A Sharia Compliant Solution for Launching Index Derivatives in Tehran Stock Exchange

Financial derivatives are new instruments through which hedging, investment and arbitrage are done in a modern economy. Although the word 'derivative' primarily reminds us of options and futures, the major focus of the equity derivatives industry worldwide is on index derivatives. Launching index options and index futures in Tehran Stock Exchange, not only increases financial market depth and financial instrument variety, but also provides investors with instruments to hedge their portfolios and helps foreign investor attractions. Also, these financial instruments enhance the information about future prices and thus help market participants to improve their planning for future. However, there is no Sharia compliant solution for index derivatives yet. This paper introduces stock portfolio futures and options. At the beginning of the contract, this portfolio and its combination are clear and physically deliverable. So, stock portfolio futures is a financial contract obligating the buyer to purchase the underlying portfolio of stocks at a predetermined future date and price and the seller to sell this portfolio. Besides, stock portfolio options are a privilege sold by one party to another, that gives the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to buy (call) or sell (put) a portfolio of stocks at an agreed-upon price within a certain period or on a specific date. The described portfolio is so designed to track the underlying index; thus, all functions of index derivatives may be achieved by launching stock portfolio futures and options.