Managing Risk with a Realized Copula Parameter

Abstract

A dynamic copula model is introduced, in which the copula structure is inferred from the realized covariance matrix estimated from within-day high-frequency data. The estimation is carried out in a method-of-moments fashion using Hoeffding’s lemma. Applying this procedure day by day gives rise to a time series of daily copula parameters which can be approximated by an autoregressive time series model. This allows one to capture time-varying dependence. In an application to portfolio risk-management, it is found that this time-varying realized copula model exhibits very good forecasting properties for the one-day ahead value at risk.

Keywords: realized variance, realized covariance, multivariate dependence, value at risk

JEL Classification: G12, C13, C14, C22, C50