Ethereum (ETH) has wiped out its May gains, sliding nearly 10% in the past week as crude oil climbs toward $111 a barrel.

Tom Lee Pins ETH Slump On Oil

The second-largest cryptocurrency hit an intraday low of $2,097 on Binance Sunday, its weakest print since Apr. 7, before recovering modestly toward $2,116.

BitMine chairman Tom Lee says the culprit is crude.

In a post on X, Lee said Ethereum's inverse correlation with oil has reached its highest level on record, calling the move in crude the dominant force weighing on ETH in recent sessions.

Brent traded near $111 a barrel Monday, up roughly 16.4% over the past month amid US-Iran tensions and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Also Read: XRP ETFs Hit Record $1.39B But Token Loses 4th Spot To BNB

Tokenization And AI Drive Lee's Bull Case

Lee dismissed the latest weakness as short-term tactical noise. He argues the structural drivers behind Ether remain intact and an oil reversal would unlock the next leg higher.

The Fundstrat co-founder highlighted tokenization and agentic AI as the bigger forces shaping Ethereum's trajectory through 2026, themes he has repeated across his recent ETH forecasts.

Earlier this month, Lee projected ETH could reach $9,000 to $12,000 by year-end, a target requiring a gain of roughly 415% from current levels.

Ethereum Price Action Through May

Ether opened May above $2,300 and pushed toward $2,425 in the first week, before sliding every session into the weekly close. The token bled to roughly $2,250 on May 13, its worst weekly performance since April.

Selling accelerated on Sunday, when ETH broke below $2,200 and tagged the $2,097 low. The slide has dragged Ether to a 10-month low against Bitcoin, with on-chain data showing 500,000 tokens moved to exchanges last week.

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