Paying one if spot ends between 100 and 110
Question
A contract pays at expiry if the spot lies between and , and nothing otherwise. Show how to construct it from ordinary calls.
Short answer
Long a digital at , short a digital at , each built as a tight call spread. With a small , buy calls at , sell at , sell at and buy at . The payoff equals the range digital except on two strips of width , so it replicates exactly in the limit; the price is about .
Adapted from Joshi, Denson & Downes, Quant Job Interview Questions and Answers, Q2.37, p.20; question and answer rewritten by SelfMadeQuant.com.
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Open the worked solutionLessons behind this question
- The Law of One Price and Replication: No-Arbitrage Pricing from First Principles
- Option Mechanics: Calls, Puts, Moneyness, Intrinsic Value, and Exchange vs. OTC Markets
- Option Trading Strategies: Spreads, Combinations, and Payoff Engineering
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