Binance CEO Richard Teng stated on Friday that Bitcoin's sharp decline over the past month resulted from investor deleveraging and risk-off sentiment in the cryptocurrency market, a trend consistent with most major asset classes.

As the world's largest cryptocurrency, Bitcoin fell 21.2% in November, extending its three-month decline to 23.2%. Earlier in October, Bitcoin had reached an all-time high above $126,000.

Speaking at a roundtable in Sydney, Teng remarked, "Like any asset class, there are always different cycles and volatility. What you're seeing isn’t unique to cryptocurrency prices."

"At this point, there’s some risk-off sentiment, and deleveraging is also taking place."

Global markets faced a sell-off this week as investors grew uneasy about AI-driven valuation bubbles and the potential for a market correction. Even Nvidia's better-than-expected earnings failed to ease these concerns.

Teng noted that despite Bitcoin's price drop, its current level remains more than double that of 2024, when institutional players like BlackRock began launching crypto investments and products.

"Over the past year and a half, the crypto industry has performed exceptionally well, so profit-taking is unsurprising," Teng said. "Any consolidation is actually healthy for the industry, allowing it to stabilize and regain footing."

When asked whether Binance founder Changpeng Zhao would return to the exchange after being pardoned by former U.S. President Donald Trump in October, Teng declined to comment.