Least-Squares Monte Carlo and Quasi Monte Carlo Method in Pricing American Put Options Using Matlab

In this report, we evaluate the use of the Least Squares Monte Carlo (LSM) method, which was proposed by Longstaff and Schwartz in 2001. The holder of an American option has the right to exercise the option anytime, which makes the option much more difficult to price compared to a European style option. LSM is a simple and powerful method to price American style options and utilizes the use of least squares to estimate the conditional expected payoff to the option holder from continuation value. I provide a simple version of the LSM algorithm using second degree polynomials as basis functions with working code in Matlab to price American put option. I illustrate how the model is affected when input parameter such as risk free interest rate, volatility, underlying stock price, time to maturity are perturbed. After that, I construct the quasi Monte Carlo version of the Least Square algorithm by using Halton sequence and compare the performance of both quasi Monte Carlo and Monte Carlo algorithm