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Why does the bank account contribute 110 in every state in the one-period market model?

The bank account contributes 110 in every state because it is a risk-free asset that pays 10% interest per year. Investing 100 today guarantees a return of 110 at time one, regardless of which of the three possible scenarios occurs.

Conditions

  • The bank account is risk-free.
  • The bank account pays 10% interest per year.
  • The initial investment (current price) is 100.
  • The model is a one-period setting with multiple states.

Reasoning, step by step

  1. Identify the current price of the bank account, which is 100.
  2. Apply the 10% annual interest rate to the initial investment.
  3. Calculate the guaranteed payoff: 100×(1+0.10)=110100 \times (1 + 0.10) = 110.
  4. Recognize that because the asset is risk-free, this payoff is identical across all possible states of the world.
  5. Use this constant payoff of 110 as the coefficient for each state price in the bank account's pricing equation.

Example

The lecturer states that if you put 100 in the bank account, it will pay you 110 no matter what happens at time one. This results in the first equation of the pricing system: 110ψ1+110ψ2+110ψ3=100110\psi_1 + 110\psi_2 + 110\psi_3 = 100.

Common misconceptions

  • Overlooking the bank account as a priced security in the market, treating only the risky securities as assets in the pricing system.
  • Assuming the bank account's payoff varies by state; a risk-free asset by definition has a constant payoff across all states.

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