Derivatives basic module

CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION…………………………….. ................................................................ 4
1.1

DEFINITION OF D ERIVATIVES .....................................................................................................4

1.2

O RIGIN OF DERIVATIVES ............................................................................................................4

1.3

DERIVATIVES IN I NDIA ..............................................................................................................5

1.4

TWO IMPORTANT TERMS
.............................................................................................................6

1.4.1

Spot Market ........................................................................................................................................................7

1.4.2

Index ......................................................................................................................................................................7

CHAPTER 2: DEFINITIO NS OF BASIC DERIVATIVES ............................................................... 8
2.1

FORWARDS...............................................................................................................................8

2.1.1

Settlement of forward contracts ............................................................................................................9

2.1.2

Default risk in forward contracts .........................................................................................................10

2.2

FUTURES................................................................................................................................11

2.3

O PTIONS................................................................................................................................12

2.3.1

Call option .........................................................................................................................................................13

2.3.2

Put option ..........................................................................................................................................................13

2.4

TERMINOLOGY OF D ERIVATIVES ................................................................................................14

2.4.1

Spot price (ST) ...............................................................................................................................................14

2.4.2

Forward price or futures price (F) ......................................................................................................14

2.4.3

Strike price (K) ...............................................................................................................................................15

2.4.4

Expiration date (T) .......................................................................................................................................15

2.4.5

Types of options ............................................................................................................................................15

2.4.6

Contract size....................................................................................................................................................15

2.4.7

Contract Value................................................................................................................................................15

2.4.8

Margins ................................................................................................................................................................16

2.5

M ONEYNESS OF AN O PTION......................................................................................................16

2.5.1

I n-the-money option ...................................................................................................................................16

2.5.2

Out-of-the-money option .........................................................................................................................17

2.5.3

At-the-money option ..................................................................................................................................17

CHAPTER 3: APPLICATIONS OF DERIVATIVES ………….. .......................................................19
3.1

P ARTICIPANTS IN THE DERIVATIVES M ARKET .............................................................................19

3.1.1

Hedgers ...............................................................................................................................................................19

3.1.2

Speculators .......................................................................................................................................................21

3.1.3

Arbitrageurs .....................................................................................................................................................22

3.2

USES OF D ERIVATIVES ............................................................................................................24

3.2.1

Risk management .........................................................................................................................................24

3.2.2

Market efficiency ...........................................................................................................................................24

1

3.2.3

Price discovery................................................................................................................................................25

CHAPTER 4: TRADING F UTURES………………………… ..............................................................26
4.1

P AY- OFF OF FUTURES ..............................................................................................................26

4.1.1

Pay-off diagram for a long futures position ..................................................................................26

4.1.2

Pay-off diagram for a short position .................................................................................................27

4.2

A THEORETICAL MODEL F OR F UTURE PRICING .............................................................................28

CHAPTER 5: TRADING OPTIONS ………………………… ..............................................................29
5.1

O PTION P AYOUT ....................................................................................................................29

5.1.1

A long position in a call option ..............................................................................................................29

5.1.2

A long position in a put option..............................................................................................................29

5.1.3

A short position in a call option ..........................................................................................................29

5.1.4

A short position in a put option ............................................................................................................30

5.2

O PT ION S TRATEGIES ...............................................................................................................33

5.2.1

Long option strategy...................................................................................................................................33

5.2.2

Short options strategy ...............................................................................................................................35

5.3

DETERMINATION OF OPTION PRICES ..........................................................................................36

5.3.1

Intrinsic value and time value ..............................................................................................................37

5.3.2

Factors impacting option prices ..........................................................................................................38

CHAPTER 6: DERIVATIV ES TRADING ON EXCHANGE ............................................................40
6.1

DERIVATIVES T RADING ON NSE ...............................................................................................40

6.1.1

Contract specifications for index based futures .........................................................................40

6.1.2

Contract specifications for index based options .........................................................................41

6.1.3

Contract specifications for stock based futures ..........................................................................42

6.1.4

Contract specifications for stock based options .........................................................................43

6.2

USING D AILY N EWSPAPERS TO T RACK F UTURES AND O PTIONS ....................................................44

6.3

S ETTLEMENT OF D ERIVATIVES ..................................................................................................46

6.3.1

Clearing members........................................................................................................................................46

6.3.2

Clearing banks ................................................................................................................................................47

6.4

S ETTLEMENT OF F UTURES ........................................................................................................47

6.4.1

Mark to market settlement .....................................................................................................................47

6.4.2

Final settlement for futures ....................................................................................................................48

6.5

S ETTLEMENT OF O PTIONS ........................................................................................................49

6.5.1

Daily premium settlement .......................................................................................................................49

6.5.2

Exercise settlement .....................................................................................................................................49

6.6

A CCOUNTING AND T AXATION OF D ERIVATIVES ...........................................................................50

6.6.1

Taxation of derivative instruments ....................................................................................................50

MODEL TEST…………………….. ……………………………. ..............................................................52

2

Distribution of weights in the
Equity Derivatives: A Beginner’s Module Curriculum
Chapter
No.
1
2
3
4
5
6

Note:

Title

Weights (%)

Introduction
Definitions of Basic Derivatives
Applications of Derivatives
Trading Futures
Trading Options
Derivatives Trading on Exchange

15
15
10
20
20
20

Candidates are advised to refer to NSE’s website: ww w.nseindia.com, click on ‘NCFM’

link and then go to ‘Announcements’ link, regarding revisions/updations in NCFM modules or
launch of new modules, if any.

Copyright © 201 1 by National Stock Exchange of India Ltd. (NSE)
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means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise.

3

CHAPTER 1: Introduction
1.1

Definition of Derivatives

One of the most significant events in the securities markets has been the development and
expansion of financial derivatives. The term “derivatives” is used to refer to financial
instruments which derive their value from some underlying assets. The underlying assets could
be equities (shares), debt (bonds, T-bills, and notes), currencies, and even indices of these
various assets, such as the Nifty 50 Index. Derivatives derive their names from their respective
underlying asset. Thus if a derivative’s underlying asset is equity, it is called equity derivative
and so on. Derivatives can be traded either on a regulated exchange, such as the NSE or off the
exchanges, i.e., directly between the different parties, which is called “over-the-counter” (OTC)
trading. (In India only exchange traded equity derivatives are permitted under the law.) The
basic purpose of derivatives is to transfer the price risk (inherent in fluctuations of the asset
prices) from one party to another; they facilitate the allocation of risk to those who are willing
to take it. In so doing, derivatives help mitigate the risk arising from the future uncertainty of
prices. For example, on November 1, 2009 a rice farmer may wish to sell his harvest at a future
date (say January 1, 2010) for a pre-determined fixed price to eliminate the risk of change in
prices by that date. Such a transaction is an example of a derivatives contract. The price of this
derivative is driven by the spot price of rice wh ich is the "underlying".

1.2

Origin of derivatives

While trading in derivatives products has grown tremendously in recent times, the earliest
evidence of these types of instruments can be traced back to ancient Greece. Even though
derivatives have been in existence in some form or the other since ancient times, the advent of
modern day derivatives contracts is attributed to farmers’ need to protect themselves against a
decline in crop prices due to various economic and environmental factors. Thus, derivatives
contracts initially developed in commodities. The first “futures” contracts can be traced to the
Yodoya rice market in Osaka, Japan around 1650. The farmers were afraid of rice prices falling
in the future at the time of harvesting. To lock in a price

(that is, to sell the rice at a

predetermined fixed price in the future), the farmers entered into contracts with the buyers.
These were evidently standardized contracts, much like today’s futures contracts.
In 1848, the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was established to facilitate trading of forward
contracts on various commodities. From then on, futures contracts on commodities have
remained more or less in the same form, as we know them today.

4

While the basics of derivatives are the same for all assets such as equities, bonds, currencies,
and commodities, we will focus on derivatives in the equity markets and all examples that we
discuss will use stocks and index (basket of stocks).

1.3

Derivatives in India

In India, derivatives markets have been functioning since the nineteenth century, with
organized trading in cotton through the establishment of the Cotton Trade Association in 1875.
Derivatives, as exchange traded financial instruments were introduced in India in June 2000.
The National Stock Exchange (NSE) is the largest exchange in India in derivatives, trading in
various derivatives contracts. The first contract to be launched on NSE was the Nifty 50 index
futures contract. In a span of one and a half years after the introduction of index futures, index
options, stock options and stock futures were also introduced in the derivatives segment for
trading. NSE’s equity derivatives segment is called the Futures & Options Segment or F&O
Segment. NSE also trades in Currency and Interest Rate Futures contrac ts under a separate
segment.
A series of reforms in the financial markets paved way for the development of exchange-traded
equity derivatives markets in India. In 1993, the NSE was established as an electronic, national
exchange and it started operations i n 1994. It improved the efficiency and transparency of the
stock markets by offering a fully automated screen-based trading system with real-time price
dissemination. A report on exchange traded derivatives, by the L.C. Gupta Committee, set up
by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), recommended a phased introduction of
derivatives instruments with bi-level regulation (i.e., self-regulation by exchanges, with SEBI
providing the overall regulatory and supervisory role). Another report, by the J.R. Varma
Committee in 1998, worked out the various operational details such as margining and risk
management systems for these instruments. In 1999, the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act
of 1956, or SC(R)A, was amended so that derivatives could be declared as “securities”. This
allowed the regulatory framework for trading securities, to be extended to derivatives. The Act
considers derivatives on equities to be legal and valid, but only if they are traded on exchanges.
The Securities Contracts (Regulat ion) Act, 1956 defines "derivatives" to include:
1. A security derived from a debt instrument, share, loan whether secured or unsecured,
risk instrument, or contract for differences or any other form of security.
2. A contract which derives its value from the prices, or index of prices, of underlying
securities.

5

At present, the equity derivatives market is the most active derivatives market in India. Trading
volumes in equity derivatives are, on an average, more than three and a half times the trading
volumes in the cash equity markets.

Table 1.1 Milestones in the development of Indian derivative market

November 18, 1996

May 11, 1998

L.C.

Gupta

Committee

set

up

to

draft

a

policy

framework for introducing derivatives

L.C. Gupta committee submits its report on the policy
framework

May 25, 2000

SEBI allows exchanges to trade in index futures

June 12, 2000

Trading on Nifty futures commences on the NSE

June 4, 2001

Trading for Nifty options commences on the NSE

July 2, 2001

Trading on Stock options commences on the NSE

November 9, 2001

Trading on Stock futures commences on the NSE

August 29, 2008

Currency derivatives trading commences on the NSE

August 31, 2009

Interest rate derivatives trading commences on the
NSE

February 2010

Launch of Currency Futures on additional currency pairs

October 28, 2010

Introduction of European style Stock Options

October 29, 2010

Introduction of Currency Options

1.4

Two important terms

Before discussing derivatives, it would be useful to be familiar with two terminologies re
lating to
the underlying markets. These are as follows:

6

1.4.1

Spot Market

In the context of securities, the spot market or cash market is a securities market in which
securities are sold for

cash and delivered immediately. The delivery happens after the

settlement period. Let us describe this in the context of India. The NSE’s cash market segment
is known as the Capital Market (CM) Segment. In this market, shares of SBI, Reliance, Infosys,
ICICI Bank, and other public listed companies are traded. The settlement period in this market
is on a T+2 basis i.e., the buyer of the shares receives the shares two working da ys after trade
date and the seller of the shares receives the money two working days after the trade date.

1.4.2

Index

Stock prices fluctuate continuously during any given period. Prices of some stocks might move
up while that of others may move down. In such a situation, what can we say about the stock
market as a whole? Has the market moved up or has it moved down during a given period?
Similarly, have stocks of a particular sector moved up or down? To identify the general trend in
the market (or any given sector of the market such as banking), it is important to have a
reference barometer which can be monitored. Market participants use various indices for this
purpose. An index is a basket of identified stocks, and its value is computed by taking the
weighted average of the prices of the constituent stocks of the index. A market index for
example consists of a group of top stocks traded in the market and its value changes as the
prices of its constituent stocks change. In India, Nifty Index is the most popular stock index and
it is based on the top 50 stocks traded in the market. Just as derivatives on stocks are called
stock derivatives, derivatives on indices such as Nifty are called index derivatives.

7

CHAPTER 2: Definitions of Basic Derivatives
There are various types of derivatives traded on exchanges across the world. They range from
the very simple to the most complex products. The following are the three basic forms of
derivatives, which are the building blocks for many complex derivatives instruments (the latter
are beyond the scope of this book):
•

Forwards

•

Futures

•

Options

Knowledge of these instruments is necessary in order to understand the basics of derivatives.
We shall now discuss each of them in detail.

2.1

Forwards

A forward contract or simply a forward is a contract between two parties to buy or sell an
asset at a certain future date for a certain price that is pre-decided on the date of the contract.
The future date is referred to as expiry date and the pre-decided price is referred to as Forward
Price. It may be noted that Forwards are private contracts and their terms are determined by
the parties involved.
A forward is thus an agreement between two parties in which one party, the buyer, enters into
an agreement with the other party, the seller that he would buy from the seller an underlying
asset on the expiry date at the forward price. Therefore, it is a commitment by both the parties
to engage in a transaction at a later date with the price set in advance. This is different from
a spot market contract, which involves immediate payment and immediate transfer of asset.
The party that agrees to buy the asset on a future date is referred to as a long investor and is
said to have a long position. Similarly the party that agrees to sell the asset in a future date is
referred to as a short investor and is said to have a short position. The price agreed upon is
called the delivery price or the Forward Price.
Forward contracts are traded only in Over the Counter (OTC) market and not in stock
exchanges. OTC market is a private market where individuals/institutions can trade through
negotiations on a one to one basis.

8

2.1.1

Settlement of forward contracts

When a forward contract expires, there are two alternate arrangements possible to settle the
obligation of the parties: physical settlement and cash settlement. Both types of settlements
happen on the expiry date and are given below.
Physical Settlement
A forward contract can be settled by the physical delivery of the underlying asset by a short
investor (i.e. the seller) to the long investor (i.e. the buyer) and the payment of the agreed
forward price by the buyer to the seller on the agreed settlement date. The following example
will help us understand the physical settlement process.

Illustration
Consider two parties (A and B) enter into a forward contract on 1 August, 2009 where, A agrees
to deliver 1000 stocks of Unitech to B, at a price of Rs. 100 per share, on 29 th August, 2009
(the expiry date). In this contract, A, who has committed to sel l 1000 stocks of Unitech at Rs.
100 per share on 29 th August, 2009 has a short position and B, who has committed to buy 1000
stocks at Rs. 100 per share is said to have a long position.

In case of physical settlement, on 29th August, 2009 (expiry date), A has to actually deliver
1000 Unitech shares to B and B has to pay the price (1000 * Rs. 100 = Rs. 10,000) to A. In
case A does not have 1000 shares to deliver on 29th August, 2009, he has to purchase it from
the spot market and then deliver the stocks to B .

On the expiry date the profit/loss for each party depends on the settlement price, that is, the
t
h

closing price in the spot market on 29 August, 2009. The closing price on any given day is the
weighted average price of the underlying during the last half an hour of trading in that day.
Depending on the closing price, three different scenarios of profit/loss are possible for each
party. They are as follows:
Scenario I. Closing spot price on 29 August, 2009 (S T) is greater than the Forward price (FT )
Assume that the closing price of Unitech on the settlement date 29 August, 2009 is Rs. 105.
Since the short investor has sold Unitech at Rs. 100 in the Forward market on 1 August, 2009,
he can buy 1000 Unitech shares at Rs. 105 from the market and deliver them to the long
investor. Therefore the person who has a short position makes a loss of (100 – 105) X 1000 =
Rs. 5000. If the long investor sells the shares in the spot market immediately after receiving
them, he would make an equivalent profit of (105 – 100 ) X 1000 = Rs. 5000.

9

Scenario II. Closing Spot price on 29 August (S T), 2009 is the same as the Forward price (F T)
The short seller will buy the stock from the market at Rs. 100 and give it to the long investor.
As the settlement price is same as the Forward price, neither party will gain or lose anything.
Scenario III. Closing Spot price (S T) on 29 August is less than the futures price (F T)
Assume that the closing price of Unitech on 29 August, 2009 is Rs. 95. The short investor, who
has sold Unitech at Rs. 100 in the Forward market on 1 August, 2009, will buy the stock from
the market at Rs. 95 and deliver it to the long investor. Therefore the person who has a short
position would make a profit of (100 – 95) X 1000 = Rs. 5000 and the person who ha s long
position in the contract will lose an equivalent amount (Rs. 5000), if he sells the shares in the
spot market immediately after receiving them.
The main disadvantage of physical settlement is that it results in huge transaction costs in
terms of actual purchase of securities by the party holding a short position (in this case A) and
transfer of the security to the party in the long position (in this case B). Further, if the party in
the long position is actually not interested in holding the security, then she will have to incur
further transaction cost in disposing off the security. An alternative way of settlement, which
helps in minimizing this cost, is through cash settlement.
Cash Settlement
Cash settlement does not involve actual delivery or receipt of the security. Each party either
pays (receives) cash equal to the net loss (profit) arising out of their respective position in the
contract. So, in case of Scenario I mentioned above, where the spot price at the expiry date
(S T) was greater than the forward price (F T), the party with the short position will have to pay
an amount equivalent to the net loss to the party at the long position. In our example, A will
simply pay Rs. 5000 to B on the expiry date. The opposite is the case in Scenario (III), when ST
< FT. The long party will be at a loss and have to pay an amount equivalent to the net loss to
the short party. In our example, B will have to pay Rs. 5000 to A on the expiry date. In case of
Scenario (II) where S T = FT , there is no need for an y party to pay anything to the other party.
Please note that the profit and loss position in case of physical settlement and cash settlement
is the same except for the transaction costs which is involved in the physical settlement.

2.1.2

Default risk in forward contracts

A drawback of forward contracts is that they are subject to default risk. Regardless of whether
the contract is for physical or cash settlement, there exists a potential for one party to default,
i.e. not honor the contract. It could be either the buyer or the seller. This results in the other
party suffering a loss.

This risk of making losses due to any of the two parties defaulting is

known as counter party risk. The main reason behind such risk is the absence of any mediator

10

between the parties, who could have undertaken the task of ensuring that both the parties
fulfill their obligations arising out of the contract. Default risk is also referred to as counter
party risk or credit risk.

2.2

Futures

Like a forward contract, a futures contract is an agreement between two parties in which the
buyer agrees to buy an underlying asset from the seller, at a future date at a price that is
agreed upon today. However, unlike a forward contract, a futures contract is not a private
transaction but gets traded on a recognized stock exchange. In addition, a futures contract is
standardized by the exchange.

All the terms, other than the price, are set by the stock

exchange (rather than by individual parties as in the case of a forward contract). Als o, both
buyer and seller of the futures contracts are protected against the counter party risk by an
entity called the Clearing Corporation. The Clearing Corporation provides this guarantee to
ensure that the buyer or the seller of a futures contract does not suffer as a result of the
counter party defaulting on its obligation. In case one of the parties defaults, the Clearing
Corporation steps in to fulfill the obligation of this party, so that the other party does not suffer
due to non-fulfillment of the contract. To be able to guarantee the fulfillment of the obligations
under the contract, the Clearing Corporation holds an amount as a security from both the
parties. This amount is called the Margin money and can be in the form of cash or other
financial assets. Also, since the futures contracts are traded on the stock exchanges, the parties
have the flexibility of closing out the contract prior to the maturity by squaring off the
transactions in the market.
The basic flow of a transaction between three parties, namely Buyer, Seller and Clearing
Corporation is depicted in the diagram below:

11

Table 2.1: Difference between forwards and futures

Forwards

Futures

Privately negotiated contracts

Traded on an exchange

Not standardized

Standardized contracts

Settlement dates can be set by the parties

High counter party risk

2.3

Fixed settlement dates as declared by the
exchange

Almost no counter party risk

Options

Like forwards and futures, options are derivative instruments that provide the opportunity to
buy or sell an underlying asset on a future date.
An option is a derivative contract between a buyer and a seller, where one party (say First
Party) gives to the other (say Second Party) the right, but not the obligation, to buy from (or
sell to) the First Party the underlying asset on or before a specific day at an agreed -upon price.
In return for granting the option, the party granting the option collects a payment from the
other party. This payment collected is called the “premium” or price of the option.
The right to buy or sell is held by the “option buyer” (also called the option holder); the party
granting the right is the “option seller” or “option writer”. Unlike forwards and futures contracts,
options require a cash payment (called the premium) up front from the option buyer to the
option seller. This payment is called option premium or option price. Options can be traded
either on the stock exchange or in over the counter (OTC) markets. Options traded on the
exchanges are backed by the Clearing Corporation thereby minimizing the risk arising due to
default by the counter parties involved.

Options traded in the OTC market however are not

backed by the Clearing Corporation.
There are two types of options —call options and put options —which are explained below.

12

2.3.1

Call option

A call option is an option granting the right to the buyer of the option to buy the underlying
asset on a specific day at an agreed upon price, but not the obligation to do so. It is the seller
who grants this right to the buyer of the option. It may be noted that the person who has the
right to buy the underlying asset is known as the “buyer of the call option”. The price at which
the buyer has the right to buy the asset is agreed upon at the time of entering the contract.
This price is known as the strike price of the contract (call option strike price in this case). Since
the buyer of the call option has the right (but no obligation) to buy the underlying asset, he will
exercise his right to buy the underlying asset if and only if the price of the underlying
asset in the market is more than the strike price on or before the expiry date of the
contract. The buyer of the call option does not have an obligation to buy if he does not want
to.

2.3.2

Put option

A put option is a contract granting the right to the buyer of the option to sell the underlying
asset on or before a specific day at an agreed upon price, but not the obligation to do so. It is
the seller who grants this right to the buyer of the option. The person who has the right to sell
the underlying asset is known as the “buyer of the put option”. The price at which the buyer
has the right to sell the asset is agreed upon at the time of entering the contract. This price is
known as the strike price of the contract (put option strike price in this case). Since the buyer
of the put option has the right (but not the obligation) to sell the underlying asset, he will
exercise his right to sell the underlying asset if and only if the price of the underlying
asset in the market is less than the strike price on or before the expiry date of the
contract. The buyer of the put option does not have the obligation to sell if he does not want
to.
Illustration
Suppose A has “bought a call option” of 2000 shares of Hindustan Unilever Limited (HLL) at a
strike price of Rs 260 per share at a premium of Rs 10. This option gives A, the buyer of the
option, the right to buy 2000 shares of HLL from the seller of the option, on or before August
27, 2009 (expiry date of the option). The seller of the option has the obligation to sell 2000
shares of HLL at Rs 260 per share on or before August 27, 2009 (i.e. whenever asked by the
buyer of the option).
Suppose instead of buying a call, A has “sold a put option” on 100 Reliance Industries (RIL)
shares at a strike price of Rs 2000 at a premium of Rs 8. This option is an obligation to A to buy
100 shares of Reliance Industries (RIL) at a price of Rs 2000 per share on or before August 27
(expiry date of the option) i.e., as and when asked by the buyer of the put option. It depends

13

on the option buyer as to when he exercises the option. As stated earlier, the buyer does not
have the obligation to exercise the option.

Table 2.2: Differences between futures and options

Futures

Options

Both the buyer and the seller are

The buyer of the option has the right and not an

under an obligation to fulfill the

obligation whereas the seller is under obligation

contract.

to fulfill the contract if and when the buyer
exercises his right.

The

buyer

and

the

seller

are The seller is subjected to unlimited risk of losing

subject to unlimited risk of loss.

whereas the buyer has limited potential to lose
(which is the option premium).

The buyer and the seller have

The buyer has potential to make unlimited gain

potential to make unlimited gain or

while the seller has a potential to make unlimited

loss.

gain. On the other hand the buyer has a limited
loss potential and the seller has an unlimited loss
potential.

2.4

Terminology of Derivatives

In this section we explain the general terms and concepts related to derivatives.

2.4.1

Spot price (ST)

Spot price of an underlying asset is the price that is quoted for immediate delivery of the asset.
For example, at the NSE, the spot price of Reliance Ltd. at any given time is the price at which
Reliance Ltd. shares are being traded at that time in the Cash Market Segment of the NSE. Spot
price is also referred to as cash price sometimes.

2.4.2

Forward price or futures price (F)

Forward price or futures price is the price that is agreed upon at the date of the contract for the
delivery of an asset at a specific future date. These prices are dependent on the spot price, the
prevailing interest rate and the expiry date of the contract.

14

2.4.3

Strike price (K)

The price at which t he buyer of an option can buy the stock (in the case of a call option) or sell
the stock (in the case of a put option) on or before the expiry date of option contracts is called
strike price. It is the price at which the stock will be bought or sold when t e option is
h
exercised. Strike price is used in the case of options only; it is not used for futures or forwards.

2.4.4

Expiration date (T)

In the case of Futures, Forwards , Index and Stock Options, Expiration Date is the date on which
settlement takes place. It is also called the final settlement date.

2.4.5

Types of options

Options can be divided into two different categories depending upon the primary exercise styles
associated with options. These categories are:
European Options: European options are options that can be exercised only on the expiration
date.
American options: American options are options that can be exercised on any day on or
before the expiry date. They can be exercised by the buyer on any day on or before the final
settlement date or the expiry date.

2.4.6

Contract size

As futures and options are standardized contracts traded on an exchange, they have a fixed
contract size. One contract of a derivatives instrument represents a certain number of shares of
the underlying asset. For example, if one contract of BHEL consists of 300 shares of BHEL, then
if one buys one futures contract of BHEL, then for every Re 1 increase in BHEL’s futures price,
the buyer will make a profit of 300 X 1 = Rs 300 and for every Re 1 fall in BHEL’s futures price,
he will lose Rs 300.

2.4.7

Contract Value

Contract value is notional value of the transaction in case one contract is bought or sold. It is
the contract size multiplied but the price of the futures. Contract value is used to calculate
margins etc. for contracts. In the example above if BHEL futures are trading at Rs. 2000 the
contract value would be Rs. 2000 x 300 = Rs. 6 lacs.

15

2.4.8

Margins

In the spot market, the buyer of a stock has to pay the entire transaction amount (for
purchasing the stoc k) to the seller. For example, if Infosys is trading at Rs. 2000 a share and
an investor wants to buy 100 Infosys shares, then he has to pay Rs. 2000 X 100 = Rs.
2,00,000 to the seller. The settlement will take place on T+2 basis; that is, two days after t he
transaction date.
In a derivatives contract, a person enters into a trade today (buy or sell) but the settlement
happens on a future date. Because of this, there is a high possibility of default by any of the
parties. Futures and option contracts are t raded through exchanges and the counter party risk
is taken care of by the clearing corporation. In order to prevent any of the parties from
defaulting on his trade commitment, the clearing corporation levies a margin on the buyer as
well as seller of the futures and option contracts. This margin is a percentage (approximately
20%) of the total contract value. Thus, for the aforementioned example, if a person wants to
buy 100 Infosys futures, then he will have to pay 20% of the contract value of Rs 2,00,000 =
Rs 40,000 as a margin to the clearing corporation. This margin is applicable to both, the buyer
and the seller of a futures contract.

2.5

Moneyness of an Option

“Moneyness” of an option indicates whether an option is worth exercising or not i.e. if the
option is exercised by the buyer of the option whether he will receive money or not.
“Moneyness” of an option at any given time depends on where the spot price of the underlying
is at that point of time relative to the strike price. The premium paid is not taken into
consideration while calculating moneyness of an Option, since the premium once paid is a sunk
cost and the profitability from exercising the option does not depend on the size of the
premium. Therefore, the decision (of the buyer of the option) whether to exercise the option or
not is not affected by the size of the premium. The following three terms are used to define the
moneyness of an option.

2.5.1

In-the-money option

An option is said to be in-the-money if on exercising the option, it would produce a cash inflow
for the buyer. Thus, Call Options are in-the-money when the value of spot price of the
underlying exceeds the strike price. On the other hand, Put Options are in-the- money when the
spot price of the underlying is lower than the strike price. Moneyness of an option should not be
confused with the profit and loss arising from holding an option contract. It should be noted
that while moneyness of an option does not depend on the premium paid, profit/loss do. Thus a
holder of an in-the-money option need not always make profit as the profitability also depends
on the premium paid.

16

2.5.2

Out-of- the-money option

An out-of-the-money option is an opposite of an in-the-money option. An option-holder will not
exercise the option when it is out-of-the-money. A Call option is out-of-the-money when its
strike price is greater than the spot price of the underlying and a Put option is out-of-themoney when the spot price of the underlying is greater than the option’s strike price.

2.5.3

At- the-money option

An at-the-money-option is one in which the spot price of the underlying is equal to the strike
price. It is at the stage where with any movement in the spot price of the underlying, the
option will either become in-the-money or out-of-the-money.
Illustration
Consider some Call and Put options on stock XYZ. As on 13 August, 2009, XYZ is trading at Rs
116.25. The table below gives the information on closing prices of four options, expiring in
September and December, and with strike prices of Rs . 115 and Rs. 117.50.

Table 2.3: Moneyness of call and put options

Strike Price

September Call

December Call

September

December Put

option

option

Put option

option

Rs 115.00

Rs. 8.35

Rs. 12.30

Rs. 4.00

Rs. 8.00

Rs 117.50

Rs. 4.00

Rs. 8.15

Rs. 8.00

Rs. 12.00

Suppose the spot price of the underlying (closing share price) as at end of September is Rs.
116 and at end of December is Rs. 118. On the basis of the rules stated above, which options
are in-the-money and which ones are out-of-the-money are given in the following table.

17

Table 2.4: Moneyness of call and put options

I n-the-money Options

Out -of-money Options

Option

Justification

Option

Justification

September 115

Rs. 115 < Rs. 116

September 115

Rs. 115 < Rs. 116

Call

September 117.50

Put

Rs. 117.50 > Rs. 116

September 117.50

Put

December 115

Rs 115 < Rs 118

December 115

Call

December 117.50

Rs. 117.50 > Rs. 116

Call

Rs 115 < Rs 118

Put

Rs 117.50 < Rs 118

December 117.50

Call

Rs 115 < Rs 118

Put

It may be noted that an option which is in-the-money at a particular instance may turn into
out-of-the– money (and vice versa) at another instance due to change in the price of the
underlying asset.

18

CHAPTER 3: Applications of Derivatives
In this chapter, we look at the participants in the derivatives markets and how they use
derivatives contracts.

3.1

Participants in the Derivatives Market

As equity markets developed, different categories of investors started participating in the
market. In India, equity market participants currently include retail

investors, corporate

investors, mutual funds, banks, foreign institutional investors etc. Each of these investor
categories uses the derivatives market to as a part of risk management, investment strategy or
speculation.
Based on the applications that deri vatives are put to, these investors can be broadly classified
into three groups:
•

Hedgers

•

Speculators, and

•

Arbitrageurs

We shall now look at each of these categories in detail.

3.1.1

Hedgers

These investors have a position (i.e., have bought stocks) in the underlying market but are
worried about a potential loss arising out of a change in the asset price in the future. Hedgers
participate in the derivatives market to lock the prices at which they will be able to transact in
the future. Thus, they try to avoid price risk through holding a position in the derivatives
market. Different hedgers take different positions in the derivatives market based on their
exposure in the underlying market. A hedger normally takes an opposite position in the
derivatives market to what he has in the underlying market.
Hedging in futures market can be done through two positions, viz. short hedge and long hedge.
Short Hedge
A short hedge involves taking a short position in the futures market. Short hedge position is
taken by someone who already owns the underlying asset or is expecting a future receipt of the
underlying asset.

19

For example, an investor holding Reliance shares may be worried about adverse future price
movements and may want to hedge the price risk. He can do so by holding a short position in
the derivatives market. The investor can go short in Reliance futures at the NSE. This protects
him from price movements in Reliance stock. In case the price of Reliance shares falls, the
investor will lose money in the shares but will make up for this loss by the gain made in
Reliance Futures. Note that a short position holder in a futures contract makes a profit if the
price of the underlying asset falls in the future. In this way, futures contract allows an investor
to manage his price risk.
Similarly, a sugar manufacturing company could hedge against any probable loss in the future
due to a fall in the prices of sugar by holding a short position in the futures/ forwards market. If
the prices of sugar fall, the company may l se on the sugar sale but the loss will be offset by
o
profit made in the futures contract.
Long Hedge
A long hedge involves holding a long position in the futures market. A Long position holder
agrees to buy the underlying asset at the expiry date by paying the agreed futures/ forward
price. This strategy is used by those who will need to acquire the underlying asset in the future.
For example, a chocolate manufacturer who needs to acquire sugar in the future will be worried
about any loss that may arise if the price of sugar increases in the future. To hedge against this
risk, the chocolate manufacturer can hold a long position in the sugar futures. If the price of
sugar rises, the chocolate manufacture may have to pay more to acquire sugar in the normal
market, but he will be compensated against this loss through a profit that will arise in the
futures market. Note that a long position holder in a futures contract makes a profit if the price
of the underlying asset increases in the future.
Long hedge strategy can also be used by those investors who desire to purchase the underlying
asset at a future date (that is, when he acquires the cash to purchase the asset) but wants to
lock the prevailing price in the market. This may be because he thinks that the prevailing price
is very low.
For example, suppose the current spot price of Wipro Ltd. is Rs. 250 per stock. An investor is
expecting to have Rs. 250 at the end of the month. The investor feels that Wipro Ltd. is at a
very attractive level and he may mi ss the opportunity to buy the stock if he waits till the end of
the month. In such a case, he can buy Wipro Ltd. in the futures market. By doing so, he can
lock in the price of the stock. Assuming that he buys Wipro Ltd. in the futures market at Rs.
250 (t his becomes his locked-in price), there can be three probable scenarios:

20

Scenario I: Price of Wipro Ltd. in the cash market on expiry date is Rs. 300.
As futures price is equal to the spot price on the expiry day, the futures price of Wipro would be
at Rs. 300 on expiry day. The investor can sell Wipro Ltd in the futures market at Rs. 300. By
doing this, he has made a profit of 300 – 250 = Rs. 50 in the futures trade. He can now buy
Wipro Ltd in the spot market at Rs. 300. Therefore, his total investment cost for buying one
share of Wipro Ltd equals Rs.300 (price in spot market) – 50 (profit in futures market) =
Rs.250. This is the amount of money he was expecting to have at the end of the month. If the
investor had not bought Wipro Ltd futures, he would have had only Rs. 250 and would have
been unable to buy Wipro Ltd shares in the cash market. The futures contract helped him to
lock in a price for the shares at Rs. 250.
Scenario II: Price of Wipro Ltd in the cash market on expiry day is Rs. 250.
As futures price tracks spot price, futures price would also be at Rs. 250 on expiry day. The
investor will sell Wipro Ltd in the futures market at Rs. 250. By doing this, he has made Rs. 0 in
the futures trade. He can buy Wipro Ltd in the spot market at Rs. 250. His total investment cost
for buying one share of Wipro will be = Rs. 250 (price in spot market) + 0 (loss in futures
market) = Rs. 250.
Scenario III: Price of Wipro Ltd in the cash market on expiry day is Rs. 200.
As futures price tracks spot price, futures price would also be at Rs. 200 on expiry day. The
investor will sell Wipro Ltd in the futures market at Rs. 200. By doing this, he has made a loss
of 200 – 250 = Rs. 50 in the futures trade. He can buy Wipro in the spot market at Rs. 200.
Therefore, his total investment cost for buying one share of Wipro Ltd will be = 200 (price in
spot market) + 50 (loss in futures market) = Rs. 250.
Thus, in all the three scenarios, he has to pay only Rs. 250. This is an example of a Long
Hedge.

3.1.2

Speculators

A Speculator is one who bets on the derivatives market based on his views on the potential
movement of the underlying stock price. Speculators take large, calculated risks as they trade
based on anticipated future price movements. They hope to make quick, large gains; but may
not always be successful. They normally have shorter holding time for their positions as
compared to hedgers. If the price of the underlying moves as per their expectation they can
make large profits. However, if the price moves in the opposite direction of their assessment,
the losses can also be enormous.

21

Illustration
Currently ICICI Bank Ltd (ICICI) is trading at, say, Rs. 500 in the cash market and also at Rs.
500 in the futures market (assumed values for the example only). A speculator feels that post
the RBI’s policy announcement, the share price of ICICI will go up. The speculator can buy the
stock in the spot market or in the derivatives market. If the derivatives contract size of ICICI is
1000 and if the speculator buys one futures contract of ICICI, he is buying ICICI futures worth
Rs 500 X 1000 = Rs. 5,00,000. For this he will have to pay a margin of say 20% of the contract
value to the exchange. The margin that the speculator needs to pay to the exchange is 20% of
Rs. 5,00 ,000 = Rs. 1,00,000. This Rs. 1,00,000 is his total investment for the futures contract.
If the speculator would have invested Rs. 1,00,000 in the spot market, he could purchase only
1,00,000 / 500 = 200 shares.
Let us assume that post RBI announcement price of ICICI share moves to Rs. 520. With one
lakh investment each in the futures and the cash market, the profits would be:
•

(520 – 500) X 1,000 = Rs. 20,000 in case of futures market and

•

(520 – 500) X 200 = Rs. 4000 in the case of cash market.

It should be noted that the opposite will result in case of adverse movement in stock prices,
wherein the speculator will be losing more in the futures market than in the spot market. This is
because the speculator can hold a larger position in the futures market where he has to pay
only the margin money.

3.1.3

Arbitrageurs

Arbitrageurs attempt to profit from pricing inefficiencies in the market by making simultaneous
trades that offset each other and capture a risk-free profit. An arbitrageur may also seek to
make profit in case there is price discrepancy between the stock price in the cash and the
derivatives markets.
For example, if on 1st August, 2009 the SBI share is trading at Rs. 1780 in the cash market and
the futures contract of SBI is trading at Rs. 17 90, the arbitrageur would buy the SBI shares
(i.e. make an investment of Rs. 1780) in the spot market and sell the same number of SBI
futures contracts. On expiry day (say 24 August, 2009), the price of SBI futures contracts will
close at the price at which SBI closes in the spot market. In other words, the settlement of the
futures contract will happen at the closing price of the SBI shares and that is why the futures
and spot prices are said to converge on the expiry day. On expiry day, the arbitrageur wi ll sell
the SBI stock in the spot market and buy the futures contract, both of which will happen at the
closing price of SBI in the spot market. Since the arbitrageur has entered into off-setting
positions, he will be able to earn Rs. 10 irrespective of the prevailing market price on the expiry
date.

22

There are three possible price scenarios at which SBI can close on expiry day. Let us calculate
the profit/ loss of the arbitrageur in each of the scenarios where he had initially (1 August)
purchased SBI shares in the spot market at Rs 1780 and sold the futures contract of SBI at Rs.
1790:
Scenario I: SBI shares closes at a price greater than 1780 (say Rs. 2000) in the spot market
on expiry day (24 August 2009)
SBI futures will close at the same price as SBI i n spot market on the expiry day i.e., SBI futures
will also close at Rs. 2000. The arbitrageur reverses his previous transaction entered into on 1
August 2009.
Profit/ Loss (– ) in spot market = 2000 – 1780 = Rs. 220
Profit/ Loss (– ) in futures market = 1 790 – 2000 = Rs. ( – ) 210
Net profit/ Loss (– ) on both transactions combined = 220 – 210 = Rs. 10 profit.
Scenario II: SBI shares close at Rs 1780 in the spot market on expiry day (24 August 2009)
SBI futures will close at the same price as SBI in spot mar ket on expiry day i.e., SBI futures will
also close at Rs 1780. The arbitrageur reverses his previous transaction entered into on 1
August 2009.
Profit/ Loss (– ) in spot market = 1780 – 1780 = Rs 0
Profit/ Loss (– ) in futures market = 1790 – 1780 = Rs. 1 0
Net profit/ Loss (– ) on both transactions combined = 0 + 10 = Rs. 10 profit.
Scenario III: SBI shares close at Rs. 1500 in the spot market on expiry day (24 August 2009)
Here also, SBI futures will close at Rs. 1500. The arbitrageur reverses his previous transaction
entered into on 1 August 2009.
Profit/ Loss (– ) in spot market = 1500 – 1780 = Rs. (– ) 280
Profit/ Loss (– ) in futures market = 1790 – 1500 = Rs. 290
Net profit/ Loss (– ) on both transactions combined = ( – ) 280 + 290 = Rs. 10 profit.
Thus, in all three scenarios, the arbitrageur will make a profit of Rs. 10, which was the
difference between the spot price of SBI and futures price of SBI, when the transaction was
entered into. This is called a “risk less profit” since once the transaction is entered into on 1
August, 2009 (due to the price difference between spot and futures), the profit is locked.

23

Irrespective of where the underlying share price closes on the expiry date of the contract, a
profit of Rs. 10 is assured. The investment made by the arbitrageur is Rs. 1780 (when he buys
SBI in the spot market). He makes this investment on 1 August 2009 and gets a return of Rs.
10 on this investment in 23 days (24 August). This means a return of 0.56% in 23 days. If we
annualize this, it is a return of nearly 9% per annum. One should also note that this opportunity
to make a risk-less return of 9% per annum will not always remain. The difference between the
spot and futures price arose due to some inefficiency (in the market), which was exploited by
the arbitrageur by buying shares in spot and selling futures. As more and more such arbitrage
trades take place, the difference between spot and futures prices would narrow thereby
reducing the attractiveness of further arbitrage.

3.2

Uses of Derivatives

3.2.1

Risk management

The most important purpose of the derivatives market is risk management. Risk management
for an investor comprises of the following three processes:
•

Identifying the desired level of risk that the investor is willing to take on his
investments;

•

Identifying and measuring the actual level of risk that the investor is carrying; and

•

Making arrangements which may include trading (buying/selling) of derivatives contracts
that allow him to match the actual and desired levels of risk.

The example of hedging discussed above illustrates the process of risk management through
futures.

3.2.2

Market efficiency

Efficient markets are fair and competitive and do not allow an investor to make risk free profits.
Derivatives assist in improving the efficiency of the markets, by providing a self-correcting
mechanism. Arbitrageurs are one section of market participants who trade whenever there is
an opportunity to make risk free profits till the opportunity ceases to exist. Risk free profits are
not easy to make in more efficient markets. When trading occurs, there is a possibility that
some amount of mispricing might occur in the markets. The arbitrageurs step in to take
advantage of this mispricing by buying from the cheaper market and selling in the higher
market. Their actions quickly narrow the prices and thereby reducing the inefficiencies.

24

3.2.3

Price discovery

One of the primary functions of derivatives markets is price discovery. They provide valuable
information about the prices and expected price fluctuations of the underlying assets in two
ways:
•

First, many of these assets are traded in markets in different geographical locations.
Because of this, assets may be traded at different prices in different markets. In
derivatives markets, the price of the contract often serves as a proxy for the price of the
underlying asset. For example, gold may trade at different prices in Mumbai and Delhi
but a derivatives contract on gold would have one value and so traders in Mumbai and
Delhi can validate the prices of spot markets in their respective location to see if it is
cheap or expensive and trade accordingly.

•

Second, the prices of the futures contracts serve as prices that can be used to get a
sense of the market expectation of future prices. For example, say there is a company
that produces sugar and expects that the production of sugar will take two months from
today. As sugar prices fluctuate daily, the company does not know if after two months
the price of sugar will be higher or lower than it is today. How does it predict where the
price of sugar will be in future? It can do this by monitoring prices of derivatives contract
on sugar (say a Sugar Forward contract). If the forward price of sugar is trading higher
than the spot price that means that the market is expecting the sugar spot price to go
up in future. If there were no derivatives price, it would have to wait for two months
before knowing the market price of sugar on that day. Based on derivatives price the
management of the sugar company can make strategic and tactical decisions of how
much sugar to produce and when.

25

CHAPTER 4: Trading Futures
To understand futures trading and profit/loss that can occur while trading, knowledge of pay -off
diagrams is necessary. Pay-off refers to profi t or loss in a trade.

A pay-off is positive if the

investor makes a profit and negative if he makes a loss. A pay-off diagram represents
profit/loss in the form of a graph which has the stock price on the X axis and the profit/ loss on
the Y axis. Thus, from the graph an investor can calculate the profit or loss that his position can
make for different stock price values. Forwards and futures have same pay-offs.

In other

words, their profit/loss values behave in a similar fashion for different values of s
tock price. In
this chapter, we shall focus on pay-offs of futures contracts.

4.1

Pay-off of Futures

The Pay-off of a futures contract on maturity depends on the spot price of the underlying asset
at the time of maturity and the price at which the contrac t was initially traded. There are two
positions that could be taken in a futures contract:
a. Long position: one who buys the asset at the futures price (F) takes the long position
and
b. Short position: one who sells the asset at the futures price (F) takes the short position
In general, the pay-off for a long position in a futures contract on one unit of an asset is:
Long Pay -off = S T – F
Where F is the traded futures price and ST is the spot price of the asset at expiry of the contract
(that is, closing price on the expiry date).

This is because the holder of the contract is

obligated to buy the asset worth S T for F.
Similarly, the pay-off from a short position in a futures contract on one unit of asset is:
Short Pay-off = F – S T

4.1.1

Pay- off diagram for a long futures position

The Figure 4.1 depicts the payoff diagram for an investor who is long on a futures contract. The
investor has gone long in the futures contract at a price F.

26

Long Futures

Figure 4.1: Payoff for Long Futures
The long investor makes profits if the spot price (ST ) at expiry exceeds the futures contract
price F, and makes losses if the opposite happens. In the above diagram, the slanted line is a
45 degree line, implying that for every one rupee change in the price of the underlying, the
profit/ loss will change by one rupee. As can be seen from the diagram, if S T is less than F, the
investor makes a loss and the higher the ST , the lower the loss. Similarly, if S T is greater than
F, the investor makes a profit and higher the S T, the higher is the profit.

4.1.2

Pay- off diagram for a short position

Figure 4.2 is the pay-off diagram for someone who has taken a short position on a futures
contract on the stock at a price F.
Short Futures

Figure 4.2: Payoff for Short Futures
Here, the investor makes profits if the spot price (S T) at expiry is below the futures contract
price F, and makes losses if the opposite happens. Here, if ST is less than F, the investor makes

27

a profit and the higher the ST , the lower the profit. Similarly, if ST is greater than F, the
investor makes a loss and the higher the S T, the lower is the profit.
As can be seen from the pay-off diagrams for futures contracts, the pay-off is depicted by a
straight line (both buy and sell). Such pay-off diagrams are known as linear pay-offs.

4.2

A theoretical model for Future pricing

While futures prices in reality are determined by demand and supply, one can obtain a theoretical

Futures price, using the following model:
Where:
F

= Futures price

S

= Spot price of the underlying asset

r

= Cost of financing (using continuously compounded interest rate)

T

= Time till expiration in years

e

= 2.71828

Example: Security XYZ Ltd trades in the spot market at Rs. 1150. Money can be invested at 11% per
annum. The fair value of a one-month futures contract on XYZ is calculated as follows:

This model is also called the cost of carry model of pricing futures. It calculates the Fair Value of
futures contract (Rs. 1160) based on the current spot price of the underlying asset (Rs. 1150),
interest rate and time to maturity. Every time the market price for futures (which is determined by
demand and supply) deviates from the fair value determined by using the above formula,
arbitragers enter into trades to capture the arbitrage profit. For example, if the market price of the
Future is higher than the fair value, the arbitrageur would sell in the futures market and buy in the
spot market simultaneously and hold both trades till expiry and book riskless profit. As more and
more people do this, the Future price will come down to its fair value level.

28

CHAPTER 5: Trading Options
In this chapter we will discuss pay -outs for various strategies using options and strategies
which can be used to i mprove returns by using options.

5.1

Option Payout

There are two sides to every option contract. On the one side is the option buyer who has taken
a long position (i.e., has bought the option). On the other side is the option seller who has
taken a short position (i.e., has sold the option). The seller of the option receives a premium
from the buyer of the option. It may be noted that while computing profit and loss, premium
has to be taken into consideration. Also, when a buyer makes profit, the seller makes a loss of
equal magnitude and vice versa. In this section, we will discuss payouts for various strategies
using options.

5.1.1

A long position in a call option

In this strategy, the investor has the right to buy the asset in the future at a predetermined
strike price i.e., strike price (K) and the option seller has the obligation to sell the asset at the
strike price (K). If the settlement price (underlying stock closing price) of the asset is above the
strike price, then the call option buyer will exercise his option and buy the stock at the strike
price (K). If the settlement price (underlying stock closing price) is lower than the strike price,
the option buyer will not exercise the option as he can buy the same stock from the market at a
price lower than the strike price.

5.1.2

A long position in a put option

In this strategy, the investor has bought the right to sell the underlying asset in the future at a
predetermined strike price (K). If the settlement price (underlying stock closing price) at
maturity is lower than the strike price, then the put option holder will exercise his option and
sell the stock at the strike price (K). If the settlement price (underlying stock closing price) is
higher than the strike price, the option buyer will not ex ercise the option as he can sell the
same stock in the market at a price higher than the strike price.

5.1.3

A short position in a call option

In this strategy, the option seller has an obligation to sell the asset at a predetermined strike
price (K) i f the buyer of the option chooses to exercise the option. The buyer of the option will
exercise the option if the spot price at maturity is any value higher than (K). If the spot price is
lower than (K), the buyer of the option will not exercise his/her option.

29

5.1.4

A short position in a put option

In this strategy, the option seller has an obligation to buy the asset at a predetermined strike
price (K) if the buyer of the option chooses to exercise his/her option. The buyer of the option
will exercise h option to sell at (K) if the spot price at maturity is lower than (K). If the spot
is
price is higher than (K), then the option buyer will not exercise his/her option.

Table 5.1: Explanation of pay-offs for long options

Option Position

Buyer’s Pay -off

Explanation

If the closing spot price on any day on or
before expiry is at a value above the strike
Long Call Option

Max (S T – K, 0) –

price of the option, then the option buyer

Premium

can make profit equal to the difference
between the spot price and str ike price; else
he makes zero profit
If the closing spot price on any day on or
before expiry is at a value lower than the

Long Put Option

Max (K – ST, 0) –

strike price of the option, then the option

Premium

buyer makes profit equal to the difference
between the strike and spot price; else he
make zero profit

The buyer’s profit is equal to the seller’s loss. Therefore, in the above table the seller’s loss is S T
– K for a short call option if the spot price closes at a value above the strike price of the option
and is K –S T for a short put option if the spot price closes at a value lower than the strike price
of the option. The above four positions and their pay-offs are depicted in the figure below:

30

Figure 5.1: Pay -off for a buyer of a call option
The figure shows the profits/losses for a buyer of a three-month Nifty 2250 call option. As can be
seen, as the spot Nifty rises, the call option is in-the-money. If upon expiration, Nifty closes above
the strike of 2250, the buyer would exercise his option a profit to the extent of the difference
nd
between the Nifty
-close and the strike price. The profits possible on this option are potentially
unlimited. However, if Nifty falls below the strike of 2250, the buyer lets the option expire. His losses
are limited to the extent of the premium that he paid for buying the option.

Figure 5.2: Pay-off for a seller of a call option
The figure shows the profits/losses for a seller of a three-month Nifty 2250 call option. As the spot
Nifty rises, the call option is in-the-money and the writer starts making losses. If upon expiration,
Nifty closes above the strike of 2250, the buyer would exercise his option on the writer who would
suffer a loss to the extent of the difference between the Nifty-close and the strike price. The loss that
can be incurred by the writer of the option is potentially unlimited, whereas the maximum profit is
limited to the extent of the upfront option premium charged by him.

31

Figure 5.3: Pay-off for a buyer of a put option
The figure shows the profits/losses for a buyer of a three-month Nifty 2250 put option. As can be seen,
as the spot Nifty falls, the put option is in-the-money. If upon expiration, Nifty closes below the strike
of 2250, the buyer would exercise his option and profit to the exte of the difference between the
nt
strike price and Nifty-close. The profits possible on this option can be as high as the strike price.
However, if Nifty rises above the strike of 2250, he lets the option expire. His losses are limited to the
extent of the premium he paid for buying the option.

Figure 5.4: Pay-off for a seller of a put option
The figure shows the profits/losses for a seller of a three-month Nifty 2250 put option. As the spot
Nifty falls, the put option is in-the-money and the writer starts making losses. If upon expiration,
Nifty closes below the strike of 2250, the buyer would exercise his option on the writer who would
suffer a loss to the extent of the difference between the strike price and Nifty-close. The loss that
can be incurred by the writer of the option is a maximum extent of the strike price (since the worst
that can happen is that the asset price can fall to zero) whereas the maximum profit is limited to
the extent of the upfront option premium of charged by him.

32

5.2

Option Strategies

An option strategy is implemented to try and make gains from the movement in the underlying
price of an asset. As discussed above, options are derivatives that give the buyer the right to
exercise the option at a future date. Unlike futures and forwards which have linear pay -offs and
do not require an initial outlay (upfront payment), options have non linear pay-offs and do
require an initial outlay (or premium). In this section we discuss various strategies which can
be used to maximize returns by using options.

5.2.1

Long option strategy

A long option strategy is a strategy of buying an option according to the view on future price
movement of the underlying. A person with a bullish opinion on the underlying will buy a call
option on that asset/sec urity, while a person with a bearish opinion on the underlying will buy a
put option on that asset/security. An important characteristic of long option strategies is limited
risk and unlimited profit potential. An option buyer can only lose the amount paid for the option
premium. At the same time, theoretically, the profit potential is unlimited.
Calls
An investor having a bullish opinion on underlying can expect to have positive returns by
buying a call option on that asset/security. When a call option is purchased, the call option
holder is exposed to the stock performance in the spot market without actually possessing the
stock and does so for a fraction of the cost involved in purchasing the stock in the spot market.
The cost incurred by the call option holder is the option premium. Thus, he can take advantage
of a smaller investment and maximize his profits.
Consider the purchase of a call option at the price (premium) c. We take
S T = Spot price at time T
K = Strike price
The payout in two scenarios is as follows:
Profit/Loss = – c, if S T = K
Profit/Loss = (S T - K ) – c if S T = K
Let us explain this with some examples. Mr. A buys a Call on an index (such as Nifty 50) with a
strike price of Rs. 2000 for premium of Rs. 81. Consider the values of the index at expiration as
1800, 1900, 2100, an d 2200.

33

For S T = 1800, Profit/Loss = 0 – 81 = – 81 (maximum loss = premium paid)
For S T = 1900, Profit/Loss = 0 – 81 = – 81 (maximum loss = premium paid)
For S T = 2100, Profit/Loss = 2100 – 2000 – 81 = 19
For S T = 2200, Profit/Loss = 2200 – 2000 – 81 = 1 19
As we can see from the example, the maximum loss suffered by the buyer of the Call
option is Rs. 81, which is the premium that he paid to buy the option. His maximum
profits are unlimited and they depend on where the underlying price moves.
Puts
An investor having a bearish opinion on the underlying can expect to have positive returns by
buying a put option on that asset/security. When a put option is purchased, the put option
buyer has the right to sell the stock at the strike price on or before the exp iry date depending
on where the underlying price is.
Consider the purchase of a put option at price (premium) p. We take
K = exercise price
Profit/Loss = (K – S T ) – p if S T = K
Profit/Loss = – p if S T = K
Let us explain this with some examples. Mr. X buys a put at a strike price of Rs. 2000 for a
premium of Rs. 79. Consider the values of the index at expiration at 1800, 1900, 2100, and
2200.
For S T = 1800, Profit/Loss = 200 0 – 1800 – 79 = 121
For S T = 1900, Profit/Loss = 2000 – 1900 – 79 = 21
For S T = 2100, Profit/Loss = – 79 (maximum loss is the premium paid)
For S T = 2200, Profit/Loss = – 79 (maximum loss is the premium paid)

34

As we can see from the example, the maximum loss suffered by the buyer of the Put
option is Rs. 79, which is the premium that he paid to buy the option. His maximum
profits are unlimited and depend on where the underlying price moves.

5.2.2

Short options strategy

A short options strategy is a strategy where options are sold to make money upfront with a
view that the options will expire out of money at the expiry date (i.e., the buyer of the option
will not exercise the same and the seller can keep the premium). As opposed to a long options
strategy, here a person with a bullish opinion on the underlying will sell a put option in the hope
that prices will rise and the buyer will not exercise the option leading to profit for the seller. On
the other hand, a person with a bearish view on the underlying will sell a call option in the hope
that prices will fall and the buyer will not exercise the option leading to profit for the seller. As
opposed to a long options strategy where the downside was limited to the price paid for the
option, here the downside is unlimited and the profit is limited to the price of selling the option
(the premium).
Call
An investor with a bearish opinion on the underlying can take advantage of falling stock prices
by selling a call option on the asset/security. If the stock price falls, the profit to the seller will
be the premium earned by selling the option. He will lose in case the stock price increases
above the strike price.
Consider the selling of a call option at the price (premium) c. We take
K = exercise price
Profit/Loss = c if S T = K
Profit/Loss = c – (S T – K) if S T = K
Now consider this example: A sells a call at a strike price of Rs 2000 for a premium of Rs 81.
Consider values of index at expiration at 1800, 1900, 2100, and 2200.
For S T = 1800, Profit/Loss = 81 (maximum profit = premium received)
For S T = 2100, Profit/Loss = 81 – (2100 – 2000) = – 1 9
For S T =2200, Profit/Loss = 81 – (2100 – 2200) = – 119

35

As we can see from the example above, the maximum loss suf fered by the seller of
the Call option is unlimited (this is the reverse of the buyer’s gains). His maximum
profits are limited to the premium received.
Puts
An investor with a bullish opinion on the underlying can take advantage of rising prices by
selling a put option on the asset/security. If the stock price rises, the profit to the seller will be
the premium earned by selling the option. He will lose in case the stock price falls below the
strike price.
Consider the sale of a put option at the price (premium) p . We take:
K = exercise price
Profit/Loss = p – (K – ST) if S T = K
Profit/Loss = p if S T = K
We sell a put at a strike price of Rs. 2000 for Rs. 79. Consider values of index at expiration as
1800, 1900, 2100, and 2200.
For S T = 1800, Profit/Loss = 79 – (2000 – 1800) = (– ) 121
For S T = 1900, Profit/Loss = 79 – (2000 – 1900) = (– ) 21
As we can see from the example above the maximum loss suffered by the seller of the
Put option is unlimited (this is the reverse of the buyer’s gains). His maximum profits
are limited to the premium received.

5.3

Determination of option prices

Like in case of any traded good, the price of any option is determined by the demand for and
supply of that option. This price has two components: intrinsic value and time value.

36

5.3.1
•

Intrinsic value and time value
Intrinsic value of an option: Intrinsic value of an option at a given time is the amount the
holder of the option will get if he exercises the option at that time. In other words, the intrinsic
value of an option is the amount the option is in-the-money (ITM). If the option is out -ofthe-money (OTM), its intrinsic value is zero. Putting it another way, the intrinsic value of a call
is Max [0, (S t — K)] which means that the intrinsic value of a call is the greater of 0 or (St — K).
Similarly, the intrinsic value of a put is Max [0, K — S t] i.e., the greater of 0 or (K — S t) where
K is the strike price and S t is the spot price.

•

Time value of an option: In addition to the intrinsic value, the seller charges a ‘time value’
from the buyers of the option. This is because the more time there is for the contract to expire,
the greater the chance that the exercise of the contract will become more profitable for the
buyer. This is a risk for the seller and he seeks compensation for it by demanding a ‘time value’.
The time value of an option can be obtained by taking the difference between its premium and
its intrinsic value. Both calls and puts have time value. An option that is Out-of-the-money
(OTM) or At-the-money (ATM) has only time value and no intrinsic value. Usually, the
maximum time value exists when the option is ATM. The longer the time to expiration, the
greater is an option’s time value, all else being equal. At expiration, an option has no time
value.

Illustration
In the following two tables, five different examples are given for call option and put option
respectively. As stated earlier, premium is determined by demand and supply. The examples
show how intrinsic value and time value vary depending on underlying price, strike price and
premium.
Table 5.2: Intrinsic and Time Value for Call Options: Examples
Underlying
Price (Rs.)
100
101
103
88
95

Strike
(Rs.)
90
90
90
90
90

Price

Premium
(Rs.)

Intrinsic
Value
(Rs.)

12
13
14
1
5.50

10
11
13
0
5

37

Time
Value
(Rs.)
2
2
1
1
0.50

Table 5.3: Intrinsic and Time Value for Put Options: Examples
Underlying
Price (Rs.)

Strike
(Rs.)

100
99
97
112
105

5.3.2

Price

110
110
110
110
110

Premium
(Rs.)

Intrinsic
Value
(Rs.)

12
13
14
1
5.50

10
11
13
0
5

Time
Value
(Rs.)
2
2
1
1
0.5 0

Factors impacting option prices

The supply and demand of options and hence their prices are influenced by the following
factors:
•

The underlying price,

•

The strike price,

•

The time to expiration,

•

The underlying asset’s volatility, and

•

Risk free rate

Each of the five parameters has a different impact on the option pricing of a Call and a Put.
The underlying price: Call and Put options react differently to the movement in the
underlying price. As the underlying price increases, intrinsic value of a call increases and
intrinsic value of a put decreases. Thus, in the case of a Call option, the higher the price of the
underlying asset from strike price, the higher is the value (premium) of the call option. On the
other hand, in case of a put option, the higher the price of the underlying asset, the lower is the
value of the put option.
The strike price: The strike price is specified in the option contract and does not change over
time. The higher the strike price, the smaller is the intrinsic value of a call option and the
greater is the intrinsic value of a put option. Everything else remaining constant, as the strike
price increases, the value of a call option decreases and the value of a put option increases.
Similarly, as the strike price decreases, the price of the call option increases while that of a put
option decreases.
Time to expiration:

Time to expiration is the time remaining for the option to expire.

Obviously, the time remai ning in an option’s life moves constantly towards zero. Even if the
underlying price is constant, the option price will still change since time reduces constantly and

38

the time for which the risk is remaining is reducing. The time value of both call as well as put
option decreases to zero (and hence, the price of the option falls to its intrinsic value) as the
time to expiration approaches zero. As time passes and a call option approaches maturity, its
value declines, all other parameters remaining constant. Similarly, the value of a put option
also decreases as we approach maturity. This is called “time-decay”.
Volatility: Volatility is an important factor in the price of an option. Volatility is defined as the
uncertainty of returns. The more volatile the underlying higher is the price of the option on the
underlying. Whether we are discussing a call or a put, this relationship remains the same.
Risk free rate: Risk free rate of return is the theoretical rate of return of an investment which
has no risk (zero risk). Government securities are considered to be risk free since their return is
assured by the Government.

Risk free rate is the amount of return which an investor is

guaranteed to get over the life time of an option without taking any risk. As we increase the
risk free rate the price of the call option increases marginally whereas the price of the put
option decreases marginally. It may however be noted that option prices do not change much
with changes in the risk free rate.
The impact of all the parameters which affect the price of an option is given in the table below:

With an increase in the
parameter:

Price of Call Option

Price of Put Option

Asset Price

Exercise Price

Time to expiration

Volatility

Risk free rate
Even though option prices are determined by market demand and supply, there are various
models of getting a fair value of the options, the most popular of which is the Black Scholes Merton Model. In this model, the theoretical value of the options is obtained by inputting into a
formula values of the above-mentioned five factors. It may be noted that the prices arrived at
by using this model are only indicative.

39

CHAPTER 6: Derivatives Trading On Exchange
Futures and options contracts are traded on the NSE’s F&O Segment. The F&O Segment of NSE
is a very liquid market clocking high turnover daily.

6.1

Derivatives Trading on NSE

The F&O segment on NSE provides trading facilities for the following derivative instruments:
•

Index futures,

•

Index options,

•

Individual stock futures, and

•

Individual stock options.

As an investor one can invest in any of these products. All these products have different
contract specifications.

6.1.1

Contract specifications for index based futures

Index futures are futures contracts on an index, like the Nifty. The underlying asset in case of
index futures is the index itself. For example, Nifty futures traded in NSE track spot Nifty
returns. If the Nifty index rises, so does the pay off of the long position in Nifty futures. Apart
from N ifty other indices such as CNX IT, Bank Nifty etc. are also traded on the NSE. They have
one-month, two-month, and three -month expiry cycle: a one-month Nifty futures contract
would expire in the current month, a two-month contract the next month, and a three -month
contract the month after. All contracts expire on the last Thursday of every month, or the
previous trading day if the last Thursday is a trading holiday. Thus, a September 2009 contract
would expire on the last Thursday of September 2009, which would be the final settlement date
of the contract. Table 6.1 summarizes contract specifications for S&P Nifty Index Futures.

40

Table 6.1: Contract Specification for S&P Nifty Index Futures
Underlying Index

S&P CNX Nifty

Exchange of trading

National Stock Exchange of India Limited

Security Descriptor

FUTIDX NIFTY

Contract Size

Permitted lot size is 50
(minimum value Rs 2 lakh)

Trading Cycle

The future contracts have a maximum of
three month trading cycle - the near month
(one), the next month (two), and the far
month

(three).

introduced

on

New
the

contracts

are

trading

day

next

following the expiry of the near month
contract.
Expiry Day

The last Thursday of the expiry month or
the

previous

trading

day

if

the

last

Thursday is a trading holiday
Settlement Basis

Mark-to-market and final settlement are
cash settled on T+1 basis

Settlement Price

Daily Settlement price is the closing price
of the futures contracts for the trading day
and the final settlement price is the value
of the underlying index on the last trading
day

6.1.2

Contract specifications for index based options

Index based options are similar to index based futures as far as the underlying is concerned
i.e., in both the cases the underlying security is an Index. As the value of the index increases,
the value of the call option on index increases, while put option value reduces. All index based
options traded on NSE are European type options and expire on the last Thursday of the expiry
month. They have expiries of one month or two months, or three months. Longer dated expiry
contracts with expiries up to 3.5 years have also been introduced for trading. Table 6.2
summarizes contract specifications for S&P Nifty Index Options.

41

Table 6.2: Contract Specification for S&P CNX Nifty Options
Underlying Index

S&P CNX Nifty

Security Descriptor

OPTIDX NIFTY

Contract Size

Permitted lot size is 50
(minimum value Rs. 2 lakh)

Trading Cycle

The Option contracts have a maximum of
three

month

trading

cycle---the

near

month (one), the next month (two), and
the far month (three). New contracts are
introduced

on

the

next

trading

day

contract.
Expiry Day

the

previous

trading

day

if

the

last

Settlement Basis

Cash Settlement on T+1 basis

Style of Option

European

Daily Settlement

Not Applicable

Final Settlement price

Closing value of the index on the last
trading day.

6.1.3

Contract specifications for stock based futures

Stock based futures are fu tures based on individual stocks. The underlying on these futures are
the individual company stocks traded on the Exchange. The expiration cycle of the stock futures
is same as that of index futures.

Table 6.3 summarizes the contract Specification for Stock

Futures.

42

Table 6.3: Contract Specification for Stock Futures
Underlying

Individual Securities

Exchange of Trading

NSE

Security Descriptor

FUTSTK

Contract Size

As specified by the exchange (minimum
value of Rs. 2 lakh)

Trading Cycle

The futures cont racts have a maximum of
three

month

trading

cycle---the

near

month (one), the next month (two), and
the far month (three). New contracts are
introduced

on

the

next

trading

day

contract
Expiry Day

the previous day if Thursday is a trading
holiday

Settlement Basis

Mark to market and final settlement is cash
settled on T+1 basis

Settlement Price

Daily settlement price is the closing price
of the futures contracts for the trading day
and the final settlement price is the closing
price of the underlying security on the last
trading day.

6.1.4

Contract specifications for stock based options

Stock based options are options for which the underlying is individual stocks. A ll the stock
based options at the NSE have European style settlement. Table 6.4 summarizes the contract
specification for Stock Options.

43

Table 6.4: Contract Specification for Stock Options

Underlying

Individual Securities available for trading in
cash market

Security Descriptor

OPTSTK

Style of Option

European

Contract size

As specified by the exchange (minimum
value of Rs 2 lakh)

Trading Cycle

The options contracts have a maximum of
three month trading cycle—the near month
(one), the next month (two), and the a r
f
month

(three).

introduced

on

New
the

contracts

are

trading

day

next

following the expiry of near month contract
Expiry Day

the

previous

trading

day

if

the

last

Settlement Basis

Daily Settlement on T+1 basis and final
option exercise settlement on T+1 basis

Daily Settlement

Premium value (net)

Final Settlement price

Closing price of underlying on exercise day
or on expiry day

6.2

Using Daily Newspapers to Track Futures and Options

Business newspapers can be used to track the end of day prices and trends in F&O. The prices
of F&O can be tracked in the F&O section in all the major business dailies such as Economic
Times, Business Standard, Financial Express etc. An extract of a financial newspaper is given
below.

44

There are various fields in this section, for example:
•

Company: It is the name of the underlying company or index whose futures are traded.

•

Spot Price: Spot price of the underlying security or index.

•

Futures Price: Future price of the underlying security or index.

•

% Diff: Percentage change in the price of the future from the previous day.

•

OI Change %: Percentage change in the open interest of a derivative contract in a day.

What is Open Interest (OI) and Contract in the enclosed charts?
Open interest is the total number of options and/or futures contracts that are not closed out on
a particular day, that is contracts that have been purchased and are still outstanding and not
been sold and vice versa. A c ommon misconception is that open interest is the same thing as
volume of options and futures trades. This is not correct since there could be huge volumes but
if the volumes are just because of participants squaring off their positions then the open
interest would not be large.

On the other hand, if the volumes are large because of fresh

positions being created then the open interest would also be large.
The Contract column tells us about the strike price of the call or put and the date of their
settlement. For example, the first entry in the Active Calls section (4500.00 -August) means it is
a Nifty call with Rs 4500 strike price, that would expire in August. It is interesting to note from
the newspaper extract given above is that it is possible to have a number of options at different

45

strike prices but all of them have the same expiry date. For example, there are a number of
call options on Nifty with different strike prices, but all of them expiring on the same expiry
date in August.
There are different tables explaining different sections of the F&O markets.
1. Positive trend: It gives information about the top gainers in the futures market.
2. Negative trend: It gives information about the top losers in the futures market.
3. Future OI gainers: It lists those futures whose % increases in open interest are among the
highest on that day.
4. Future OI losers: It lists those futures whose % decreases in open interest are among the
highest on that day.
5. Active Calls: Calls with high trading volumes on that particular day.
6. Active Puts: Puts with high trading volumes on that particular day.

6.3

Settlement of Derivatives

Settlement refers to the process through which trades are cleared by the payment/receipt of
currency, securities or cash flows on periodic payment dates an d on the date of the final
settlement. The settlement process is somewhat elaborate for derivatives instruments which
are exchange traded. (They have been very briefly outlined here. For a more detailed
explanation, please refer to NCFM Derivatives Markets (Dealers) Module). The settlement
process for exchange traded derivatives is standardized and a certain set of procedures exist
which take care of the counterparty risk posed by these instruments. At the NSE, the National
Securities Clearing Corporation Limited (NSCCL) undertakes the clearing and settlement of all
trades executed on the F&O segment of NSE. It also acts as a legal counterparty to all trades
on the F&O segment and guarantees their financial settlement. There are two clearing entities
in the settlement process: Clearing Members and Clearing Banks.

6.3.1

Clearing members

A Clearing member (CM) is the member of the clearing corporation i.e., NSCCL. These are the
members who have the authority to clear the trades executed in the F&O segment in the
exchange. There are three types of clearing members with different set of functions:
1) Self -clearing Members: Members who clear and settle trades executed by them only
on their own accounts or on account of their clients.
2) Trading cum Clearing Members: T hey clear and settle their own trades as well as
trades of other trading members (TM).
3) Professional Clearing Members (PCM): They only clear and settle trades of others
but do not trade themselves. PCMs are typically Financial Institutions or Banks who are
admitted by the Clearing Corporation as members.

46

6.3.2

Clearing banks

Some commercial banks have been designated by the NSCCL as Clearing Banks. Financial
settlement can take place only through Clearing Banks. All the clearing members are required
to open a separate bank account with an NSCCL designated clearing bank for the F&O segment.
The clearing members keep a margin amount in these bank accounts.

6.4

Settlement of Futures

When two parties trade a futures contract, both have to deposit margin money wh ich is called
the initial margin. Futures contracts have two types of settlement: (i) the mark-to-market
(MTM) settlement which happens on a continuous basis at the end of each day, and (ii) the final
settlement which happens on the last trading day of the futures contract i.e., the last Thursday
of the expiry month.

6.4.1

Mark to market settlement

To cover for the risk of default by the counterparty for the clearing corporation, the futures
contracts are marked-t o-market on a daily basis by the exchange. Mark to market settlement is
the process of adjusting the margin balance in a futures account each day for the change in the
value of the contract from the previous day, based on the daily settlement price of the futures
contracts (Please refer to the Tables given below.). This process helps the clearing corporation
in managing the counterparty risk of the future contracts by requiring the party incurring a loss
due to adverse price movements to part with the loss amount on a daily basis. Simply put, the
party in the loss position pays the clearing corporation the margin money to cover for the
shortfall in cash. In extraordinary times, the Exchange can require a mark to market more
frequently (than daily).
To ensure a fair mark-to-market process, the clearing corporation computes and declares the
official price for determining daily gains and losses. This price is called the “settlement price”
and represents the closing price of the futures contract. The closing price for any contract of
any given day is the weighted average trading price of the contract in the last half hour of
trading.
Illustration of mark to market settlement
To illustrate this concept, let us consider a futures contract that has been bought on the XYZ
Ltd. at an initial price of Rs. 1000. The exchange sets two margins; Initial Margin and
Maintenance Margin. Both parties to a derivative contract have to pay a certain Margin the
moment they enter into the Contract; it is called Initial Margin. Maintenance margin is the level
at which the margin has to be always maintained. In case the margin falls to maintenance

47

margin or below, additional funds are called for to take have to take the margin to the Initial
margin level.
Let us say, Initial Futures Price = Rs. 1000; Initial Margin requirement = Rs. 500; Maintenance
Margin Requirement = Rs. 300; Contract size = 10 (that is, one futures contract has 10 shares
of XYZ. How the end of day margin balance of the holder of (i) a long position of a contract and
(ii) a short position of a contract, varies with the changes in settlement price from day to day is
given below.
Table 6.5 Mark to market margin of a long position
Day

Beginning
Balance
(Rs.)

Funds
Deposited
(Rs.)

Settlement
Price (Rs.)

Future
Price
Change
(A) (Rs.)

Gain/Loss
= (A) X
Contract
Size (Rs.)

Ending
Balance
(Rs.)

0
1
2
3
4
5

0
500
420
100
1000
1250

500
0
0
400
0
0

1000
992
960
1010
1035
1030

–
-8
-32
50
25
-5

–
-80
-320
500
250
-50

–
420
100
1000
1250
1200

6

1200

0

1040

10

100

1300

Table 6.6 Mark to market margin of a long posit ion
Day

Beginning
Balance
(Rs.)

Funds
Deposited
(Rs.)

Settlement
Price (Rs.)

Future
Price
Change
(A) (Rs.)

Gain/Loss
= (A) X
Contract
Size (Rs.)

0
1

0
500

500
0

1000
992

–
8

–
80

–
580

2
3
4
5
6

580
900
400
150
550

0
0
0
350
0

960
1010
1035
1030
1040

32
-50
-25
5
-10

320
-500
-250
50
-100

900
400
150
550
450

6.4.2

Ending
Balance
(Rs.)

Final settlement for futures

After the close of trading hours on the expiry day of the futures contracts, NSCCL marks all
positions of clearing members to the final settlement price and the resulting profit/loss is
settled in cash. Final settlement loss is debited and final settlement profit is credited to the
relevant clearing bank accounts on the day following the expiry date of the contract. Suppose
the above cont ract closes on day 6 (that is, it expires) at a price of Rs. 1040, then on the day
of expiry, Rs. 100 would be debited from the seller (short position holder) and would be
transferred to the buyer (long position holder).

48

6.5

Settlement of Options

In an options trade, the buyer of the option pays the option price or the option premium. The
options seller has to deposit an initial margin with the clearing member as he is exposed to
unlimited losses.
There are basically t wo types of settlement in stock option contracts: daily premium settlement
and final exercise settlement. O ptions being European style, they cannot be exercised before
expiry.

6.5.1

Daily premium settlement

Buyer of an option is obligated to pay the premium towards the options purchased by hi m.
Similarly, the seller of an option is entitled to receive the premium for the options sold by him.
The same person may sell some contracts and buy some contracts as well.

The premium

payable and the premium receivable are netted to compute the net prem ium payable or
receivable for each client for each options contract at the time of settlement.

6.5.2

Exercise settlement

Normally most option buyers and sellers close out their option positions by an offsetting closing
transaction but a better understanding of the exercise settlement process can help in making
better judgment in this regard. Stock and index options can be exercised only at the end of the
contract.
Final Exercise Settlement
On the day of expiry, all in the money options are exercised by default. An investor who has a
long position in an in-the -money option on the expiry date will receive the exercise settlement
value which is the difference between the settlement price and the strike price. Similarly, an
investor who has a short position in an in-the-money option will have to pay the exercise
settlement value.
The final exercise settlement value for each of the in the money options is calculated as follows:
Call Options = Closing price of the security on the day of expiry – strike price (if closing price >
strike price, else 0)
Put Options = Strike price – closing price of the security on the day of expiry (if closing price <
strike price, else 0)

49

Example: Suppose a call option on Reliance Industries has a Strike price of Rs. 2200, and the
closing price is Rs. 2500 on the day of expiry, then the final exercise settlement value of the
call option is:
V = 2500 – 2200 = 300.

6.6

Accounting and Taxation of Derivatives

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has issued guidance notes on accounting
of index future contracts from the view point of parties who enter into such future contracts as
buyers or sellers. For other parties involved in the trading process, like brokers, trading
members, clearing members and clearing corporations a trade in equity index futures is similar
to a trade in, say shares, and accounting remains similar as in the case of buying or selling of
shares.

6.6.1

Taxation of derivative instruments

Prior to the year 2005, the Income Tax Act did not have any spec ific provision regarding
taxability of derivatives. The only tax provisions which had indirect bearing on derivatives
transactions were sections 73(1) and 43(5). Under these sections, trade in derivatives was
considered “speculative transactions” for the purpose of determining tax liability. All profits and
losses were taxed under the speculative income category. Therefore, loss on derivatives
transactions could be set off only against other speculative income and the same could not be
set off against any other income. This resulted in high tax liability.
Finance Act, 2005 has amended section 43(5) so as to exclude transactions in derivatives
carried out in a “recognized stock exchange” from ‘speculative transaction’. This implies that
derivatives transactions that take place in a “recognized stock exchange” are not taxed as
speculative income or loss. They are treated under the business income head of the Income tax
Act. Any losses on these activities can be set off against any business income in the year and
the losses can be carried forward and set off against any other business income for the next
eight years.

50

MODEL TEST
EQUITY DERIVATIVES: A BEGINNER’S MODULE

Q:1 An investor is long 2 contracts of Nifty futures purchased at Rs. 5035 each. The next
morning a scam is disclosed of a large company because of which markets sell off and Nifty
futures goes down to Rs. 4855. What is the mark to market for the investor? (1 Nifty contract is
50 shares).
[ 3 Marks ]
(a) Rs. -18000
(b) Rs. 18000
(c ) Rs. -9000
(d) Rs. 9000

Q:2 If SBI is trading at Rs. Rs 2200 a share in the spot market and an investor wants to buy
200 SBI shares then he has to make a payment of ____.
[ 2 Marks ]
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Depends on the initial margin of SBI
Rs. 2200
Rs. 4400
Rs. 440000

Q:3 An investor buys a 4 lots of TATASTEEL futures at Rs. 545 each and sells it at Rs. 447
each. If one contract is 764 shares what is the Profit/ Loss in the transaction?
[ 2 Marks ]
(a) Profit Rs. 74872
(b) Loss 74872
(c) Loss Rs. 299488
(d) Profit Rs. 299488

Q:4 What are the types of settlement (s) in forward contracts?

[ 3 Marks ]

(a) Physical and Cash
(b) Cash
(c) Physical
(d) There are no settlements for forward contracts

Q:5 An investor sells 3 lots of Nifty futures at Rs. 5231 each. On that day Nifty closes at Rs.
5310 in the futures market. What is the mark to market for the investor if any? One lot of Nifty
is 50 shares
[ 1 Mark ]
(a) Profit of Rs. 11000
(b) Loss of Rs. 11850
(c) Loss of Rs. 10000
(d) Profit of Rs. 13000
Q:6 In a business daily to get information about the top gainers in the futures market, one has
to look in the heading :
[ 2 Marks ]
(a) Contract details
(b) Positive trend
(c) Open Interest
(d) Negative trend

51

Q:7 An investor bought a put option on a stock with a strike price Rs. 2000 for Rs. 200. The
option will be in the money when _______.
[ 1 Mark ]
(a) The stock price is less than Rs. 2000
(b) The stock price is greater than Rs. 2200
(c) The stock price is greater than Rs. 2000
(d) The stock price is less than Rs. 1800

Q:8 All Stock Options are American in nature.

[ 2 Marks ]

(a) TRUE
(b) FALSE

Q:9 On 3rd August, NTPC is trading at Rs. 200 and 200 strike call option for one month is
trading at Rs. 7.50. An investor who is bearish on NTPC sells the call option. NTPC on that
month's expiry closes at Rs. 207.5. What is the investor's Profit / Loss in the trade? 1 lot of
NTPC is 1625 shares.
[ 2 Marks ]
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Rs. -12187
Rs. 10000
Rs. 12187
No Profit no Loss

Q:10 In futures trading initial margin is paid by :
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

[ 3 Marks ]

buyer only
clearing member
seller only
buyer and seller

Q:11 An investor has Unitech shares in her portfolio. RBI is increasing interest rates which is
negative for the stock. She wants to protect the downside in the stock as she feels RBI will
decide on increasing interest rates in the next 3 months. What should she do? [ 1 Mark ]
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Buy
Buy
Buy
Buy

3
2
1
3

month
month
month
month

call
put
put
put

option
option
option
option

of
of
of
of

Unitech
Unitech
Unitech
Unitech

Q:12 In India, all Options traded on a stock are :

[ 1 M ark ]

(a) Continental Options
(b) Asian Options
(c) European options
(d) American options

Q:13 SBI is trading at Rs. 1800 in the cash market. What would be the price of SBI futures
expiring three months from today. Risk free rate = 8% p.a.
[ 1 Mark ]
(a) 1844
(b) 1895
(c) 1814
(d) 1836

52

Q:14 All December 2009 stock Futures contracts traded on NSE will expire on :
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

[ 2 Marks ]

Last Thursday of December 2009
Exchanges decides on expiry day and will update the investors on 1st December 2009
Last Friday of December 2009
3rd Thursday of December 2009

Q:15 In India, all Options traded on Nifty are :

[ 1 Mark ]

(a) Asian Options
(b) American options
(c) Continental Options
(d) European options

Q:16 Nifty futures is trading at Rs. 3325 and an investor buys a 3400 call for current month
for Rs. 100. What should be the closing price of Nifty only above which the investor starts to
make Profits if he holds his long option position? 1 lot of Nifty = 50 shares.
[ 2 Marks ]
(a) 3425
(b) 3400
(c) 3325
(d) 3500
Q:17 Which of the following is an exchange traded contract?

[ 3 Marks ]

(a) Futures on Nifty
(b) Forward contract on oil
(c) An interest rate swap
(d) A 10 year loan

Q:18 As more and more ____ trades take place, the difference between spot and futures prices
would narrow.
[ 3 Marks ]
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

hedge
delta
arbitrage
speculative

Q:19 Nifty is at 5200. A put option at 5000 strike price is trading at Rs . 150. What is the
intrinsic value of the option?
[ 1 Mark ]
(a) 200
(b) 0
(c) 350
(d) 150

53

Q:20 Nifty is currently at 5100. An investor feels Nifty will not go beyond 4500 in next three
months. He sells two lots of 5100 strike call on Nifty for Rs. 200 a lot. Because of good
industrial production data, Nifty rallies to 5200 on the option's expiry day. What is the Profit/
Loss to the investor? (1 lot = 50 shares)
[ 3 Marks ]
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Rs. 10000
Rs. -10000
Rs. 20000
Rs. -20000

Q:21 On 1st November, SBI is trading at Rs. 2300. An investor is bearish on the company
because of the earnings of last quarter and sells a SBI futures at Rs. 2325. He buys back SBI
futures at Rs. 2300. What is the Profit / Loss for the investor if 1 lot of SBI is 250 shares?
[ 3 Marks ]
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Rs. 6250
Rs. 0
Rs. -6250
Rs. -10000

Q:22 Which of the following is NOT a hedge for a long position in an underlying stock?
[ 2 Marks ]
(a) Sell call option
(b) Sell futures
(c) Sell put option
(d) Buy Put option
Q:23 When the strike price is lower than the spot price of the underlying, a call option will be
____.
[ 1 Mark ]
(a) At the money
(b) In the money
(c) Out of the money
(d) American Type

Q:24 On 1st January, SBI is trading at Rs. 2310. An investor is bullish on the company because
of the earnings of last quarter and buys a SBI futures at Rs. 2310. He sells SBI futures at Rs.
2335. What is the Profit / Loss for the investor if 1 lot of SBI is 250 shares? [ 2 Marks ]
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Rs. -10000
Rs. -6250
Rs. 6250
Rs. 0

Q:25 An investor buys TCS for Rs. 575 in the futures market. At the end of the day TCS futures
closes at Rs. 500 in the futures market. What is the mark to market the investor is making/
losing ? (1 lot of TCS = 1000 shares)
[ 2 Marks ]
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Rs. 500000
Rs. 575000
Rs. -75000
Rs. 75000

54

Q:26 An investor buys a 4 lots of Nifty at Rs. 5100 each. He sells 2 lots at Rs. 5050 and carries
2 lots for next day. On that day Nifty futures closes at Rs. 5000. What is his total Loss including
mark to market Loss? One lot of Nifty is 50 shares .
[ 1 Mark ]
(a) Loss of Rs. 5000
(b) Profit of Rs. 5000
(c) Profit of Rs. 2000
(d) No Loss, no Profit

Q:27 Infosys is trading at Rs. 1500 in the cash market. What should be the fair price of Infosys
futures expiring 90 days from today. Risk free rate is 8% p.a.
[ 3 Marks ]
(a) 1550
(b) 1515
(c) 1530
(d) 1540

Q:28 An investor buys a 1 lot of Nifty futures at Rs. 4927 and sells it at Rs. 4567 If one
contract is 50 shares what is the Profit/ Loss in the transaction?
[ 2 Marks ]
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Loss Rs. 22000
Profit Rs. 22000
Loss Rs. 18000
Profit Rs. 18000

Q:29 Which of the following positions has a limited downside ____ .
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

[ 2 Marks ]

Sell futures
Buy Call Option
Sell stock
Sell Call option

Q:30 Reliance is trading at Rs. 1520 in the cash market. What should be the fair price of
Reliance futures expiring 90 days from today. Risk free rate is 8% p.a.
[ 3 Marks ]
(a) 1529
(b) 1537
(c) 1551
(d) 1563

Q:31 Like Futures contracts there is daily settlement of options contracts.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

[ 2 Marks ]

TRUE
depends on the expiry
FALSE
depends if the option is call or put

Q:32 TCS is trading at Rs. 420 in the spot market and Rs. 435 in the futures market. Is there
an arbitrage opportunity? The Futures contract is settling today.
[ 1 Marks ]
(a) N o
(b) Depends on Market Sentiment
(c) Yes

55

Q:33 Reliance Capital is trading at Rs. 1000 in cash market. What should be the price of
Reliance capital futures expiring 60 days from today. Risk free rate is 8% p.a. [ 2 Marks ]
(a) 1087
(b) 1013
(c) 1081
(d) 1121

Q:34 An investor buys 2 contracts of TCS futures for Rs. 570 each. He sells of one contract at
Rs. 585. TCS futures closes the day at Rs. 550. What is the net payment the investor has to
pay/ receive from his broker? 1 TCS contract = 1000 shares
[ 2 Marks ]
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Pay Rs. 20000 to the broker
Pay Rs. 5000 to the broker
Receive Rs. 5000 from the broker
Receive Rs. 15000 from the broker

Q:35 The value of a put option is positively related to all of the following EXCEPT:
[ 2 Marks ]
(a) exercise price
(b) risk-free rate
(c) time to maturity

Q:36 If a farmer expects to sell his wheat in three months time in anticipation of a harvest. He
wants to hedge his risk, he needs to:
[ 3 Marks ]
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

buy wheat futures now
buy wheat now
sell wheat now
sell wheat futures now

Q:37 DLF is trading at Rs. 380 in the spot market and Rs. 395 in the futures market. Is there
an arbitrage opportunity? The Futures contract is settling today.
[ 1 Mark ]
(a) Depends on Market Sentiment
(b) Yes
(c) N o

Q:38 Security descriptor for stock Futures contract is :

[ 2 Marks ]

(a) FUTSTK
(b) OPTIDX
(c) OPTSTK
(d) FUTIDX

Q:39 Derivatives help in ____.

[ 2 Marks ]

(a) Risk Management
(b) Price Discovery of the underlying
(c) Improving Market Efficiency
(d) All of the above

56

Q:40 Nifty is at 3900. What should be the fair price of Nifty futures expiring 180 days from
today. Risk free rate is 8% p.a.
[ 3 Marks ]
(a) 4027
(b) 4083
(c) 4031
(d) 4059

Q:41 The maximum expiry for individual stock options contract is :

[ 2 Marks ]

(a) 2 months
(b) 6 months
(c) 1 months
(d) 3 months

Q:42 The parties for the Futures contract have the flexibility of closing out the contract prior
to the maturity by squaring off the transactions in the market. State true or false. [ 3 Marks ]
(a) TRUE
(b) FALSE

Q:43 Nifty is at 3375. What should be the fair price of Nifty futures expiring 30 days from
today. Risk free rate is 8% p.a.
[ 2 Marks ]
(a) 3367
(b) 3377
(c) 3398
(d) 3352

Q:44 Nifty futures is trading at Rs. 4955. An investor feels t he market will not go beyond
5100. He can ____.
[ 2 Marks ]
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Sell 5000 Nifty call
Sell 5100 Nifty put
Sell 5000 Nifty put
Sell 5100 Nifty Call

Q:45 Arbitrage is a ____.

[ 2 Marks ]

(a) Risk free Strategy
(b) High Risk Strategy

Q:46 If an option is out of the money and the strike price of the option is lower than the spot
price of the underlying, then we are referring to ____.
[ 1 Mark ]
(a) A Put Option
(b) An European Option
(c) A Call option
(d) An American option

57

Q:47 Nifty is at 5000. An investor buys a 5000 strike price put option for Rs. 170. The option is
currently____.
[ 1 Mark ]
(a) Out of the money
(b) American Type
(c) At the money
(d) In the money

Q:48 Nifty futures is trading at Rs. 3975 and an investor buys a 4000 call for current month
for Rs. 100. What should be the closing price of Nifty only above which the investor starts to
make Profits if he holds his long option position? 1 lot of Nifty = 50 shares.
[ 3 Marks ]
(a) 3975
(b) 4000
(c) 4075
(d) 4100

Q:49 Price that is agreed upon at the date of the contract for the delivery of an asset at a
specific futures date is called _______.
[ 2 Marks ]
(a) Spot Price
(b) Discount Price
(c) Cash market price
(d) Futures Price

Q:50 Price of an option expiring three months from today will be higher than price of an
option expiring in two months from today.
[ 2 Marks ]
(a) Incomplete data
(b) Depends if it is call or put option
(c) TRUE
(d) FALSE

58

Correct Answers :

Question No.

Answers

Question No.

Answers

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25

(a)
(d)
(c )
(a)
(b)
(b)
(a)
(b)
(d)
(d)
(d)
(c )
(d)
(a)
(d)
(d)
(a)
(c )
(b)
(a)
(a)
(c )
(b)
(c )
(c )

26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50

(a)
(c )
(c )
(b)
(c )
(c )
(c )
(b)
(b)
(b)
(d)
(b)
(a)
(d)
(d)
(d)
(a)
(c )
(d)
(a)
(a)
(c )
(d)
(d)
(c )

59

Derivatives basic module

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