQ:MSTR) (formerly Microstrategy), which fell 5% overnight, and MARA Holdings (formerly Marathon Digital), which dropped 7.75%.
London's pocket of bitcoin miners and bitcoin crypto treasury companies also suffered.
"As with any asset class, there are always different cycles and volatility," said Richard Teng, chief executive of Binance.
"What you're seeing is not only happening to crypto prices," he told media in Sydney, per Reuters. "At this point in time, there's a bit of risk (off) and deleveraging happening as well."
With bitcoin having surged from $23K in 2023 to the recent highs over the past year, with a strong performance by the wider crypto sector over the past year and a half, Teng said "it's not unexpected that people do take profit".
He further argued: "Any consolidation is actually healthy for the industry, for the industry to take a breather, find its feet."