Computing deltas without derivatives (Q522065)

The aim of the paper is to apply Malliavin calculus to option pricing, more exactly, to the calculation of delta, in the very irregular situation, where both payoff function and the coefficients of the stochastic differential equation (SDE) describing the dynamics of the underlying asset, are irregular. In this order, some fundamental concepts from Malliavin calculus and local time calculus are recalled, the existence and Malliavin differentiability of a unique strong solution of SDE with irregular coefficients is analyzed, a compactness criterion based on Malliavin calculus together with local time calculus is employed to directly construct a strong solution which in addition is Malliavin differentiable. An explicit expression for the Malliavin derivative of the strong solution is presented. The regularity of the dependence of the strong solution on its initial condition is studied. The close connection between Malliavin derivative and the first variation process is treated. Finally, the main result giving the form of delta in terms of the payoff function, drift and diffusion coefficients and the first variation process is established.