The market model of interest rates specifies simple forward or Libor rates as lognormaly distributed, their stochastic dynamics has a linear volatility function. This model is extended to quadratic volatility which is the product of a quadratic polynomial and a level-independent covariance...

The following paper focuses on the incompleteness arising from model misspecification combined with trading restrictions. While asset price dynamics are assumed to be continuous time processes, the hedging of contingent claims occurs in discrete time. The trading strategies under consideration...

We consider a standard two-player all-pay auction with private values, where the valuation for the object is private information to each bidder. The crucial feature is that one bidder is favored by the allocation rule in the sense that he need not bid as much as the other bidder to win the...

It is well-known that Gaussian hedging strategies are robust in the sense that they always lead to a cost process of bounded variation and that a superhedge is possible if upper bounds on the volatility of the relevant processes are available, cf. El Karoui, Jeanblanc-Picque and Shreve (1998)...

The paper generalizes and refines the Fundamental Theorem of Asset Pricing of Dalang, Morton and Willinger in the following two respects: (a) the result is extended to a model with portfolio constraints; (b) versions of the no-arbitrage criterion based on the bang-bang principle in control...

In this paper, the effects of so-called model misspecification and the effects of dropping the assumption that continuous rebalancing is possible are examined. Strategies which are robust if applied continuously fail to be robust if applied in discrete time. Therefore, the hedging bias which...

We analyse contracts which pay out a guaranteed minimum rate of return and a fraction of a positive excess rate, which is specified on the basis of a benchmark portfolio. These contracts are closely related to unit--linked life--insurance/savings plan products and can be considered as...

Turbo-Certificates are one of the most popular structured equity products for private investors in Germany. They can be regarded as special forms of barrier options. The relation between the barrier level and the strike price is especially important for the design of these products. By using a...

In this paper, we consider the net loss of a life insurance company issuing identical equity-linked pure endowment contracts in the case of periodic premiums. Under this construction, financial risks as well as the mortality risk are included. Based on Møller (1998), we particularly investigate...

The topic of insolvency risk in connection with life insurance companies has recently attracted a great deal of attention. In this paper, the question is investigated of how the value of the equity and of the liability of a life insurance company are affected by the default risk and the choice...