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In this paper we 'update' the option implied probability of default (option iPoD) approach recently suggested in the literature. First, a numerically more stable objective function for the estimation of the risk neutral density is derived whose integrals can be solved analytically. Second, it is reasoned that the originally proposed approach for the estimation of the PoD has some serious drawbacks and hence an alternative procedure is suggested that is based on the Lagrange multipliers. Carrying out numerical evaluations and a practical application we find that the framework provides very promising results.

The CDS market plays an important role in understanding the dynamics of financial markets and financial stability and consequently has received growing attention in the recent literature. Despite the rich literature there is still no consensus about which factors mainly drive CDS spreads. Instead we observe an increasingly large number of potential determinants being suggested. We aim to provide a transparent and robust analysis for the determinants of CDS spreads by focusing on the information provided by a large number of models (the "model space") instead of focusing on one or few "hand-picked" specifications. Our model space covers most of the specifications used elsewhere in the literature and includes several variables measuring the sensitivity of firms to extreme market movements (tail dependence). ContributionWe show that the model space includes models which allow backing many different theories by significant coefficients and good fit to the data. Thus, the information content from single model specifications is rather restricted. In contrast to previous studies, we use information from the entire model space instead of restricting ourselves to some "hand-picked" models. Doing so, we provide a transparent and robust analysis for the determinants of CDS spreads. Besides covering the informational content of most previous studies in our analysis we also give clear evidence on the impact of using different estimation procedures to measure tail dependence in CDS markets. ResultsUsing a large data-set, we find that CDS price dynamics can be mainly explained by factors describing firms' sensitivity to extreme market movements. More precisely, our results suggest that variables measuring tail dependence -based on so-called dynamic copula models -incorporate almost all essential pricing information making other potential determinants such as default risk (Merton-type) factors or variables capturing the systematic market evolutions negligible. The determinants of CDS spreads: evidence from the model space * Matthias Pelster Leuphana University of Lueneburg Johannes Vilsmeier Deutsche Bundesbank AbstractWe apply Bayesian Model Averaging and a frequentistic model space analysis to assess the pricing-determinants of credit default swaps (CDS). Our study focuses on the complete model space of plausible models covering most of the variables and specifications used elsewhere in the literature, including different copula models. The approach followed supports ultimate transparency and robustness for the empirical study at hand. Using a large data-set of CDS contracts we find that CDS price dynamics can be mainly explained by factors describing firms' sensitivity to extreme market movements. More precisely, our results suggest that dynamic copula based measures of tail dependence incorporate almost all essential pricing information making other potential determinants such as Merton-type factors or variables measuring the systematic market evolution -based on simple means or principal component analysis -negligible.

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