New Research Suggests Bitcoin Accumulator Outperforms Dollar-Cost Averaging for Corporate Buyers

Corporate adoption of bitcoin is now a well-established trend, with many companies favoring classic buy-and-hold strategies similar to dollar-cost averaging (DCA). Yet new research indicates there may be a better alternative.

A recent study by crypto options market maker Orbit Markets has found that since 2023, DCA has underperformed a structured product called an “accumulator,” which is sometimes nicknamed “I Kill You Later” in traditional finance circles.

“Our backtest results show that the accumulator strategy outperformed DCA over the past 2.5-year period,” said Pulkit Goyal, head of trading at Orbit Markets. “Three-month accumulators delivered a 10% outperformance, while longer tenors did even better—six- and twelve-month accumulators outperformed by 13% and 26%, respectively.”

According to Goyal, accumulators offer a disciplined, cost-efficient method of accumulating crypto assets, making them a “natural fit for crypto treasury companies’ use cases.”

Both DCA and accumulators are designed to remove market timing from the equation. But while DCA spreads purchases evenly over time, the accumulator allows investors to acquire coins at a discounted rate under a more structured framework, often outperforming DCA during bullish markets.

Understanding the Accumulator

An accumulator is a time-based structured product linked to the price performance of an underlying asset, with an upside knock-out barrier that, if reached, ends the contract.

Here’s how it works:

• An investor commits to buying a set amount of an asset (like BTC) at a fixed, discounted strike price at regular intervals (daily or weekly) over a defined period.
• The structure continues unless terminated early because the spot price rises to the knock-out barrier.
• Crucially, the investor is obligated—not merely entitled—to buy at the strike price. If the asset’s market price falls below the strike, the investor must double their purchase at the same strike price, which could mean buying above market levels.

This risk of forced purchases at higher-than-market prices explains the “I Kill You Later” nickname—and why the product may not suit day traders or short-term speculators, nor consistently outperform DCA during bear markets.

Example: BTC Accumulator

Consider a three-month BTC accumulator where an investor agrees to purchase $1,000 worth of bitcoin weekly at a strike price of $94,500, with a knock-out barrier set at $115,000.

• The $94,500 strike is roughly 90% of bitcoin’s then-current spot price of $105,000.
• As long as BTC trades between $94,500 and $115,000, the investor continues accumulating at a discount.
• If BTC exceeds $115,000, the accumulator ends early.
• If BTC drops below $94,500, the investor must double their weekly purchase to $2,000 at the same strike price, potentially leading to losses if the market stays lower.

Backtest Results

Orbit Markets conducted a backtest of rolling three-month BTC accumulators from January 2023 to June 13, 2025. The findings were significant:

• The accumulator strategy produced an average BTC acquisition cost of $39,035, about 10% lower than the average $43,329 cost achieved via weekly DCA over the same period.
• Longer accumulators of six and twelve months performed even better, yielding average costs of $37,654 and $32,079, respectively—outperforming DCA by 13% and 26%.

While DCA remains popular among investors for its simplicity, the research suggests that, at least in recent bullish markets, the accumulator may offer corporate treasuries a more cost-effective way to accumulate bitcoin—provided they can stomach the risks involved.