An essential introduction to data analytics and Machine Learning techniques in the business sector In Financial Data Analytics with Machine Learning, Optimization and Statistics, a team consisting of a distinguished applied mathematician and statistician, experienced actuarial professionals and working data analysts delivers an expertly balanced combination of traditional financial statistics, effective machine learning tools, and mathematics. The book focuses on contemporary techniques used for data analytics in the financial sector and the insurance industry with an emphasis on mathematical understanding and statistical principles and connects them with common and practical financial problems. Each chapter is equipped with derivations and proofs—especially of key results—and includes several realistic examples which stem from common financial contexts. The computer algorithms in the book are implemented using Python and R, two of the most widely used programming languages for applied science and in academia and industry, so that readers can implement the relevant models and use the programs themselves. The book begins with a brief introduction to basic sampling theory and the fundamentals of simulation techniques, followed by a comparison between R and Python. It then discusses statistical diagnosis for financial security data and introduces some common tools in financial forensics such as Benford's Law, Zipf's Law, and anomaly detection. The statistical estimation and Expectation-Maximization (EM) & Majorization-Minimization (MM) algorithms are also covered. The book next focuses on univariate and multivariate dynamic volatility and correlation forecasting, and emphasis is placed on the celebrated Kelly's formula, followed by a brief introduction to quantitative risk management and dependence modelling for extremal events. A practical topic on numerical finance for traditional option pricing and Greek computations immediately follows as well as other important topics in financial data-driven aspects, such as Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and recommender systems with their applications, as well as advanced regression learners such as kernel regression and logistic regression, with discussions on model assessment methods such as simple Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves and Area Under Curve (AUC) for typical classification problems. The book then moves on to other commonly used machine learning tools like linear classifiers such as perceptrons and their generalization, the multilayered counterpart (MLP), Support Vector Machines (SVM), as well as Classification and Regression Trees (CART) and Random Forests. Subsequent chapters focus on linear Bayesian learning, including well-received credibility theory in actuarial science and functional kernel regression, and non-linear Bayesian learning, such as the Naïve Bayes classifier and the Comonotone-Independence Bayesian Classifier (CIBer) recently independently developed by the authors and used successfully in InsurTech. After an in-depth discussion on cluster analyses such as K-means clustering and its inversion, the K-nearest neighbor (KNN) method, the book concludes by introducing some useful deep neural networks for FinTech, like the potential use of the Long-Short Term Memory model (LSTM) for stock price prediction. This book can help readers become well-equipped with the following skills: To evaluate financial and insurance data quality, and use the distilled knowledge obtained from the data after applying data analytic tools to make timely financial decisions To apply effective data dimension reduction tools to enhance supervised learning To describe and select suitable data analytic tools as introduced above for a given dataset depending upon classification or regression prediction purpose The book covers the competencies tested by several professional examinations, such as the Predictive Analytics Exam offered by the Society of Actuaries, and the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries' Actuarial Statistics Exam. Besides being an indispensable resource for senior undergraduate and graduate students taking courses in financial engineering, statistics, quantitative finance, risk management, actuarial science, data science, and mathematics for AI, Financial Data Analytics with Machine Learning, Optimization and Statistics also belongs in the libraries of aspiring and practicing quantitative analysts working in commercial and investment banking.

An essential introduction to data analytics and Machine Learning techniques in the business sector In Financial Data Analytics with Machine Learning, Optimization and Statistics, a team consisting of a distinguished applied mathematician and statistician, experienced actuarial professionals and working data analysts delivers an expertly balanced combination of traditional financial statistics, effective machine learning tools, and mathematics. The book focuses on contemporary techniques used for data analytics in the financial sector and the insurance industry with an emphasis on mathematical understanding and statistical principles and connects them with common and practical financial problems. Each chapter is equipped with derivations and proofs—especially of key results—and includes several realistic examples which stem from common financial contexts. The computer algorithms in the book are implemented using Python and R, two of the most widely used programming languages for applied science and in academia and industry, so that readers can implement the relevant models and use the programs themselves. The book begins with a brief introduction to basic sampling theory and the fundamentals of simulation techniques, followed by a comparison between R and Python. It then discusses statistical diagnosis for financial security data and introduces some common tools in financial forensics such as Benford's Law, Zipf's Law, and anomaly detection. The statistical estimation and Expectation-Maximization (EM) & Majorization-Minimization (MM) algorithms are also covered. The book next focuses on univariate and multivariate dynamic volatility and correlation forecasting, and emphasis is placed on the celebrated Kelly's formula, followed by a brief introduction to quantitative risk management and dependence modelling for extremal events. A practical topic on numerical finance for traditional option pricing and Greek computations immediately follows as well as other important topics in financial data-driven aspects, such as Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and recommender systems with their applications, as well as advanced regression learners such as kernel regression and logistic regression, with discussions on model assessment methods such as simple Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves and Area Under Curve (AUC) for typical classification problems. The book then moves on to other commonly used machine learning tools like linear classifiers such as perceptrons and their generalization, the multilayered counterpart (MLP), Support Vector Machines (SVM), as well as Classification and Regression Trees (CART) and Random Forests. Subsequent chapters focus on linear Bayesian learning, including well-received credibility theory in actuarial science and functional kernel regression, and non-linear Bayesian learning, such as the Naïve Bayes classifier and the Comonotone-Independence Bayesian Classifier (CIBer) recently independently developed by the authors and used successfully in InsurTech. After an in-depth discussion on cluster analyses such as K-means clustering and its inversion, the K-nearest neighbor (KNN) method, the book concludes by introducing some useful deep neural networks for FinTech, like the potential use of the Long-Short Term Memory model (LSTM) for stock price prediction. This book can help readers become well-equipped with the following skills: To evaluate financial and insurance data quality, and use the distilled knowledge obtained from the data after applying data analytic tools to make timely financial decisions To apply effective data dimension reduction tools to enhance supervised learning To describe and select suitable data analytic tools as introduced above for a given dataset depending upon classification or regression prediction purpose The book covers the competencies tested by several professional examinations, such as the Predictive Analytics Exam offered by the Society of Actuaries, and the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries' Actuarial Statistics Exam. Besides being an indispensable resource for senior undergraduate and graduate students taking courses in financial engineering, statistics, quantitative finance, risk management, actuarial science, data science, and mathematics for AI, Financial Data Analytics with Machine Learning, Optimization and Statistics also belongs in the libraries of aspiring and practicing quantitative analysts working in commercial and investment banking.

Focuses on mathematical understanding Presentation is self-contained, accessible, and comprehensive Full color throughout Extensive list of exercises and worked-out examples Many concrete algorithms with actual code

​This book presents both theory of financial data analytics, as well as comprehensive insights into the application of financial data analytics techniques in real financial world situations. It offers solutions on how to logically analyze the enormous amount of structured and unstructured data generated every moment in the finance sector. This data can be used by companies, organizations, and investors to create strategies, as the finance sector rapidly moves towards data-driven optimization. This book provides an efficient resource, addressing all applications of data analytics in the finance sector. International experts from around the globe cover the most important subjects in finance, including data processing, knowledge management, machine learning models, data modeling, visualization, optimization for financial problems, financial econometrics, financial time series analysis, project management, and decision making. The authors provide empirical evidence as examples of specific topics. By combining both applications and theory, the book offers a holistic approach. Therefore, it is a must-read for researchers and scholars of financial economics and finance, as well as practitioners interested in a better understanding of financial data analytics.

The modern financial industry has been required to deal with large and diverse portfolios in a variety of asset classes often with limited market data available. Financial Signal Processing and Machine Learning unifies a number of recent advances made in signal processing and machine learning for the design and management of investment portfolios and financial engineering. This book bridges the gap between these disciplines, offering the latest information on key topics including characterizing statistical dependence and correlation in high dimensions, constructing effective and robust risk measures, and their use in portfolio optimization and rebalancing. The book focuses on signal processing approaches to model return, momentum, and mean reversion, addressing theoretical and implementation aspects. It highlights the connections between portfolio theory, sparse learning and compressed sensing, sparse eigen-portfolios, robust optimization, non-Gaussian data-driven risk measures, graphical models, causal analysis through temporal-causal modeling, and large-scale copula-based approaches. Key features: Highlights signal processing and machine learning as key approaches to quantitative finance. Offers advanced mathematical tools for high-dimensional portfolio construction, monitoring, and post-trade analysis problems. Presents portfolio theory, sparse learning and compressed sensing, sparsity methods for investment portfolios. including eigen-portfolios, model return, momentum, mean reversion and non-Gaussian data-driven risk measures with real-world applications of these techniques. Includes contributions from leading researchers and practitioners in both the signal and information processing communities, and the quantitative finance community.

Learn to understand and implement the latest machine learning innovations to improve your investment performance Machine learning (ML) is changing virtually every aspect of our lives. Today, ML algorithms accomplish tasks that – until recently – only expert humans could perform. And finance is ripe for disruptive innovations that will transform how the following generations understand money and invest. In the book, readers will learn how to: Structure big data in a way that is amenable to ML algorithms Conduct research with ML algorithms on big data Use supercomputing methods and back test their discoveries while avoiding false positives Advances in Financial Machine Learning addresses real life problems faced by practitioners every day, and explains scientifically sound solutions using math, supported by code and examples. Readers become active users who can test the proposed solutions in their individual setting. Written by a recognized expert and portfolio manager, this book will equip investment professionals with the groundbreaking tools needed to succeed in modern finance.

A groundbreaking, authoritative introduction to how machine learning can be applied to asset pricing Investors in financial markets are faced with an abundance of potentially value-relevant information from a wide variety of different sources. In such data-rich, high-dimensional environments, techniques from the rapidly advancing field of machine learning (ML) are well-suited for solving prediction problems. Accordingly, ML methods are quickly becoming part of the toolkit in asset pricing research and quantitative investing. In this book, Stefan Nagel examines the promises and challenges of ML applications in asset pricing. Asset pricing problems are substantially different from the settings for which ML tools were developed originally. To realize the potential of ML methods, they must be adapted for the specific conditions in asset pricing applications. Economic considerations, such as portfolio optimization, absence of near arbitrage, and investor learning can guide the selection and modification of ML tools. Beginning with a brief survey of basic supervised ML methods, Nagel then discusses the application of these techniques in empirical research in asset pricing and shows how they promise to advance the theoretical modeling of financial markets. Machine Learning in Asset Pricing presents the exciting possibilities of using cutting-edge methods in research on financial asset valuation.

This paper discusses the impact of the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) in the financial sector. It highlights the benefits these technologies bring in terms of financial deepening and efficiency, while raising concerns about its potential in widening the digital divide between advanced and developing economies. The paper advances the discussion on the impact of this technology by distilling and categorizing the unique risks that it could pose to the integrity and stability of the financial system, policy challenges, and potential regulatory approaches. The evolving nature of this technology and its application in finance means that the full extent of its strengths and weaknesses is yet to be fully understood. Given the risk of unexpected pitfalls, countries will need to strengthen prudential oversight.

An introduction to the theory and methods of empirical asset pricing, integrating classical foundations with recent developments. This book offers a comprehensive advanced introduction to asset pricing, the study of models for the prices and returns of various securities. The focus is empirical, emphasizing how the models relate to the data. The book offers a uniquely integrated treatment, combining classical foundations with more recent developments in the literature and relating some of the material to applications in investment management. It covers the theory of empirical asset pricing, the main empirical methods, and a range of applied topics. The book introduces the theory of empirical asset pricing through three main paradigms: mean variance analysis, stochastic discount factors, and beta pricing models. It describes empirical methods, beginning with the generalized method of moments (GMM) and viewing other methods as special cases of GMM; offers a comprehensive review of fund performance evaluation; and presents selected applied topics, including a substantial chapter on predictability in asset markets that covers predicting the level of returns, volatility and higher moments, and predicting cross-sectional differences in returns. Other chapters cover production-based asset pricing, long-run risk models, the Campbell-Shiller approximation, the debate on covariance versus characteristics, and the relation of volatility to the cross-section of stock returns. An extensive reference section captures the current state of the field. The book is intended for use by graduate students in finance and economics; it can also serve as a reference for professionals.

The Science of Algorithmic Trading and Portfolio Management, with its emphasis on algorithmic trading processes and current trading models, sits apart from others of its kind. Robert Kissell, the first author to discuss algorithmic trading across the various asset classes, provides key insights into ways to develop, test, and build trading algorithms. Readers learn how to evaluate market impact models and assess performance across algorithms, traders, and brokers, and acquire the knowledge to implement electronic trading systems. This valuable book summarizes market structure, the formation of prices, and how different participants interact with one another, including bluffing, speculating, and gambling. Readers learn the underlying details and mathematics of customized trading algorithms, as well as advanced modeling techniques to improve profitability through algorithmic trading and appropriate risk management techniques. Portfolio management topics, including quant factors and black box models, are discussed, and an accompanying website includes examples, data sets supplementing exercises in the book, and large projects. - Prepares readers to evaluate market impact models and assess performance across algorithms, traders, and brokers. - Helps readers design systems to manage algorithmic risk and dark pool uncertainty. - Summarizes an algorithmic decision making framework to ensure consistency between investment objectives and trading objectives.