This study investigates and evaluates how different portfolio optimization methods perform when varying assets and financial market scenarios. Methods included are mean variance, Conditional Value-at-Risk, utility based, risk factor based and Monte Carlo optimization. Market scenarios are represented by stagnating, bull and bear market data from the Bloomberg database. In order to perform robust optimizations resampling of the Bloomberg data has been done hundred times. The evaluation of the methods has been done with respect to selected ratios and two benchmark portfolios. Namely an equally weighted portfolio and an equally weighted risk contributions portfolio. The study found that mean variance and Conditional Value-at-Risk optimization performed best when using linear assets in all the investigated cases. Considering non-linear assets such as options an equally weighted portfolio performs best. / Den här studien undersöker och utvärderar hur olika portföljoptimeringsmetoder presterar med varierande finansiella tillgångsslag och marknadsscenarion. De metoder som har undersökts är: väntevärde-varians, villkorligt-värde-av-risk, nyttjande- och Monte Carlo baserad optimering. De marknadsscenarion som valts är: stagnerande, uppåt- samt nedåtgående scenarion där marknadsdata hämtats från Bloomberg för respektive tillgång. För att erhålla robusta optimeringsresultat har data omsamplats hundra gånger. Utvärderingen av metoderna har gjorts med avseende på utvalda indikatorer och två jämförelseportföljer, en likaviktad portfölj och en likariskviktad portfölj. Studien fann att portföljer genererade av väntevärde-varians och villkorligt-värde-av-risk optimering visade bäst prestanda, när linjära tillgångar använts i samtliga scenarion. När ickelinjära tillgångar såsom optioner har använts gav den likaviktade jämförelseportföljen bäst resultat i samtliga scenarion.

Thesis (M. Dev.) -- University of Limpopo, 2019 / This study examines the effect of asset management on social work services delivery in the Department of Social Development (DSD), Capricorn District. The aim of the study was to explore factors that lead to the mismanagement of assets in the department. For social workers to deliver services or to operate, the Department of Social Development (DSD) as the employer must ensure that infrastructure (office space and facilities), information management and technology equipment must be provided to social welfare practitioners (employees). For their effective functioning, certain basic infrastructure and equipment are needed by social welfare service practitioners, particularly social workers who are legally obliged to provide services in a particular manner. The problem of lack of resources has been also observed and that service providers who are social workers end up using their own resources in an attempt to provide service delivery and administration of their duties as social workers. The objectives of this study were to examine the state of asset management in the department; to assess the effect of asset management on service delivery; and to propose strategies that may enable the department to deal with emerging issues. The study was guided by questions such as the following: What is the current state of asset management as it relates to service delivery? How does asset management affect service delivery? What strategies may enable the department to deal with emerging issues? The study adopted the qualitative research approach to collect primary data through face-to-face semi-structured interviews. It further used thematic content analysis to analyse data. Through the use of this approach, it was noted that asset problems have a negative impact on social work service delivery. From the data collected, the study revealed that there are numerous problems that social workers come across in the process of providing services and mainly because of lack of adequate assets. These problems affect service delivery negatively, and include lack of transport; insufficient office space; and lack of furniture, computers, printers and landline or cellular phones. Social work services cannot be properly, effectively and efficiently provided without adequate asset management. The study recommends that the DSD should provide social workers with assets in order to render better service. It is important for one to know that social work services and asset management are two related entities.

Background: Since the emergence of Covid-19 has it reaped and created havoc within every segment of society on a national and global scale. The financial market experienced significant declines and losses but some asset items handled the fluctuations better than others. Moreover, since some asset items are associated with different risk levels will various investors with contrasting risk attitude allocate dissimilar proportion of their disposable capital between these alternatives. Especially during low and high levels of economic uncertainty which is related to the volatile market of Covid-19. Although, little to no research has been conducted aimed at understanding how Covid-19 impacted Swedish students asset allocation prior and post the pandemic with different risk profiles.   Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate if students with different risk attitudes (risk-preference, risk-neutral and risk-averse) conduct statistically different asset allocation prior and post the Covid-19 pandemic. Furthermore, investigate shifts in asset holdings prior and post the pandemic. Moreover, in order to fill the identified literature gap and add to the current body of knowledge regarding asset allocation and variability concerning risk attitudes since its exclusion of Swedish student’s risk attitudes and impact of Covid-19 on preferable asset items.                                    Method: This investigative study concerns a quantitative survey of 81 different students attending Jönköping University. The survey was structured in a way to uncover whether students with different risk attitudes conduct asset allocation statistically different prior and post the Covid-19 pandemic. Moreover, incorporate sociodemographic factors of students in order to measure its relation to risk attitudes and uncertainty changes. This will be done through non-parametric tests (distribution free) such as the Chi-square, Kruskal-Wallis and Bonferroni adjusted p-value approach. The data is later discussed and interpreted through various academic sources and in the context of the frame of reference (expected utility theory).                              Conclusion: The impact of Covid-19 resulted into increased asset allocation of less risky and “safe” asset in order to deal with the declining stock market and future economic uncertainty. The study also suggest that students liquidated some of their current/fixed deposits and re-invested their disposable capital into a more conservative money management strategy, which was a continuous identified pattern.  Furthermore, the results indicate that students with different risk attitudes conduct significantly different asset allocation concerning commercial insurance, stocks/funds and various bond types prior to Covid-19. However, post the eruption has the statistical identified differences in bonds asset allocation reduced which refers to that the statistical power and dissimilar allocated proportion amongst asset items has diminished. Further multiple comparison reinsures this conclusion. Thusly, the study implies that the differences between asset allocation and student risk profiles are diminished post Covid-19 and therefore students perceived and allocated more similar capital proportions into various asset items. Hence answer the initial stated research question and empirically state that risk attitude of students impact how they conduct asset allocation prior to and to a lesser extent post Covid-19

Thesis (MComm)--Stellenbosch University, 2012. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: On 1 July 2011 the revised version of Regulation 28, which governs the South African pension fund industry with regard to investments, took effect. The new version allows for pension funds to invest up to 25 percent compared to 20 percent, in the previous version, of its total investment in foreign assets. The aim of this study is to determine whether it would be optimal for a South African pension fund to invest the full 25 percent of its portfolio in foreign assets. Seven different optimization models are evaluated in this study to determine the optimal asset mix. The optimization models were selected through an extensive literature study in order to address key optimization issues, e.g. which risk measure to use, whether parametric or non parametric optimization should be used and if the Mean Variance model for optimization defined by Markowitz, which has been the benchmark with regard to asset allocation, is the best model to determine the long term asset allocation strategies. The results obtained from the different models were used to recommend the optimal long term asset allocation for a South African pension fund and also compared to determine which optimization model proved to be the most efficient. The study found that when using only the past ten years of data to construct the portfolios, it would have been optimal to invest in only South African asset classes with statistical differences with regard to returns in some cases. Using the past 20-years of data to construct the optimal portfolios provided mixed results, while the 30-year period were more in favour of an international portfolio with the full 25% invested in foreign asset classes. A comparison of the different models provided a clear winner with regard to a probability of out performance. The Historical Resampled Mean Variance optimization provided the highest probability of out performing the benchmark. From the study it also became evident that a 20-year data period is the optimal period when considering the historical data that should be used to construct the optimal portfolio. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Op 1 Julie 2011 het die hersiene Regulasie 28, wat die investering van Suid-Afrikaanse pensioenfondse reguleer, in werking getree. Hierdie hersiene weergawe stel pensioenfondse in staat om 25% van hulle fondse in buitelandse bateklasse te belê in plaas van 20%, soos in die vorige weergawe. Hierdie studie stel vas of dit werklik voordelig sal wees vir ‘n SA pensioenfonds om die volle 25% in buitelandse bateklasse te belê. Sewe verskillende optimeringsmodelle is gebruik om die optimale portefeulje te probeer skep. Die optimeringsmodelle is gekies na ’n uitgebreide literatuurstudie sodat van die sleutelkwessies met betrekking tot optimering aangespreek kon word. Die kwessies waarna verwys word sluit in, watter risikomaat behoort gebruik te word in die optimeringsproses, of ‘n parametriese of nie-parametriese model gebruik moet word en of die “Mean-Variance” model wat deur Markowitz in 1952 gedefinieer is en al vir baie jare as maatstaf vir portefeulje optimering dien, nog steeds die beste model is om te gebruik. Die uiteindelike resultate, verkry van die verskillende optimeringsmodelle, is gevolglik gebruik om die optimale langtermyn bate-allokasie vir ‘n Suid-Afrikaanse pensioenfonds op te stel. Die verskillende optimeringsmodelle is ook met mekaar vergelyk om te bepaal of daar ‘n model is wat beter is as die res. Vanuit die resultate was dit duidelik dat ’n portfeulje wat slegs uit Suid-Afrikaanse bates bestaan beter sal presteer as slegs die laaste 10-jaar se data gebruik word om die portefeulje op stel. Hierdie resultate is ook in meeste van die gevalle bevestig deur middel van hipotese toetse. Deur gebruik te maak van die afgelope 20-jaar se data om die portefeuljes op te stel, het gemengde resultate gelewer, terwyl die afgelope 30-jaar se data in meeste van die gevalle ’n internasionaal gediversifiseerde portefeulje as die beter portefeulje uitgewys het. In ’n vergelyking van die verskillende optimeringsmodelle is die “Historical Resampled Mean Variance” model duidelik as die beter model uitgewys. Hierdie model het die hoogste waarskynlikheid behaal om die vasgstelde maatstafportefeuljes uit te presteer. Die resultate het ook gedui op die 20-jaar periode as die beste data periode om te gebruik as die optimale portfeulje opgestel word.

機構投資者在現今全球的金融市場中佔有舉足輕重的地位，但是在財務理論的領域裡，他們卻是被極度忽略的一群。本文的第一個部分（見第二章）建構在傳統的期望效用理論之下，進而推導出機構投資者的最適動態資產配置模型。研究發現機構投資者的最適動態資產配置乃是由標竿避險元素與跨期-規模避險元素所共同組成。標竿避險元素述說了機構投資者跟隨標竿投資組合的現象，而跨期-規模避險元素除了為資產配置迷思提供了一個可能的解決之道外，更指出機構投資者會隨著所管理的資產增加而趨於保守。再者，近年來傳統的期望效用理論履遭學者們的質疑，許多實證結果均顯示展望理論更能貼切描述人們的行為模式。本文的第二個部分（見第三章）假設機構投資者的行為模式符合展望理論的公理與假說，進而推導出機構投資者的動態資產配置模型。研究發現當機構投資人處於獲利的狀態之下時，其最適動態資產配置和第二章所得到的結果完全相同，但是，當機構投資人處於損失的狀態下時，他會變得比較積極，持有的風險性資產會大於處於獲利狀態之下時所做的決策。雖然行為財務學已行之有年，但是大家對於損失趨避係數對資產配置所造成的影響所卻知極為有限，本文在此提供了一個參考的模型。本研究發現，損失趨避係數對動態資產配置的影響力會被風險趨避係數、個別投資人對機構投資者績效的敏感度以及機構投資者本身所收取的管理費所抵消掉。此外，近年來金融市場巨幅震盪的現象履見不鮮，本文的最後一個部份（見第四章）假設機構投資者的行為模式符合展望理論的公理與假說，進而在跳躍模式下推導出機構投資者的動態資產配置模型。研究發現在跳躍模式下機構投資者的最適動態資產配置乃是由標竿避險元素、跨期-規模避險元素與跳躍避險元素所共同組成。這個新的元素－「跳躍避險元素」，用以描述機構投資者在面對 跳躍模式所帶來的不同衝擊時所產生的不同回應。本研究發現即使面對相同的投資環境，機構投資者仍然會因為本身所處的狀態不同而有不一樣的投資決策，這個結果迥異於傳統的理論模型，是一個相當有趣且值得進一步研究的議題。此外，本研究還發現損失趨避係數在不同的狀況之下會分別發揮不同的影響力，對損失趨避係數在財務理論上的意義提供了另一個新的視野。 / Institutional investors do matter in financial market, but most of the studies on institutional investors have not determined holdings of different assets by institutional investors. Institutional investors who receive payments and deposits from their customers but they are also subject to withdrawals from them. Compared with individual investors, institutional investors do bear the extra risk that evokes from individual investors. Appling dynamic programming approach, we derive the optimal dynamic asset allocation of institutional investors. In chapter 2, we find that the optimal dynamic asset allocation of the institutional investor with exponential utility function contains two components: the benchmark hedge component and the intertemporal-size hedge component. The benchmark hedge component indicates that the institutional investor takes care of the volatility of benchmark portfolio. The intertemporal-size hedge component provides a possible solution to asset allocation puzzle and depicts that the position of risky assets held by the institutional investor is inversively proportional with its total net managed assets. In chapter 3, we take operating cost into account and find that the optimal dynamic asset allocation of the institutional investor with revised value function will hold more risky assets when she is facing losses, and the sensitivity of loss aversion to dynamic asset allocation strategy is inversively proportional with the absolute risk aversion coefficient, the sensitivity of flow to performance, and the management fee charged by the institutional investor. In chapter 4, we consider both the operating cost and the risk of a sudden large shock to security price into account and find that the optimal dynamic asset allocation of the institutional investor has a further component than that in chapter 3. The further component is labeled "jumps hedge component". Besides, the optimal dynamic asset allocation is divided into four situations that figure the institutional investor with different status quo will make different investment decision. It is a very surprisingly result. Furthermore, we find a very interesting phenomenon that the loss aversion coefficient plays different roles in different situations.

隨著社會的進步、經濟的發展與個人化知識水準的提昇，再加上銀行定存利率趨低，個人理財的重要性愈顯重要。但是，現有文獻及實務上之理財服務功能仍屬片面，缺乏一套完整的流程模式可支援整體之個人理財規劃，如含個人保險組合、資產配置與投資組合等之規劃流程。因此，本研究之目的即在提出一個整合性的個人理財服務之流程模式，含理財流程中不同階段的服務功能與作業流程、理財決策模式及相關推論法則等，同時也將應用現有之系統發展法，建構一套完整的個人理財模式基底網路服務應用系統的架構，設計並建置一原型系統，驗證所提出的架構、流程、模式與方法的可行性與績效。 / Promote along with the development and personalization knowledge level of progress, economy of society, and the bank Certificate of Deposit interest rate tends low, the importance of personal financial planning shows the importance more. But, the existing cultural heritage and the financial planning on the actual situation service function are still unilateral, the process mode that lacks of a set of integrity can support whole of personal financial planning programs, if contain personal insurance planning, asset allocation and portfolio selection programming process of etc. Therefore, the purpose of this research is putting forward an integrated process model of personal financial planning service, the service function with financial planning process in different stage and the homework process, the financial planning decision model and the related reasoning rule etc., also will apply the existing system development method, personal financial planning model base network service that constructs a set of integrity applies the structure of the system, designing and building one prototype system, identifying the structure, process, model and the feasibility and the results of the method put forward.

本文運用模擬的方法，產生產險業所面臨的損失分佈、投資資產的變動，欲得到最好的資產配置比例，並考慮重新平衡的效果，探討何種方法為產險業最好的資金運用策略。在模擬了1,000次，產生未來23年的年末資產負債表後，我們得到產險公司應如何配置其資金於：現金、股票、1-15年期債券及房地產的比例，加入重新平衡的概念，運用目標方程式的建立，最後得到一個最好的資金配置及平衡策略。 / We applied simulation techniques to imitate some situations that insurance companies have handled, including loss development, asset value variations, and dynamic programming asset allocation. The asset allocation ratios and the timing of rebalancing the assets affected our objective outcomes. After simulating 23 years for 1,000 times, we find how insurance company allocates their capital in four accounts: cash, stock, fifteen kinds of maturity bonds, and real estate. We finally pointed out strategy resulted in the best outcome by comparing between single period optimal asset allocating ratios and rebalanced asset allocation ratio outcomes.

Nesta tese discutimos abordagens que utilizam cópulas para descrever dependências entre instrumentos nanceiros e avaliamos a performance destes métodos. Muitas crises nanceiras aconteceram desde o nal da década de 90, incluindo a crise asiática (1997), a crise da dívida da Rússia (1998), a crise da bolha da internet (2000), as crises após o 9/11 (2001) e a guerra do Iraque (2003), a crise do subprime or crise nanceira global (2007-08), e a crise da dívida soberana europeia (2009). Todas estas crises levaram a uma perda maciça de riqueza nanceira e a um aumento da volatilidade observada, e enfatizaram a importância de uma política macroprudencial mais robusta. Em outras palavras, perturbações nanceiras tornam os processos econômicos altamente não-lineares, levando os principais bancos centrais a tomarem medidas contrárias para conter a angústia - nanceira. Devido aos complexos padrões de dependência dos mercados nanceiros, uma abordagem multivariada em grandes dimensões para a análise da dependência caudal é seguramente mais perspicaz do que assumir retornos com distribuição normal multivariada. Dada a sua exibilidade, as cópulas são capazes de modelar melhor as regularidades empiricamente veri cadas que são normalmente atribuídas a retornos nanceiros multivariados: (1) volatilidade condicional assimétrica com maior volatilidade para grandes retornos negativos e menor volatilidade para retornos positivos (HAFNER, 1998); (2) assimetria condicional (AIT-SAHALIA; BRANDT, 2001; CHEN; HONG; STEIN, 2001; PATTON, 2001); (3) excesso de curtose (TAUCHEN, 2001; ANDREOU; PITTIS; SPANOS, 2001); e (4) dependência temporal não linear (CONT, 2001; CAMPBELL; LO; MACKINLAY, 1997). A principal contribuição dos ensaios é avaliar se abordagens mais so sticadas do que o método da distância e o tradicional modelo de Markowitz podem tirar proveito de quaisquer anomalias/fricções de mercado. Os ensaios são uma tentativa de fornecer uma análise adequada destas questões usando conjuntos de dados abrangentes e de longo prazo. Empiricamente, demonstramos que as abordagens baseadas em cópulas são úteis em todos os ensaios, mostrando-se bené cas para modelar dependências em diferentes cenários, avaliando as medidas de risco caudais mais adequadamente e gerando rentabilidade superior a dos benchmarks utilizados. / In this thesis we discuss copula-based approaches to describe statistical dependencies within nancial instruments and evaluate its performance. Many nancial crises have occurred since the late 1990s, including the Asian crisis (1997), the Russian national debt crisis (1998), the dot-com bubble crisis (2000), the crises after 9-11 (2001) and Iraq war (2003), the subprime mortgage crisis or global nancial crisis (2007-08), and the European sovereign debt crisis (2009). All of these crises lead to a massive loss of nancial wealth and an upward in observed volatility and have emphasized the importance of a more robust macro-prudential policy. In other words, nancial disruptions make the economic processes highly nonlinear making the major central banks to take counter-measures in order to contain nancial distress. The methods for modeling uncertainty and evaluating the market risk on nancial markets are now under more scrutiny after the global nancial crisis. Due to the complex dependence patterns of nancial markets, a high-dimensional multivariate approach to tail dependence analysis is surely more insightful than assuming multivariate normal returns. Given its exibility, copulas are able to model better the empirically veri ed regularities normally attributed to multivariate nancial returns: (1) asymmetric conditional volatility with higher volatility for large negative returns and smaller volatility for positive returns (HAFNER, 1998); (2) conditional skewness (AITSAHALIA; BRANDT, 2001; CHEN; HONG; STEIN, 2001; PATTON, 2001); (3) excess kurtosis (TAUCHEN, 2001; ANDREOU; PITTIS; SPANOS, 2001); and (4) nonlinear temporal dependence (CONT, 2001; CAMPBELL; LO; MACKINLAY, 1997). The principal contribution of the essays is to assess if more sophisticated approaches than the distance method and plain Markowitz model can take advantage of any market anomalies/ fricctions. The essays are one attempt to provide a proper analysis in these issues using a long-term and comprehensive datasets. We empirically show that copula-based approaches are useful in all essays, proving bene cial to model dependencies in di erent scenarios, assessing the downside risk measures more adequately and yielding higher profitability than the benchmarks.

The dissertation dealt with the interaction between the macro-economy and financial markets. In the first part of the dissertation I laid down a general case for macro-based active asset allocation. In the main part of my dissertation, after a theoretical introduction to term structure models and macrofinance models, I developed a VAR macrofinance model of the term structure of interest rates for the Czech economy based on the dynamic interpretation of the Nelson-Siegel model, and showed the use of such modeling framework in bond-yield prediction and asset allocation.

不同評估績效的長短顯著地影響基金的經營策略，相較於強調穩健經營的退休基金而言，此因素是否亦影響退休基金的運作，本研究嘗試應用隨機控制理論，將投資績效的時間因素納入決策考量，以隨機微分方程式描述退休基金資產和應計負債的動態隨機行為，以多期基金規劃的觀點，探討時間因素與最適策略之關連性。本研究應用Brennan、Schwartz與Lagnado（1997）的結果至負債導向的退休基金管理，建構多期資產負債管理模型，退休基金持有資產將分類為風險性的股票投資組合、長期債券和短期票券，並考量投資標的短期利率與長期利率之隨機性質，將基金提撥與資產配置視為可調節因子，給定風險評估測度，於不設定投資限制下計算各期最適投資比例及基金提撥；本研究並以私人退休金個案進行模擬分析，結果顯示此基金未來10年之最適提撥率介於4.2﹪與5.1﹪，就不同評估期限而言，5年評估期之提撥率於初期高於10年評估期，基金比率η=0.75之提撥率低於η=1；5年評估期之基金交易行為較10年期明顯劇烈，基金比率較低時，其交易變化程度較小，不同評估年限與基金比率將同時影響退休基金之最適提撥與投資策略。 / Distinct time horizons in measuring investment perfomance significantly influence the financial planning for the money managers. In this study, we explore this issue concerning the pension fund management that has focused on the asset and liability management to meet its future obligations. A stochastic control model is formulated in a continuous-time framework to obtain the closed form solution for optimal strategy. The time variation in expected returns introduced in Brennan, Schwartz and Lagnado（1997）is adopted in obtaining the optimal strategy using plausible future plan’s normal costs and accrued liabilities under distinct time horizons. Based on the proposed performance measurement, the optimal funding schedule and portfolio selections are determined dynamically without trading restrictions. A private pension scheme is selected and analyzed for numerical illustration. It shows that the optimal contribution rates are between 4.2﹪and 5.1﹪for this specific case. Comparing the funding schedules for distinct time horizons, we find that the contribution rates under 5-year period are higher than those under 10-year period in the beginning. The contribution rates given funding ratio at 75﹪are lower than those given at 100﹪. While the optimal trading behaviors of the pension fund managers for 5-year period are significant volatile than those for 10-year period. Their optimal trading behaviors have exhibited a reduced volatility under the lower funding ratios. The case study indicates that the distinct time horizon and the funding ratio play crucial roles in decision-making process for pension fund management.