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Black-Scholes PDE and its limits in spot

Question

Starting from geometric Brownian motion for a stock, derive the Black-Scholes partial differential equation for the price of a derivative on it. What conditions does a call's price satisfy as the stock price tends to 00 and to ∞\infty?

Short answer

Vt+12σ2S2VSS+rSVS−rV=0V_t+\tfrac12\sigma^2S^2V_{SS}+rSV_S-rV=0. Apply Itô's lemma to V(S,t)V(S,t), hold the option short against VSV_S shares so the dWdW terms cancel, and require the riskless portfolio to earn rr. For a call, C→0C\to0 as S→0S\to0, and C∼S−Ke−r(T−t)C\sim S-Ke^{-r(T-t)} as S→∞S\to\infty, with C(S,T)=(S−K)+C(S,T)=(S-K)^+ at expiry.

Adapted from Joshi, Denson & Downes, Quant Job Interview Questions and Answers, Q2.1, p.16; question and answer rewritten by SelfMadeQuant.com.

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