Pricing and hedging of financial derivatives using a posteriori error estimates and adaptive methods for stochastic differential equations

The efficient and accurate calculation of sensitivities of the price of financial derivatives with respect to perturbations of the parameters in the underlying model, the so-called ‘Greeks’, remains a great practical challenge in the derivative industry. This is true regardless of whether methods for partial differential equations or stochastic differential equations (Monte Carlo techniques) are being used. The computation of the ‘Greeks’ is essential to risk management and to the hedging of financial derivatives and typically requires substantially more computing time as compared to simply pricing the derivatives. Any numerical algorithm (Monte Carlo algorithm) for stochastic differential equations produces a time-discretization error and a statistical error in the process of pricing financial derivatives and calculating the associated ‘Greeks’. In this article we show how a posteriori error estimates and adaptive methods for stochastic differential equations can be used to control both these errors in the context of pricing and hedging of financial derivatives. In particular, we derive expansions, with leading order terms which are computable in a posteriori form, of the time-discretization errors for the price and the associated ‘Greeks’. These expansions allow the user to simultaneously first control the time-discretization errors in an adaptive fashion, when calculating the price, sensitivities and hedging parameters with respect to a large number of parameters, and then subsequently to ensure that the total errors are, with prescribed probability, within tolerance.     

Future pricing through homogeneous semi‐Markov processes

An Erratum for this article has been published in Applied Stochastic Models in Business and Industry 2005; (in press) This paper presents a future pricing model based on the discrete time homogeneous semi‐Markov process (DTHSMP). The model is adapted to the real data of the Italian primary future stock index. After showing the pricing model, the DTHSMP solution is given. The solution of the semi‐Markov process gives, for each period of the considered horizon time, and for each starting state, the probability distribution of the future price. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Pricing Volatility Swaps Under Heston's Stochastic Volatility Model with Regime Switching

A model is developed for pricing volatility derivatives, such as variance swaps and volatility swaps under a continuous‐time Markov‐modulated version of the stochastic volatility (SV) model developed by Heston. In particular, it is supposed that the parameters of this version of Heston's SV model depend on the states of a continuous‐time observable Markov chain process, which can be interpreted as the states of an observable macroeconomic factor. The market considered is incomplete in general, and hence, there is more than one equivalent martingale pricing measure. The regime switching Esscher transform used by Elliott et al. is adopted to determine a martingale pricing measure for the valuation of variance and volatility swaps in this incomplete market. Both probabilistic and partial differential equation (PDE) approaches are considered for the valuation of volatility derivatives.     

股票价格遵循几何分式Brown运动的期权定价

讨论了股票价格过程遵循几何分式B row n运动的欧式期权定价.由于该过程存在套利机会使得传统的期权定价方法(如资本资产定价模型(CAPM),套利定价模型(APT),动态均衡定价理论(DEPT))不可能对该期权定价.利用保险精算定价法,在对市场无其它任何假设条件下,获得了欧式期权的定价公式.并讨论了在有效期内股票支付已知红利和红利率的推广公式.     

基于不确定理论的风险中性测度及其在欧式期权定价中的应用

首先运用不确定理论推导了相应的不确定风险中性测度,修正了已有文献中涨跌期权不满足无套利原则的问题.然后将所得的风险中性测度用于欧式看涨和看跌期权的定价,并验证了涨跌期权价格之间的平价关系.最后研究了一类利差期权的定价问题,结合定义的风险中性测度给出了期权的定价公式.所推导的不确定风险中性测度与经典的无套利原则相吻合,而且考虑到了问题描述过程中存在的不精确性,弥补了单纯依赖随机理论的不足,可广泛地应用于金融衍生品的定价过程,为投资分析提供一定的理论依据.     

Asymptotic asset pricing and bubbles

We define the concept of asymptotic superreplication, and prove a duality principle of asset pricing for sequences of financial markets (e.g., weakly converging financial markets and large financial markets) based on contiguous sequences of equivalent local martingale measures. This provides a pricing mechanism to calculate the fundamental value of a financial asset in the asymptotic market. We introduce the notion of asymptotic bubbles by showing that this fundamental value can be strictly lower than the current price of the asset. In the case of weakly converging markets, we show that this fundamental value is equal to an expectation of the terminal value of the asset in the weak-limit market. From a practical perspective, we relate the asymptotic superreplication price to a limit of quantile-hedging prices. This shows that even when a price process is a true martingale, it can have properties similar to a bubble, up to a set of small probability. For practical applications, we give examples of weakly converging discrete-time models (e.g. some GARCH models) and large financial models that present bubbles.     

Pricing Catastrophe Options with Stochastic Interest Rates and Compound Poisson Losses

In this paper, we present an approach of changing probability measures associated with numeraire changes to the pricing of catastrophe event (CAT) derivatives. We assume that the underlying asset and a discounted zero-coupon bond follow a stochastic process, respectively. We obtain explicit closed form formulae that permit the interest rate to be random. We shall see that sometimes it is convenient to change the numeraire because of modeling considerations as well. Furthermore, we show that, for compound Poisson losses, sometimes a continuum of jump sizes can be replaced by finitely many jump sizes. Therefore, sometimes we can explore further applications of the closed-form formulae beyond the case that the compound Poisson losses are finitely many jump sizes. Finally, numerical experiments demonstrate how financial risks and catastrophic risks affect the price of double trigger put option.     

基于模糊Black-Scholes模型的螺纹钢期权定价

能源金融和大宗商品的衍生品交易已逐渐成为金融领域的前沿热点问题。钢铁类金融衍生品定价和能源金融风险研究,对能源资产证券化和金融的发展有着重要意义。本文在现有的期权定价模型下,结合影响螺纹钢实物期权价格的因素,优化经典的Black-Scholes实物期权定价模型,得到螺纹钢模糊B-S实物期权定价模型,并结合VaR方法,研究螺纹钢实物期权的定价机制,量化钢铁类金融风险,从而合理的控制风险传播。     

股票价格服从指数O-U过程的再装期权定价

期权及其定价理论是目前金融管理,金融工程研究的前沿与热点问题.本文在标的资产的价格服从指数O-U过和模型假设下,运用G irsanov定理获得了该过程的唯一等价鞅测度.用期权定价的鞅方法,得出了再装期权的定价公式.     

A numerical algorithm for pricing electricity derivatives for jump-diffusion processes based on continuous time lattices

We present a numerical algorithm for pricing derivatives on electricity prices. The algorithm is based on approximating the generator of the underlying price process on a lattice of prices, resulting in an approximation of the stochastic process by a continuous time Markov chain. We numerically study the rate of convergence of the algorithm for the case of the Merton jump-diffusion model and apply the algorithm to calculate prices and sensitivities of both European and Bermudan electricity derivatives when the underlying price follows a stochastic process which exhibits both fast mean-reversion and jumps of large magnitude.     

马尔科夫调节风险模型下的最优投资策略:最大化终端效用

本文用跳-扩散模型模拟保险公司的盈余过程,并允许该盈余在由1个无风险资产和N个风险资产组成的金融市场上进行投资.盈余过程和资产价格过程模型中的参数皆受到一个可观察的有限状态连续马尔科夫过程的影响.为了最大化终端效用,我们寻找最优的投资策略,借助HJB方程等工具问题得到解决.当公司的效用函数为指数型时,我们给出了最优投资策略与其对应的值函数的显示表达式,以及相关的经济解释.Browne (1995)和Yang和Zhang (2005)的一些结论得到推广.     

Pricing derivatives in a regime switching market with time inhomogenous volatility

This paper studies pricing derivatives in a componentwise semi-Markov (CSM) modulated market. We consider a financial market where the asset price dynamics follows a regime switching geometric Brownian motion model in which the coefficients depend on finitely many age-dependent semi-Markov processes. We further allow the volatility coefficient to depend on time explicitly. Under these market assumptions, we study locally risk minimizing pricing of a class of European options. It is shown that the price function can be obtained by solving a non-local Black–Scholes–Merton-type PDE. We establish existence and uniqueness of a classical solution to the Cauchy problem. We also find another characterization of price function via a system of Volterra integral equation of second kind. This alternative representation leads to computationally efficient methods for finding price and hedging. An explicit expression of quadratic residual risk is also obtained.     

Numerical methods for backward Markov chain driven Black-Scholes option pricing

The drift, the risk-free interest rate, and the volatility change over time horizon in realistic financial world. These frustrations break the necessary assumptions in the Black-Scholes model (BSM) in which all parameters are assumed to be constant. To better model the real markets, a modified BSM is proposed for numerically evaluating options price-changeable parameters are allowed through the backward Markov regime switching. The method of fundamental solutions (MFS) is applied to solve the modified model and price a given option. A series of numerical simulations are provided to illustrate the effect of the changing market on option pricing.     

Utility-based indifference pricing in regime-switching models

In this paper, we study utility-based indifference pricing and hedging of a contingent claim in a continuous-time, Markov, regime-switching model. The market in this model is incomplete, so there is more than one price kernel. We specify the parametric form of price kernels so that both market risk and economic risk are taken into account. The pricing and hedging problem is formulated as a stochastic optimal control problem and is discussed using the dynamic programming approach. A verification theorem for the Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman (HJB) solution to the problem is given. An issuer’s price kernel is obtained from a solution of a system of linear programming problems and an optimal hedged portfolio is determined.     

基于分数O-U随机过程的新型亚式期权的定价

本文运用衍生证券理论的最基本原理(△对冲和无套利原理),研究了一种新型亚式期权的定价问题,该类型期权因具有常数平均值久期而不同于标准化情形.假设标的资产(气温)由分数Ornstein-Uhlenbeck过程驱动,这样假设对天气衍生品来说是合理的.本文得到了这种新型亚式期权的动态定价方程.     

An efficient and accurate lattice for pricing derivatives under a jump-diffusion process

Derivatives are popular financial instruments whose values depend on other more fundamental financial assets (called the underlying assets). As they play essential roles in financial markets, evaluating them efficiently and accurately is critical. Most derivatives have no simple valuation formulas; as a result, they must be priced by numerical methods such as lattice methods. In a lattice, the prices of the derivatives converge to theoretical values when the number of time steps increases. Unfortunately, the nonlinearity error introduced by the nonlinearity of the option value function may cause the pricing results to converge slowly or even oscillate significantly. The lognormal diffusion process, which has been widely used to model the underlying asset’s price dynamics, does not capture the empirical findings satisfactorily. Therefore, many alternative processes have been proposed, and a very popular one is the jump-diffusion process. This paper proposes an accurate and efficient lattice for the jump-diffusion process. Our lattice is accurate because its structure can suit the derivatives’ specifications so that the pricing results converge smoothly. To our knowledge, no other lattices for the jump-diffusion process have successfully solved the oscillation problem. In addition, the time complexity of our lattice is lower than those of existing lattice methods by at least half an order. Numerous numerical calculations confirm the superior performance of our lattice to existing methods in terms of accuracy, speed, and generality.     

一般均衡下基于产品市场和资本市场的单名CDS定价

次贷危机呼吁新的信用衍生品定价模型, 因此为存在产品市场和资本市场的经济结构建立一般均衡的单名CDS定价模型, 使用最优化求解一般均衡下的商品价格和CDS价格. 可以发现一般均衡的CDS定价具有资本市场和产品市场的因素, 这表示CDS的价格不再是由单纯的资本市场因素决定的, 而是由无风险利率、资本产出弹性、违约率、回收率同时决定的. 通过数量约束用模拟的方式研究多个均衡的动态变化, 发现违约风险的增加使得价格剧烈波动且市场交易萎缩. 在为以中国工商银行为参考资产的CDS定价过程中, 发现各种因素在不同的时期都可能成为定价的主要影响因素. 可以发现, 次贷危机的定价体系存在着信用调整问题和定价与实体经济脱节的问题. 可以认为, 一般均衡下基于产品市场和资本市场的单名CDS定价可以囊括多个市场的交叉影响, 为衍生品定价提供一个新的方向.     

Pricing a Nontradeable Asset and Its Derivatives

This paper extends the Black-Scholes methodology to payoffs that are functions of a stochastically varying variable that can be observed but not traded. The stochastic price process proposed in this paper satisfies a partial differential equation that is an extension of the Black-Scholes equation. The resulting price process is based on projection onto the marketed space, and it is universal in the sense that all risk-averse investors will find that, when priced according to the process, the asset cannot improve portfolio performance relative to other assets in the market. The development of the equation and its properties is facilitated by the introduction of an operational calculus for pricing. The results can be put in risk-neutral form. Perfect replication is not generally possible for these derivatives, but the approximation of minimum expected squared error is determined by another partial differential equation.     

波动率服从有限的马尔可夫过程的期权定价

通过对服从有限马儿可夫过程的标的资产价格波动率进行分析,得出了在未来时刻波动的预测模型,并给出了相应的期权定价方法。     

Pricing exotic derivatives exploiting structure

In this paper we introduce a new fast and accurate numerical method for pricing exotic derivatives when discrete monitoring occurs, and the underlying evolves according to a Markov one-dimensional stochastic processes. The approach exploits the structure of the matrix arising from the numerical quadrature of the pricing backward formulas to devise a convenient factorization that helps greatly in the speed-up of the recursion. The algorithm is general and is examined in detail with reference to the CEV (Constant Elasticity of Variance) process for pricing different exotic derivatives, such as Asian, barrier, Bermudan, lookback and step options for which up to date no efficient procedures are available. Extensive numerical experiments confirm the theoretical results. The MATLAB code used to perform the computation is available online at http://www1.mate.polimi.it/∼marazzina/BP.htm.