How Does the Concept of ‘Implied Volatility’ Affect the Pricing of Options?

Implied Volatility (IV) is a measure of the market's expectation of future price swings in the underlying asset. It is the key input in the Black-Scholes or similar option pricing models.

Higher IV means the market expects larger price movements, making the option more likely to end up in-the-money, thus increasing the option's premium (extrinsic value). Conversely, lower IV leads to a lower premium.

IV is derived from the current market price of the option, unlike historical volatility, which is calculated from past price data.