Scenario: dollar-cost averaging through a dip and recovery
Riley buys $250 of a token every month for a year with a 0.5% fee per purchase. Over the year the price falls from $60,000 to $30,000 and then recovers to $60,000 (an illustrative path, not a forecast).

The assumptions
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Purchases | 12 × $250, 0.5% fee each |
| Price path | $60,000 → $30,000 → $60,000 (illustrative) |
Step by step
- Units bought. Riley ends with 0.067179 units for $3,000 invested.
- Average cost. The average cost is $44,656.84 per unit, below the $60,000 start and end price, because more units were bought when the price was low.
- Result. At the final $60,000 the holding is worth $4,030.74 (34.4%). Investing all $3,000 at the start would be worth $2,985.00.
- Fees. Twelve purchases paid $15.00 in fees.
Questions people ask
Does DCA work on a falling market that never recovers?
It lowers your average cost, but the holding is still worth less than you put in if the price ends lower.
Names, rates and prices in this scenario are illustrative and computed for education. They aren't forecasts, quotes or recommendations.
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