Value-at-Risk Estimation of Equity Market Risk in India

Abstract The value-at-risk (Va) method in market risk management is becoming a benchmark for measuring “market risk” for any financial instrument. The present study aims at examining which VaR model best describes the risk arising out of the Indian equity market (Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex). Using data from 2006 to 2015, the VaR figures associated with parametric (variance–covariance, Exponentially Weighted Moving Average, Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroskedasticity) and non-parametric (historical simulation and Monte Carlo simulation) methods have been calculated. The study concludes that VaR models based on the assumption of normality underestimate the risk when returns are non-normally distributed. Models that capture fat-tailed behaviour of financial returns (historical simulation) are better able to capture the risk arising out of the financial instrument.