If Vitalik got hit by a bus tomorrow Ether price would drop 95%. A currency does not need a leader who directs it. Also it should be very difficult to make changes to a 150 Billion $ currency.
A platform that isn't finished needs a leader, and I would say Ethereum needs a leader a lot more than Bitcoin. If all development on Bitcoin would stop tomorrow, it would still keep running and have a potential future as digital gold. If all development on Ethereum would stop tomorrow, it would most likely fail as a project. The value proposition is very different.
Also, since oil isn't very useful without something to use it in (a car, plane, other use cases), it actually makes perfect sense (to me).
ETH could very well also become a functional currency once the supply gets capped in a future hard fork. But for now, it's more oil than currency.
This could be some central bank for example.
Between ETH and BTC I think ETH has a better shot at being at the core of that, unless the Bus accident actually happens.
[1] https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2017/09/28/sp092917-cen...
[2] And break through means: I can realistically get rid of my Visa card and use blockchain tech for day to day transactions at many stores.