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Margrabe price for swapping one asset into another

Question

Two assets follow geometric Brownian motions with volatilities σ1,σ2\sigma_1,\sigma_2 and correlation ρ\rho, and pay no dividends. Price a European option that at time TT lets the holder give up asset 2 and receive asset 1, i.e. with payoff max⁡(S1(T)−S2(T),0)\max(S_1(T)-S_2(T),0).

Short answer

S1N(d1)−S2N(d2)S_1N(d_1)-S_2N(d_2), with d1,2=ln⁡(S1/S2)±12σ^2Tσ^Td_{1,2}=\frac{\ln(S_1/S_2)\pm\tfrac12\hat\sigma^2T}{\hat\sigma\sqrt T} and σ^2=σ12+σ22−2ρσ1σ2\hat\sigma^2=\sigma_1^2+\sigma_2^2-2\rho\sigma_1\sigma_2. Using asset 2 as numeraire, the ratio S1/S2S_1/S_2 is a driftless GBM with volatility σ^\hat\sigma, and the payoff becomes S2(T)max⁡(S1/S2−1,0)S_2(T)\max(S_1/S_2-1,0): a call struck at 11 with zero rate. The interest rate drops out.

Adapted from Zhou, A Practical Guide to Quantitative Finance Interviews, sec. 6.3 Option Portfolios and Exotic Options, 'Exchange options', p.160; question and answer rewritten by SelfMadeQuant.com.

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