Hi
You're correct that the riskier a product is, the higher the risk discount rate we should use to discount the future profits and see whether they meet our profit criteion.
Imagine a really simplified case, where the profit criterion is an NPV of $10 at t=0, and we're solving for what cash inflow is needed at t=1 to meet this.
The answer using an RDR=0% is a cash inflow of $10. The answer gets higher as we use a higher RDR.
So, the conclusion is that if a product is risky and we use a higher RDR, the calculated premium will be higher.
Hope this helps
Lynn
PS Note that "high discount rate gives prudence" is only correct when we're evaluating assets / positive cashflows. If we're valuing liabilities, a low discount rate is prudent. So, when we're doing supervisory reserving, for example, a low valuation rate of interest is prudent.
Last edited: Feb 28, 2011