Creating Custom Markets
We encourage instructors to use existing IEM markets in classes. These markets are proven in the classroom, have a pre-existing core of traders and will be available on a repeated basis. However, for sufficiently large classes, the IEM will consider creating customized markets. To create a custom market, the IEM requires four things:
- The contracts traded must fall within the range of contracts we are allowed to trade. Further, the full slate of contracts must have a fixed ($1) payoff.
- The contracts and markets must be sufficiently simple to explain to traders and sufficiently interesting to attract traders and generate trade.
- The instructor must guarantee that at least 300 students will use the custom market for class purposes. These students can be members of one class or a set of classes.
- The instructor must contribute assignments using the custom markets to our class assignment archive. Typically, custom markets have consisted of standard IEM contracts (such as earnings, returns or price level contracts) that are based on companies that particular classes or instructors find interesting.
Custom markets must be negotiated directly with the IEM directors.
To discuss any ideas for market, please contact the IEM Administrator at iem@uiowa.edu.
