TITLE:
Unraveling Market Inefficiencies: Weak Arbitrage and the Information-Based Model for Option Pricing
AUTHORS:
Matabel Odin, Jane Akinyi Aduda, Cyprian Ondieki Omari
KEYWORDS:
Weak Arbitrage, Variable Transaction Costs, Information-Based Model, Zero Curvature, American Call Options
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Mathematical Finance,
Vol.13 No.4,
November
7,
2023
ABSTRACT: Discrepancies between theoretical option pricing models and actual market
prices create arbitrage opportunities in financial markets. Despite being
widely used in option pricing, the famous Black-Scholes model estimates option
values based on the strict assumption of no arbitrage. In addition, its
assumptions of constant volatility and log-normal asset price distribution may
not fully capture real-world market dynamics, resulting in mispricing and
potential arbitrage opportunities. The Information-based model is adopted as an
alternative to address this, allowing for stochastic volatility, non-specific
asset price distributions, and variable transaction costs. This study extends
the IBM by developing a pricing equation incorporating weak arbitrage
possibilities using the weaker form of no-arbitrage termed as the Zero
Curvature condition. The equation incorporates an adjusted risk-free rate,
influenced by an arbitrage measure and option derivatives. Empirical findings
based on the iShares S&P 100 ETF American call options dataset demonstrate
that capturing weak arbitrage improves theoretical option price estimates,
reducing discrepancies and potential arbitrage opportunities. Further research
can focus on validating and enhancing the Information-based model using
alternative financial assets data.