Bitcoin Follows Stock Markets Higher; How Long Will They Move in Lockstep?

Bitcoin climbed 8 percent and ether gained 6 percent.

Other notable performers include bitcoin SV up 11 percent, bitcoin cash in the green 8 percent and IOTA gaining 8 percent.

"I think we see equities much lower so it will be interesting to see if bitcoin follows," said Chris Thomas, head of digital assets at Swissquote Bank.

Bitcoin came under selling pressure late last week, not long after the U.S. markets closed at 20:00 UTC Friday.

Shortly after the Nikkei slid and rebounded, bitcoin began climbing, entering $6,300 territory by 12:00 UTC."Bitcoin is still largely correlated with financial markets overall it seems," said Jack Tan, founding partner of Taiwan-based crypto trading firm Kronos Research.

"And from what I can tell, we are still headed lower in stocks so bitcoin will presumably follow. Also since bitcoin is priced mostly in USD, I suspect the dollar rally is also adding some pressure."

As for precious metals, since March 27, gold prices have been in a consolidation pattern, a behavior cryptocurrencies exhibited late last week after hours, once the traditional markets closed.

It appears bitcoin is following traditional markets for the time being, despite advocates' long-running argument that it is a non-correlated asset that should not move in lockstep with the pack.

Traders remain on alert for news of record-breaking stimulus policies around the world that could stoke inflation, which theoretically should make bitcoin, with its predictable supply schedule, more attractive.

"Bitcoin rallied last week on inflationary fears in the U.S. It is the first time this year that it behaved as promised," said Max Boonen, CEO of B2C2, a London-based over-the-counter market maker.