8008 Exam Dumps : PRM Certification - Exam III: Risk Management Frameworks, Operational Risk, Credit Risk, Counterparty Risk, Market Risk, ALM, FTP - 2015 Edition

When a operational loss frequency distribution (which, for example, may be based upon a Poisson distribution) and a loss severity distribution (for example, based upon a lognormal distribution), it is assumed that the frequency of losses and the severity of the losses are completely independent and do not impact each other. Therefore statement II is correct, and the others are not valid assumptions underlying the operational loss distribution.

A default hazard rate is the rate of default in a continuous time setting. This question is asking for probability of survival at the end of 5 years. The formula to calculate the probability of survival at the end of t years where the default hazard rate is λ is e^(-λ *t) (or in Excel, =exp(-λ*t). Therefore the correct answer is Choice 'd'.

(It may be tempting to infer that if the probability of survival at the end of 1 year is 90% (1 - 10%), then the probability of survival in 5 years would be 90%^5. However this reasoning is not correct for the reason that the given rate is not the discrete rate of default, but the hazard rate which is nothing but the continuously compounded rate of default.)

A situation where a firm has more liabilities than assets does not necessarily imply default, so long as the firm is able to pay its obligations when they come due. Therefore, short term debts have a greater bearing on a firm's default than longer term debt. However, this is not to say that merely having enough to pay off the short term debts (ie debts due within one year) is enough to avoid default. Over time, the long term debt will also be turning to short term debt, and it may not be possible for the firm to roll over its liabilities without lenders considering the long term debt. The KMV approach considers the entire short term debt and half of the long term debt as the critical value of assets below which default will be triggered. Therefore Choice 'c' is the correct answer.