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We propose ARBITER, a risk-neutral neural operator for learning joint SPX-VIX term structures under no-arbitrage constraints. ARBITER maps market states to an operator that outputs implied volatility and variance curves while enforcing static arbitrage (calendar, vertical, butterfly), Lipschitz bounds, and monotonicity. The model couples operator learning with constrained decoders and is trained with extragradient-st…
This paper introduces a novel stochastic model for credit spreads. The stochastic approach leverages the diffusion of default intensities via a CIR++ model and is formulated within a risk-neutral probability space. Our research primarily addresses two gaps in the literature. The first is the lack of credit spread models founded on a stochastic basis that enables continuous modeling, as many existing models rely on fa…
ABSTRACT This article examines the optimal capital structure of a firm that can choose both the amount and maturity of its debt. Bankruptcy is determined endogenously rather than by the imposition of a positive net worth condition or by a cash flow constraint. The results extend Leland's (1994a) closed‐form results to a much richer class of possible debt structures and permit study of the optimal maturity of debt as …
In this paper, we consider a generic interest rate market in the presence of roll-over risk, which generates spreads in spot/forward term rates. We do not require classical absence of arbitrage and rely instead on a minimal market viability assumption, which enables us to work in the context of the benchmark approach. In a Markovian setting, we extend the control theoretic approach of Gombani & Runggaldier (2013) and…
This paper compares different methods for forecasting the term structure of U.S. and European zero-coupon government bonds using both traditional econometric and Machine Learning (ML) approaches. We compare classical models (e.g., Dynamic Nelson-Siegel (DNS) and Principal Component Analysis (PCA)) with different Neural Network (NN) architectures, including those inspired by the classical models, on the U.S. Treasury …
SOFR derivatives market remains illiquid and incomplete so it is not amenable to classical risk-neutral term structure models which are based on the assumption of perfect liquidity and completeness. This paper develops a statistical SOFR term structure model that is well-suited for risk management and derivatives pricing within the incomplete markets paradigm. The model incorporates relevant macroeconomic factors tha…
Overnight rates, such as the SOFR (Secured Overnight Financing Rate) in the US, are central to the current reform of interest rate benchmarks. A striking feature of overnight rates is the presence of jumps and spikes occurring at predetermined dates due to monetary policy interventions and liquidity constraints. This corresponds to stochastic discontinuities (i.e., discontinuities occurring at ex-ante known points in…
Lévy driven term structure models have become an important subject in the mathematical finance literature. This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the Lévy driven Heath-Jarrow-Morton type term structure equation. This includes a full proof of existence and uniqueness in particular, which seems to have been lacking in the finance literature so far.
In this paper, we study term structure movements in the spirit of Heath, Jarrow, and Morton [Econometrica 60(1), 77-105] under volatility uncertainty. We model the instantaneous forward rate as a diffusion process driven by a G-Brownian motion. The G-Brownian motion represents the uncertainty about the volatility. Within this framework, we derive a sufficient condition for the absence of arbitrage, known as the drift…
We develop a general term structure framework taking stochastic discontinuities explicitly into account. Stochastic discontinuities are a key feature in interest rate markets, as for example the jumps of the term structures in correspondence to monetary policy meetings of the ECB show. We provide a general analysis of multiple curve markets under minimal assumptions in an extended HJM framework and provide a fundamen…
Explicitly taking into account the risk incurred when borrowing at a shorter tenor versus lending at a longer tenor ("roll-over risk"), we construct a stochastic model framework for the term structure of interest rates in which a frequency basis (i.e. a spread applied to one leg of a swap to exchange one floating interest rate for another of a different tenor in the same currency) arises endogenously. This rollover r…
In this paper, we empirically study models for pricing Italian sovereign bonds under a reduced form framework, by assuming different dynamics for the short-rate process. We analyze classical Cox-Ingersoll-Ross and Vasicek multi-factor models, with a focus on optimization algorithms applied in the calibration exercise. The Kalman filter algorithm together with a maximum likelihood estimation method are considered to f…
We give a comprehensive review of credit term structure modeling methodologies. The conventional approach to modeling credit term structure is summarized and shown to be equivalent to a particular type of the reduced form credit risk model, the fractional recovery of market value approach. We argue that the corporate practice and market observations do not support this approach. The more appropriate assumption is the…
In the third part of this series we introduce consistent relative value measures for CDS-Bond basis trades using the bond-implied CDS term structure derived from fitted survival rate curves. We explain why this measure is better than the traditionally used Z-spread or Libor OAS and offer simplified hedging and trading strategies which take advantage of the relative value across the entire range of maturities of cash …
In this three-part series of papers, we argue that the conventional spread measures are not well defined for credit-risky bonds and introduce a set of credit term structures which correct for the biases associated with the strippable cash flow valuation assumption. We demonstrate that the resulting estimates are significantly more robust and remain meaningful even when applied to deeply distressed bonds. We also sugg…
We propose a unified structural credit risk model incorporating both insolvency and illiquidity risks, in order to investigate how a firm's default probability depends on the liquidity risk associated with its financing structure. We assume the firm finances its risky assets by mainly issuing short- and long-term debt. Short-term debt can have either a discrete or a more realistic staggered tenor structure. At rollov…
Pricing extremely long-dated liabilities market consistently deals with the decline in liquidity of financial instruments on long maturities. The aim is to quantify the uncertainty of rates up to maturities of a century. We assume that the interest rates follow the affine mean-reverting Vasicek model. We model parameter uncertainty by Bayesian distributions over the parameters. The cross-sectional and time series par…
Foundation models have transformed domains from language to genomics by learning general-purpose representations from large-scale, heterogeneous data. We introduce TradeFM, a 524M-parameter generative Transformer that brings this paradigm to market microstructure, learning directly from billions of trade events across >9K equities. To enable cross-asset generalization, we develop scale-invariant features and a univer…
VIX term structure tracks the shape of volatility futures across maturities and helps identify whether the market is pricing stable conditions or near-term stress.
Trade the VIX curve — short steep contango, respect backwardation — a roll-yield book in vol futures.