Restoring Convergence in Heavy-Tailed Risk Models: A Weighted Kolmogorov Approach for Robust Backtesting
Abstract
Standard risk metrics used in model validation, such as the Kolmogorov-Smirnov distance, fail to converge at practical rates when applied to high-frequency financial data characterized by heavy tails (infinite skewness). This creates a "noise barrier" where valid risk models are rejected due to tail events irrelevant to central tendency accuracy. In this paper, we introduce a Weighted Kolmogorov Metric tailored for financial time series with sub-cubic moments (). By incorporating an exhaustion function that mechanically downweights extreme tail noise, we prove that we can restore the optimal Gaussian convergence rate of even for Pareto and Student-t distributions common in Crypto and FX markets. We provide a complete proof using a core/tail truncation scheme and establish the optimal tuning of the weight parameter .
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.2601.04490,
title = {Restoring Convergence in Heavy-Tailed Risk Models: A Weighted Kolmogorov Approach for Robust Backtesting},
author = {Armen Petrosyan},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2601.04490},
year = {2026}
}