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Pricing and calibration in the 4-factor path-dependent volatility model

Pricing and calibration in the 4-factor path-dependent volatility model ArXiv ID: 2406.02319 “View on arXiv” Authors: Unknown Abstract We consider the path-dependent volatility (PDV) model of Guyon and Lekeufack (2023), where the instantaneous volatility is a linear combination of a weighted sum of past returns and the square root of a weighted sum of past squared returns. We discuss the influence of an additional parameter that unlocks enough volatility on the upside to reproduce the implied volatility smiles of S&P 500 and VIX options. This PDV model, motivated by empirical studies, comes with computational challenges, especially in relation to VIX options pricing and calibration. We propose an accurate \emph{“pathwise”} neural network approximation of the VIX which leverages on the Markovianity of the 4-factor version of the model. The VIX is learned pathwise as a function of the Markovian factors and the model parameters. We use this approximation to tackle the joint calibration of S&P 500 and VIX options, quickly sample VIX paths, and price derivatives that jointly depend on S&P 500 and VIX. As an interesting aside, we also show that this \emph{“time-homogeneous”}, low-parametric, Markovian PDV model is able to fit the whole surface of S&P 500 implied volatilities remarkably well. ...

June 4, 2024 · 2 min · Research Team

Volatility models in practice: Rough, Path-dependent or Markovian?

Volatility models in practice: Rough, Path-dependent or Markovian? ArXiv ID: 2401.03345 “View on arXiv” Authors: Unknown Abstract We present an empirical study examining several claims related to option prices in rough volatility literature using SPX options data. Our results show that rough volatility models with the parameter $H \in (0,1/2)$ are inconsistent with the global shape of SPX smiles. In particular, the at-the-money SPX skew is incompatible with the power-law shape generated by these models, which increases too fast for short maturities and decays too slowly for longer maturities. For maturities between one week and three months, rough volatility models underperform one-factor Markovian models with the same number of parameters. When extended to longer maturities, rough volatility models do not consistently outperform one-factor Markovian models. Our study identifies a non-rough path-dependent model and a two-factor Markovian model that outperform their rough counterparts in capturing SPX smiles between one week and three years, with only 3 to 4 parameters. ...

January 7, 2024 · 2 min · Research Team