Indifference Pricing and Hedging in a Multiple-Priors Model with Trading Constraints

This paper considers utility indifference valuation of derivatives under model uncertainty and trading constraints, where the utility is formulated as an additive stochastic differential utility of both intertemporal consumption and terminal wealth, and the uncertain prospects are ranked according to a multiple-priors model of Chen and Epstein (2002). The price is determined by two optimal stochastic control problems (mixed with optimal stopping time in the case of American option) of forward-backward stochastic differential equations. By means of backward stochastic differential equation and partial differential equation methods, we show that both bid and ask prices are closely related to the Black-Scholes risk-neutral price with modified dividend rates. The two prices will actually coincide with each other if there is no trading constraint or the model uncertainty disappears. Finally, two applications to European option and American option are discussed.Comment: 28 pages in Science China Mathematics, 201

Optimization of Trading Physics Models of Markets

We describe an end-to-end real-time S&P futures trading system. Inner-shell stochastic nonlinear dynamic models are developed, and Canonical Momenta Indicators (CMI) are derived from a fitted Lagrangian used by outer-shell trading models dependent on these indicators. Recursive and adaptive optimization using Adaptive Simulated Annealing (ASA) is used for fitting parameters shared across these shells of dynamic and trading models

Self-Evaluation Applied Mathematics 2003-2008 University of Twente

This report contains the self-study for the research assessment of the Department of Applied Mathematics (AM) of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science (EEMCS) at the University of Twente (UT). The report provides the information for the Research Assessment Committee for Applied Mathematics, dealing with mathematical sciences at the three universities of technology in the Netherlands. It describes the state of affairs pertaining to the period 1 January 2003 to 31 December 2008

Stock loan with Automatic termination clause, cap and margin

This paper works out fair values of stock loan model with automatic termination clause, cap and margin. This stock loan is treated as a generalized perpetual American option with possibly negative interest rate and some constraints. Since it helps a bank to control the risk, the banks charge less service fees compared to stock loans without any constraints. The automatic termination clause, cap and margin are in fact a stop order set by the bank. Mathematically, it is a kind of optimal stopping problems arising from the pricing of financial products which is first revealed. We aim at establishing explicitly the value of such a loan and ranges of fair values of key parameters : this loan size, interest rate, cap, margin and fee for providing such a service and quantity of this automatic termination clause and relationships among these parameters as well as the optimal exercise times. We present numerical results and make analysis about the model parameters and how they impact on value of stock loan.Comment: 30 pages, 7 figure

Multiple Disorder Problems for Wiener and Compound Poisson Processes With Exponential Jumps

The multiple disorder problem consists of finding a sequence of stopping times which are as close as possible to the (unknown) times of "disorder" when the distribution of an observed process changes its probability characteristics. We present a formulation and solution of the multiple disorder problem for a Wiener and a compound Poisson process with exponential jumps. The method of proof is based on reducing the initial optimal switching problems to the corresponding coupled optimal stopping problems and solving the equivalent coupled free-boundary problems by means of the smooth- and continuous-fit conditions.Multiple disorder problem, Wiener process, compound Poisson process, optimal switching, coupled optimal stopping problem, (integro-differential) coupled free-boundary problem, smooth and continuous fit, Ito-Tanaka-Meyer formula.

Executive stock option exercise with full and partial information on a drift change point

We analyse the optimal exercise of an executive stock option (ESO) written on a stock whose drift parameter falls to a lower value at a change point, an exponentially distributed random time independent of the Brownian motion driving the stock. Two agents, who do not trade the stock, have differing information on the change point, and seek to optimally exercise the option by maximising its discounted payoff under the physical measure. The first agent has full information, and observes the change point. The second agent has partial information and filters the change point from price observations. This scenario is designed to mimic the positions of two employees of varying seniority, a fully informed executive and a partially informed less senior employee, each of whom receives an ESO. The partial information scenario yields a model under the observation filtration $\widehat{\mathbb{F}}$ in which the stock drift becomes a diffusion driven by the innovations process, an $\widehat{\mathbb{F}}$-Brownian motion also driving the stock under $\widehat{\mathbb{F}}$, and the partial information optimal stopping value function has two spatial dimensions. We rigorously characterise the free boundary PDEs for both agents, establish shape and regularity properties of the associated optimal exercise boundaries, and prove the smooth pasting property in both information scenarios, exploiting some stochastic flow ideas to do so in the partial information case. We develop finite difference algorithms to numerically solve both agents' exercise and valuation problems and illustrate that the additional information of the fully informed agent can result in exercise patterns which exploit the information on the change point, lending credence to empirical studies which suggest that privileged information of bad news is a factor leading to early exercise of ESOs prior to poor stock price performance.Comment: 48 pages, final version, accepted for publication in SIAM Journal on Financial Mathematic