9.1 Reconsideration Events
ASC 810-10
35-4 A legal entity that previously was not subject to the Variable Interest Entities Subsections shall not become subject to them simply because of losses in excess of its expected losses that reduce the equity investment. The initial determination of whether a legal entity is a VIE shall be reconsidered if any of the following occur:
- The legal entity’s governing documents or contractual arrangements are changed in a manner that changes the characteristics or adequacy of the legal entity’s equity investment at risk.
- The equity investment or some part thereof is returned to the equity investors, and other interests become exposed to expected losses of the legal entity.
- The legal entity undertakes additional activities or acquires additional assets, beyond those that were anticipated at the later of the inception of the entity or the latest reconsideration event, that increase the entity’s expected losses.
- The legal entity receives an additional equity investment that is at risk, or the legal entity curtails or modifies its activities in a way that decreases its expected losses.
- Changes in facts and circumstances occur such that the holders of the equity investment at risk, as a group, lose the power from voting rights or similar rights of those investments to direct the activities of the entity that most significantly impact the entity’s economic performance.
A reporting entity is required to
reconsider whether a legal entity is a
VIE upon the occurrence of certain types
of events (“reconsideration events”). The reporting entity should not reconsider
whether a legal entity is a VIE on a continual basis or at times other than those
outlined in ASC 810-10-35-4. (Note that as discussed in Section 7.1.5, if a legal entity is a VIE, the
reporting entity should continually assess whether to consolidate the VIE.)
Five types of events lead to reconsideration of VIE status, each of which is
illustrated in the examples in this chapter. If one or more reconsideration events
occur, the holder of a variable
interest in a legal entity that was previously deemed a VIE must
reconsider whether that legal entity continues to be a VIE. Likewise, the holder of
a variable interest in a legal entity that previously was not a VIE must reconsider
whether that legal entity has become a VIE.
A reporting entity must consider all pertinent facts and circumstances in assessing whether a reconsideration event has occurred. Insignificant events do not always result in reconsideration of a legal entity’s VIE status. An event’s significance depends on whether the event appears to have changed the sufficiency of equity investment at risk or on whether the characteristics of the equity investment at risk have changed.
The FASB has noted that losses in excess of expectations should not in isolation be considered a reconsideration event. However, many times, a legal entity’s prolonged losses can result in the triggering of one or more of the reconsideration events in other ways (see Section 9.2.3).
A legal entity can become a VIE or cease being a VIE as a result of a reconsideration event under ASC 810-10-35-4. Such an event could also cause a reporting entity to no longer qualify or begin to qualify for one of the scope exceptions in ASC 810-10-15-12 and ASC 810-10-15-17 (see Sections 3.3 and 3.4, respectively). Upon reconsideration, the variable interest holders would need to consider all of the requirements of ASC 810-10-15-14 in determining whether the legal entity is a VIE.
9.1.1 Change in Governing Documents or Contractual Agreements
ASC 810-10
35-4(a) The legal entity’s governing documents or contractual arrangements are changed in a manner that changes the characteristics or adequacy of the legal entity’s equity investment at risk.
A reporting entity must reconsider its initial determination of whether a legal entity is a VIE if modifications have been made to the legal entity’s governing documents, or to contractual arrangements, that result in changes to the characteristics or adequacy of the legal entity’s equity investment at risk.
Example 9-1
A privately held partnership was formed with a contribution of capital from the
partners in equal portions to their ownership interests.
At inception, the partnership was deemed not to be a
VIE. After inception, the partners wanted to protect
themselves against the decline in value of the
partnership’s sole asset, a rental property. Therefore,
the partners paid a premium to a third party for a
first-loss residual value guarantee on the partnership’s
rental property. In this situation, the residual value
guarantee has changed the characteristics of the
partnership’s equity investment at risk. This causes the
reporting entity to reconsider whether the partnership
is a VIE (specifically, it appears that the partnership
no longer has the characteristic in ASC
810-10-15-14(b)(2)) because the equity group does not
absorb the expected losses related to the decline of the
rental property.
9.1.2 Return of Equity Investment and Exposure to Losses by Other Interests
ASC 810-10
35-4(b) The equity investment or some part thereof is returned to the equity investors, and other interests become exposed to expected losses of the legal entity.
If the equity investment at risk, or some part thereof, is returned to the
equity investors, each potential variable interest holder must determine whether
other interests (new or preexisting) have become exposed to expected losses of the legal entity. Other interest
holders become exposed to expected losses if the equity, at the time of the
reconsideration, would not be sufficient to permit the legal entity to finance its
activities without additional subordinated financial
support, as described in ASC 810-10-15-14(a), given the circumstances
and conditions at the time of the reconsideration.
The return of the equity investment at risk, or some part thereof, in and of
itself, is not a reconsideration event. There may be situations in which
distribution of equity does not trigger the need to reconsider whether a legal
entity is a VIE (see Example
9-3). A reconsideration event occurs when a distribution of equity
(or some part thereof) is in excess of accumulated earnings of the legal entity and
therefore exposes other variable interest holders to expected losses, thus calling
into question whether the entity’s remaining equity investment at risk is
sufficient. This determination may be based on a qualitative evaluation, a
quantitative evaluation, or a combination of both, as discussed in Section 5.2.
Example 9-2
Enterprise A owns 49 percent of the common voting shares of Entity B, a voting interest entity. Enterprise A does not control B and does not consolidate B’s accounts under the voting interest entity model. Entity B finances its operations by issuing equity and debt (rated investment-grade by a nationally recognized rating agency). Entity B does not have any other variable interest holders besides the equity holders and the lender. When A first became involved with B, A concluded that B was a voting interest entity partly on the basis of a conclusive qualitative assessment of the sufficiency of B’s equity investment at risk.
One year after A made its investments in B, B makes a partial return of the
common shareholders’ investment. Therefore, A needs to
reassess whether other variable interest holders have become
exposed to expected losses of B. Assume that A makes a
qualitative assessment, noting that the rating agency has
reaffirmed its investment-grade rating of B’s debt. This and
other pertinent factors could lead to a conclusive
qualitative assessment that B continues to be a voting
interest entity that is not subject to the VIE model.
Example 9-3
Assume the same facts as in the example above, except Entity B finances its
operations solely through equity at risk. Entity B has
accumulated retained earnings of $100,000 from operations
and makes a $50,000 dividend distribution to the common
shareholders. Entity A does not need to reassess whether
other variable interest holders have become exposed to
expected losses of B since the return of equity is not in
excess of accumulated earnings. Accordingly, the return of
$50,000 would not trigger the need to reconsider whether B
is a VIE.
9.1.3 Additional Activities or Acquisition of Additional Assets
ASC 810-10
35-4(c) The legal entity undertakes additional activities or acquires additional assets, beyond those that were anticipated at the later of the inception of the entity or the latest reconsideration event, that increase the entity’s expected losses.
The legal entity may undertake additional activities or acquire assets that were not contemplated as part of the design of the legal entity (or at a later reconsideration event) that result in an increase of its expected losses. When assessing the expected losses of the legal entity, a reporting entity should consider whether the expected losses immediately before undertaking additional activities or acquiring additional assets have increased as a result of the change that was not initially anticipated (i.e., the expected losses were not included in the reporting entity’s initial assessment of whether the legal entity is a VIE). The reporting entity will typically be able to make this determination by qualitatively analyzing the impact that the change has on expected losses on the basis of the relative risk of the additional activities or additional assets.
Example 9-4
Real Estate Entity R, initially determined not to be a VIE, purchases five rental properties by issuing equity and debt instruments. At inception, the equity and debt holders determine that the equity investment at risk is sufficient under ASC 810-10-15-14(a) and ASC 810-10-25-45. Subsequently, R issues subordinated debt to purchase additional rental properties. Because of R’s acquisition of additional assets, which potentially increases R’s expected losses, the variable interest holders involved must reconsider whether R has become a VIE. These transactions were not anticipated when R was formed.
Note that had these transactions been anticipated, in assessing the sufficiency
of the equity, R would have needed to consider the
variability associated with the substantial uncertainty
regarding the acquisition of unidentified real estate at
inception as well as the sources of funding for the
acquisition. See Section 5.2.3 for
additional information.
Example 9-5
Entity C is formed by two investors to develop and manufacture a new drug. Assume that C is a voting interest entity and that each investor holds a variable interest in C. Investor A has power over the research and development activities to develop and obtain FDA approval for the drug (stage 1), and those activities most significantly affect C’s economic performance during that stage. Investor B has the power over the manufacturing process, distribution, and marketing of the drug if and when FDA approval is obtained (stage 2), and those activities would most significantly affect C’s economic performance during that stage. The variable interest holders conclude that FDA approval would be considered a substantive contingent event that results in a change in power from Investor A to Investor B. Therefore, the VIE determination should focus on stage 1 activities until the contingent event occurs.
If FDA approval is obtained, C is considered to be undertaking additional activities when C enters stage 2. This is due to the substantive contingency of getting FDA approval, even though stage 2 was anticipated at C’s inception. Therefore, the reporting entity should reconsider whether C is a VIE. Conversely, if FDA approval was not considered a substantive contingency, the reporting entity would not reconsider whether C is a VIE because stage 2 activities would have been considered in the initial assessment. See Section 5.2.4 for additional information.
9.1.4 Additional Equity Investment at Risk or Modification/Curtailment of Activities
ASC 810-10
35-4(d) The legal entity receives an additional equity investment that is at risk, or the legal entity curtails or modifies its activities in a way that decreases its expected losses.
Upon the contribution of additional equity investment at risk or the modification or curtailment of a legal entity’s activities that result in a reduction of expected losses, a reporting entity should reassess whether the legal entity is a VIE.
Example 9-6
Three investors form Entity A to purchase real estate property. Each of the
three investors contributes $5 million in equity
investment at risk and $45 million in subordinated debt.
Entity A was deemed a VIE because of insufficient equity
investment at risk. The original governing documents
stipulate that, 12 months after A’s formation, each
investor must contribute an additional $25 million in
equity investment at risk. When that additional equity
investment is made, A’s VIE status is reconsidered, even
though the original governing documents required the
subsequent equity investment.
Example 9-7
Three investors form Entity A. They
designed A to purchase five specific real estate
properties. Each investor contributes $5 million in
equity investment at risk and $45 million in
subordinated debt. Entity A was deemed a VIE because of
insufficient equity investment at risk. Upon A’s
formation, it purchases the five properties it was
designed to purchase. Three of the properties are in
stable markets with stable cash flows. However, two are
in emerging markets in which stable cash flows are not
expected, which could result in significant expected
losses. Twelve months after Entity A’s formation, A
sells the two properties in emerging markets, which
reduces its expected losses. Upon the sale of the two
properties, A’s VIE status is reconsidered.
9.1.5 Loss of Power
ASC 810-10
35-4(e) Changes in facts and circumstances occur such that the holders of the equity investment at risk, as a group, lose the power from voting rights or similar rights of those investments to direct the activities of the entity that most significantly impact the entity’s economic performance.
When equity holders, as a group, lose the power to direct the most significant
activities of the legal entity, the reporting entity must reconsider whether the
legal entity is a VIE. While the guidance refers specifically to situations in
which holders of the equity investment at risk, as a group, lose power to direct the activities of the legal entity, we believe
that a reassessment of whether the entity is a VIE can sometimes be triggered
when equity holders gain the power to direct the most significant activities of
the legal entity.
Example 9-8
Upon formation, a limited partnership is a VIE because the general partner,
along with legal entities under common control or
parties acting on its behalf, has sufficient interests
to prevent a simple majority (or a lower threshold) of
the limited partners from exercising kick-out rights
(including liquidation rights) and the limited partners
do not have substantive participating rights. After the
formation of the limited partnership, the governing
documents are amended to permit a simple majority of the
limited partners, excluding the general partner (and
entities under common control or parties acting on its
behalf), to exercise the kick-out rights that accrue to
those interest holders irrespective of the holdings of
the general partner.
The partners should reassess whether the limited partnership continues to be a
VIE. In this example, the holders of the equity
investment at risk (i.e., the limited partners)
effectively gain power as a result of the general
partner’s disposal of its kick-out rights as opposed to
losing the power to direct activities (as would be the
case if the general partner obtained additional kick-out
rights). Furthermore, even though the general partner
was initially (upon formation of the partnership) and
continues to be part of the equity group, we believe
that the right to exercise power over the significant
activities of a legal entity is fundamental to the
determination of whether a legal entity is a VIE and, if
so, whether the holder of a variable interest in the VIE
is the primary beneficiary. Accordingly, either a gain
or a loss of power to direct the activities of a limited
partnership that most significantly affect its economic
performance would be deemed a reconsideration event in
the context of evaluating the guidance in ASC
810-10-35-4(e).
Example 9-9
Investors X and Y form Entity Z to purchase and operate real estate properties. Each investor contributes $25 million in equity at risk. In addition, Investor D loans $5 million to Z. The loan agreement between D and Z includes a clause stipulating that if there is an adverse change that materially impairs the ability of Z to pay back the loan, D can take possession of all the assets of Z and direct the activities that most significantly affect Z’s economic performance. An independent third party must objectively determine whether a material adverse change has occurred on the basis of the terms of the loan agreement (an example of a material adverse change under the loan agreement would be the bankruptcy of Z). At inception, Z is deemed a voting interest entity (the rights of D are considered protective rights in accordance with ASC 810-10-25-38C). The occurrence of a material adverse change under the debt agreement would trigger a reconsideration event, since the holders of the equity investment at risk as a group would have lost the power to direct the activities that most significantly affect Z’s economic performance.
Example 9-10
An investment manager creates a fund and retains a 25 percent interest in it. For its role, the investment manager receives remuneration that is customary and commensurate with services performed, including an incentive fee. However, the fee arrangement is considered a variable interest as a result of the investment manager’s 25 percent interest.
In addition, the investment manager has the power to direct the activities that
most significantly affect the legal entity’s economic
performance (rather than the equity investors).
Accordingly, when evaluating whether the fund is a VIE,
the investors with equity at risk would not have power
(ASC 810-10-15-14(b)(1)). In this case, the investment
manager would not be able to apply the override in ASC
810-10-15-14(b)(1) because its fee arrangement is a
variable interest (see Section
5.3.1.1.3.1). That is, the investment
manager with power would not be acting in a fiduciary
capacity on behalf of the equity investors and the fund
is therefore a VIE.
Subsequently, the investment manager
disposes of its 25 percent interest. As a result, the
fee arrangement is no longer considered a variable
interest (see Section 4.4.3),
and the investment manager is now acting in a fiduciary
capacity on behalf of the equity investors. In this
case, the investment manager would reconsider whether
the fund remains a VIE because a gain or a loss of power
to direct the significant activities by the equity
investors would be deemed a reconsideration event in the
context of evaluating the guidance in ASC
810-10-35-4(e).
9.1.6 Power to Direct the Activities of the Entity That Most Significantly Affect Its Economic Performance Through Equity at Risk — Impact of ASC 810-10-15-14(c)
ASC 810-10-35-4(e) states:
Changes in facts and circumstances occur such that
the holders of the equity investment at risk, as a group, lose the power
from voting rights or similar rights of those investments to direct the
activities of the entity that most significantly impact the entity’s
economic performance.
We believe that entities should consider ASC 810-10-35-4(e) when applying ASC
810-10-15-14(b). ASC 810-10-15-14(b) addresses circumstances in which the
holders of the equity investment at risk, as a group, lack the power, through
voting rights or similar rights, to direct the activities of a legal entity that
most significantly affect the legal entity’s economic performance. Similarly,
ASC 810-10-15-14(c) (commonly referred to as the “anti-abuse provision”) is
intended to clarify the application of ASC 810-10-15-14(b). We believe that if
unrelated entities become related parties, they should reassess the transaction
under this guidance (which, in substance, would be a VIE assessment) before
concluding that a reconsideration event has taken place.
Example 9-11
Entity X and Entity Y each own 50 percent of the
outstanding common stock of Entity Z, a corporation.
Entities X and Y share in making all the decisions that
most significantly affect the economics of Z. Therefore,
X and Y have joint control over entity Z. In addition, X
has additional variable interests in Z. As a result, X
has disproportionately few voting rights in Z relative
to its variable interests. Entity Y owns a 7 percent
voting interest in X but is not a principal owner of X.
In accordance with ASC 810-10-25-43, X and Y are not de
facto agents or related parties. Entities X and Y
conclude that Z meets all the conditions in ASC
810-10-15-14 and, accordingly, both account for their
interest in Z under the equity method of accounting.
Subsequently, Y acquires an additional ownership interest
in X and, in accordance with ASC 850, becomes a
principal owner of X, holding 10.5 percent voting
ownership of X (the “transaction”). Assume that the
conditions in ASC 810-10-35-4(a) through (d) have not
been met as a result of the transaction.
We believe that Y must assess the transaction to
determine whether the conditions in ASC 810-10-35-4(e)
have been met. Although they are related parties after
the transaction, X and Y were not related entities
before it. The condition in ASC 810-10-35-4(e) is met if
the holders of the equity investment at risk, as a
group, lose (or gain) power to direct the activities of
the legal entity that most significantly affect the
legal entity’s economic performance.
ASC 810-10-15-14(b) provides guidance on determining
whether the holders of the equity investment at risk, as
a group, have power. Therefore, Y would need to consider
this guidance when determining whether the condition in
ASC 810-10-35-4(e) has been met. In addition, Y would
need to assess whether the guidance ASC 810-10-15-14(c)
has been met since it describes a condition in which the
holders of the equity investment at risk may not have
power over the legal entity.
In summary, as a result of the
transaction, Y should assess whether ASC 810-10-35-4(e)
is met. It should base its assessment on an evaluation
of ASC 810-10-15-14(b) and (c). If the condition in ASC
810-10-15-14(b) is not met, it should determine whether
ASC 810-10-15-14(c) is met in assessing whether ASC
810-10-35-4(e) is met.