We introduce a model in which a regulator employs mechanism design to embed her human capital beta signal(s) in a firm’s capital structure. This can enhance her compensation at the firm, and the value of her contract with the firm in the form of an executive stock option. We prove that the...

The purpose of this expository article is to present a self-contained overview of some results on the characterization of the optimal value function of a stochastic target problem as (discontinuous) viscosity solution of a certain dynamic programming PDE and its application to the problem of...

In [4], the authors introduced a Markov copula model of portfolio credit risk. This model solves the top-down versus bottom-up puzzle in achieving efficient joint calibration to single-name CDS and to multi-name CDO tranches data. In [4], we studied a general model, that allows for stochastic...

To value non-transferable non-hedgeable (NTNH) contingent claims and price executive stock options (ESOs), we use a replication argument to translate portfolios with NTNH derivatives into portfolios of primary assets (only) with stochastic portfolio constraints. By identifying stochastic...

External barrier options are two-asset options where the payoff is defined on one asset and the barrier is defined on another asset. In this paper, we derive the Laplace transforms of the prices and deltas for the external single and double barrier options where the underlying asset prices...

Supported by several recent investigations the empirical pricing kernel paradox might be considered as a stylized fact. In Chabi-Yo et al. (2008) simulation studies have been presented which suggest that this paradox might be caused by regime switching of stock prices in financial markets....

A new successive over-relaxation method to compute the Black-Scholes implied volatility is introduced. Properties of the new method are fully analyzed, including global well-definedness, local convergence, as well as global convergence. Quadratic order of convergence is achieved by either a...

Security prices contain valuable information that can be used to make a wide variety of economic decisions. To extract this information, a model is required that relates market prices to the desired information, and that ideally can be implemented using timely and low-cost methods. The authors...

Supported by several recent investigations, the empirical pricing kernel (EPK) puzzle might be considered a stylized fact. Based on an economic model with state dependent preferences for the financial investors, we want to emphasize a microeconomic view that succeeds in explaining the puzzle. We...

We investigate the valuation and hedging of catastrophe options, whose claim arrival process is modeled by the Cox process or a doubly stochastic Poisson process. Employing the non-arbitrage principle we obtain closed form formula for the pricing of the option. Various hedging parameters are...