High Return Investments

Option style

The style or family of a financial option is a general term denoting the
class into which the option falls, usually defined by the manner in which
the option may be exercised. The two great families are European and American.

A european option may be exercised by only at the maturity of the option,
i.e. at a single point in time

An american option on the other hand may be exercised at any time before
expiry. Oddly, american options are very rarely exercised. That is because
any option has a time value and is therefore worth more unexercised. Buyers
who wish to realise the full value of their option will therefore prefer
sell it on a recognised market, either an over the counter (OTC) or listed market.

European options are typically valued using the Black-Scholes or Black 76
formulas. American options are more difficult to value, and a choice of
models are available (for example Whaley, binomial options model, Monte
Carlo and others).

Some other styles of options are

   * Bermudan option (buyer has right of exercise at certain times before
     maturity according to a pre-agreed schedule)
   * Asian option (buyer exercises against average strike price)
   * Quanto option (buyer exercises in different currency)

Investment FreshNews:

Finance Executive Ordered to Prison (Portfolio.com via Yahoo! Finance)
Wed, 06 Aug 2008 21:31:07 GMT
A federal judge today ordered a finance executive convicted of fraud to spend 15 years in prison. And, no, he had nothing to do with subprime mortgages. Donald H. Ayers, 72, was a founder, vice chairman, and chief operating ...

Francis chosen as Folsom's finance director (The Sacramento Bee)
Wed, 06 Aug 2008 20:38:57 GMT
James W. Francis, the town manager in West Hartford, Conn., will become the finance director/chief financial officer for the city effective Oct. 5, Folsom City Manager Kerry Miller announced Wednesday.

IMF backs Finance"s incentives proposals (GMA News)
Wed, 06 Aug 2008 20:27:14 GMT
MANILA, Philippines - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is backing the Finance department"s proposals to reform the country"s investment incentives system, saying they have the effect of lowering the county"s tax rates which should prompt more investors to choose the Philippines.

Trading halt on Strategic Finance (The New Zealand Herald)
Wed, 06 Aug 2008 23:15:54 GMT
A halt has been placed on trading in the securities of Strategic Finance listed on the NZDX market, ahead of an announcement by the company. NZX Regulation said the halt was at the request of the company, with the announcement expected before the close of business today.

Strategic Finance securities trading halt (Stuff)
Wed, 06 Aug 2008 22:52:42 GMT
A halt has been placed on trading in the securities of Strategic Finance listed on the NZDX market, ahead of an announcement by the company.

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