The Cap command creates a new interest rate cap instrument with the specified parameters. This instrument can be viewed as a payer interest rate swap where each exchange payment is executed only if it has positive value. (see Brigo and Mercurio (2001) for more details).

Assume that we have a set of coupon payments to occur at the times , , ..., . At each time instance  the cap pays

 is the nominal value,

 is the year fraction between dates  and ,

 is a coupon payment at the time ,

 is the fixed rate at time .

The parameter floatingleg defines floating-rate coupon payments. The parameter exerciserates defines the corresponding fixed rates. The first exercise rate corresponds to the first floating rate coupon, the second exercise rate corresponds to the second floating rate coupon, etc. If the size of the exerciserates list is smaller than the size of the floatingleg list then the last exercise rate will be used for all the remaining coupons.

The LatticePrice command can be used to price an interest rate cap using any given binomial or trinomial tree. The BlackPrice command will compute the price of an interest rate cap using the Black model.

The Finance[Cap] command was introduced in Maple 15.

For more information on Maple 15 changes, see Updates in Maple 15.

Brigo, D., Mercurio, F., Interest Rate Models: Theory and Practice. New York: Springer-Verlag, 2001.

Glasserman, P., Monte Carlo Methods in Financial Engineering. New York: Springer-Verlag, 2004.

Hull, J., Options, Futures, and Other Derivatives, 5th. edition. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2003.