Question
Bob is planning to use a forward contract to purchase 1,000 units of Bitcoin in three months' time. The current spot price of Bitcoin is
Bob is planning to use a forward contract to purchase 1,000 units of Bitcoin in three months' time. The current spot price of Bitcoin is $1,650 per unit. People can use a third party service called "paper wallet" to store their Bitcoins. This service can generate QR codes to store Bitcoins and the assumed cost for three months is $50 per unit of Bitcoin, payable at the beginning of the storage period. Assume an interest rate of 5% p.a. (simple interest rate) in your calculations.
(a) Use the arbitrage-free pricing principle to calculate the fair forward price for Bitcoin per unit. Round your result to two decimal places.
(b) Suppose that the forward price for purchase or sale of Bitcoin in three months' time is $1,750 per unit. List and explain all the steps that Bob needs to undertake in order to make an arbitrage profit from a forward contract on 1,000 units of Bitcoin in three months' time. Make sure you outline all that needs to happen on all relevant dates, as well as today.
(c) Assume now there is no storage cost for Bitcoin (i.e., no need for a "paper wallet" service). Suppose that the forward price for purchase or sale of Bitcoin in three months' time is $1,660 per unit. List and explain all the steps that Bob needs to undertake in order to make an arbitrage profit from a forward contract on 1,000 units of Bitcoin in three months' time. Make sure you outline all that needs to happen on all relevant dates, as well as today.
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