Webinar: Using Volatility as an Asset Class

I recently participated in a webinar sponsored by AdvisorOne which tackled the subject of volatility as an asset class. Cliff Stanton of Prima Capital was the featured presenter and he presented the highlights from a white paper he authored, Volatility as an Asset Class. For those who are interested, I recommend clicking through the link above (free registration required) to review the white paper, which takes an in-depth look at the VIX over the course of 17 pages, from the index and its idiosyncrasies to the VIX futures and the first generation of VIX ETNs, VXX and VXZ.

As far as the VIX white paper is concerned, it would be a stretch for me to take issue with any of the analytical work or conclusions derived from the data. Instead, I chose to define the problem of volatility as an asset class more broadly and look at short volatility strategies, long-short strategies and VIX strategies that focus on the VIX futures term structure. In doing so, my comments build on my January 12^th Barron’s article, Ways to Turn Volatility into an Asset Class and make what I believe is a strong case for volatility products as an asset class.

AdvisorOne has archived the full Using Volatility as an Asset Class webinar here (free registration required)

Finally, since I have already gone out of my way to proclaim 2011 as the year volatility becomes a mainstream asset class, I will have a lot more to say about this subject in the weeks and months ahead.

Related posts:

• Ways to Turn Volatility into an Asset Class (Barron’s)
• Volatility as an Asset Class I
• The Year in VIX and Volatility (2010)
• VIX and More and the 2011 Bespoke Roundtable

Disclosure(s): none