This paper examines the pricing of options by approximating extensions of the Black-Scholes setup in which volatility follows a separate diffusion process. It gereralizes the well-known binomial model, constructing a discrete two-dimensional lattice. We discuss convergence issues extensively and...

This paper constructs a model for the evolution of a risky security that is consistent with a set of observed call option prices. It explicitly treats the fact that only a discrete data set can be observed in practice. The framework is general and allows for state dependent volatility and jumps....

This paper uses an asymptotically valid expansion to derive explicitly agent's individual demand schedules and then the equilibrium allocations in options. Agents derive financial and non-tradeable income over time; they can only partially offset the latter using bonds and stocks and the option...

This paper analyses what determines an individual investor's risk-sharing demand for options and, aggregating across investors, what the equilibrium demand for options. We find that agents trade options to achieve their desired skewness; specifically, we find that portfolio holdings boil down to...

This paper characterizes the equilibrium demand and risk premiums in the presence of skewness risk. We extend the classical mean-variance two-fund separation theorem to a three-fund separation theorem. The additional fund is the skewness portfolio, i.e. a portfolio that gives the optimal hedge...

To improve the detection of the economic ”danger zones” from which severe banking crises emanate, this paper introduces classification tree ensembles to the banking crisis forecasting literature. I show that their out-of-sample performance in forecasting binary banking crisis indicators...

This paper studies the effects of non-contractability of investment on the choices made by a health authority and the hospital with which it contracts for the provision of a specific service. We deal with a situation where the parties must write a short-term contract, that is, where they are...