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Call price in the infinite-volatility limit

Question

What does the price of a European call converge to as the volatility tends to infinity?

Short answer

The current stock price S0S_0 (for a non-dividend stock). As σ→∞\sigma\to\infty, d1→+∞d_1\to+\infty and d2→−∞d_2\to-\infty, so C=S0N(d1)−Ke−rTN(d2)→S0C=S_0N(d_1)-Ke^{-rT}N(d_2)\to S_0. Intuitively the stock ends up near zero with probability close to one, so the strike is almost never paid, yet the stock's expectation is preserved; this hits the upper bound C≤S0C\le S_0.

Adapted from Joshi, Denson & Downes, Quant Job Interview Questions and Answers, Q2.14, p.17; question and answer rewritten by SelfMadeQuant.com.

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