Credit risk is today one of
the most intensely studied topics in quantitative finance. This book provides an
introduction and overview for readers who seek an up-to-date reference to the central
problems of the field and to the tools currently used to analyze them. The book is aimed
at researchers and students in finance, at quantitative analysts in banks and other
financial institutions, and at regulators interested in the modeling aspects of credit
risk.
David Lando considers the
two broad approaches to credit risk analysis: that based on classical option pricing
models on the one hand, and on a direct modeling of the default probability of issuers on
the other. He offers insights that can be drawn from each approach and demonstrates that
the distinction between the two approaches is not at all clear-cut. The book strikes a
fruitful balance between quickly presenting the basic ideas of the models and offering
enough detail so readers can derive and implement the models themselves. The discussion of
the models and their limitations and five technical appendixes help readers expand and
generalize the models themselves or to understand existing generalizations. The book
emphasizes models for pricing as well as statistical techniques for estimating their
parameters. Applications include rating-based modeling, modeling of dependent defaults,
swap- and corporate-yield curve dynamics, credit default swaps, and collateralized debt
obligations.
David Lando is Professor of
Finance at the Copenhagen Business School. He is an associate editor of three finance
journals and a member of Moody's Academic Advisory and Research Committee.
520 pages