Variable Interest Entities (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2018

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

Schedule of Variable Interest Entities [Table Text Block]

The following table summarizes the assets and liabilities related to VIEs consolidated by the Company at December 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017:



(in thousands)	December 31,
	2018		2017
Assets
Limited liability investments, at fair value	$	25,809	$	21,895
Investments in private companies, at adjusted cost	750		750
Cash and cash equivalents	351		220
Accrued investment income	217		107
Other receivable	48		—
Total Assets	27,175		22,972
Liabilities
Accrued expenses and other liabilities	252		97
Notes payable	9,000		9,000
Total Liabilities	$	9,252	$	9,097

No arrangements exist requiring the Company to provide additional funding to the consolidated VIEs in excess of the Company’s unfunded commitments. At December 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the Company had $0.6 million and $1.2 million, respectively, of unfunded commitments to Argo Holdings. There are no restrictions on assets consolidated by these VIEs. There are no structured settlements of liabilities consolidated by these VIEs. Creditors have no recourse to the general credit of the Company as the primary beneficiary of these VIEs.

(b) Non-Consolidated VIEs

The Company’s investments include certain non-consolidated investments, primarily in limited liability companies and limited partnerships in which the Company holds variable interests, that are considered VIEs due to the legal entities holding insufficient equity; the holders of equity at risk in the legal entities lacking controlling financial interests; and/or the holders of equity at risk having non-proportional voting rights.

The Company’s risk of loss associated with its non-consolidated VIEs is limited and depends on the investment. Limited liability investments accounted for under the equity method are limited to the Company’s initial investments. At December 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the Company had zero and $0.1 million, respectively, of unfunded commitments to its non-consolidated VIEs.

The following table summarizes the carrying value and maximum loss exposure of the Company’s non-consolidated VIEs at December 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017:



(in thousands)	December 31,
	2018				2017
	Carrying Value		Maximum Loss Exposure		Carrying Value		Maximum Loss Exposure
Investments in non-consolidated VIEs	$	4,664	$	4,664	$	15,363	$	15,363

The following table summarizes the Company’s non-consolidated VIEs by category at December 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017:



(in thousands)	December 31,
	2018				2017
	Carrying Value		Percent of total		Carrying Value		Percent of total
Investments in non-consolidated VIEs:
Real estate related	1,710		36.7	%	1,726		11.2	%
Non-real estate related	2,954		63.3	%	13,637		88.8	%
Total investments in non-consolidated VIEs	$	4,664	100.0	%	$	15,363	100.0	%

The following table presents aggregated summarized financial information of the Company’s non-consolidated VIEs at December 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017. For certain of the non-consolidated VIEs, the financial information is presented on a lag basis, consistent with how the changes in the Company’s share of the net asset values of these equity method investees are recorded in net investment income. The difference between the end of the reporting period of an equity method investee and that of the Company is typically no more than three months.



(in thousands)	December 31,
	2018		2017
Assets	$	363,516	$	332,181
Liabilities	296,521		238,819
Equity	66,995		93,362



(in thousands)	December 31,
	2018			2017
Net (loss) income	$	(29,619	)	$	(4,294	)

- Definition

Tabular disclosure of the significant judgments and assumptions made in determining whether a variable interest (as defined) held by the entity requires the variable interest entity (VIE) (as defined) to be consolidated and (or) disclose information about its involvement with the VIE, individually or in aggregate (as applicable); the nature of restrictions, if any, on the consolidated VIE's assets and on the settlement of its liabilities reported by an entity in its statement of financial position, including the carrying amounts of such assets and liabilities; the nature of, and changes in, the risks associated with involvement in the VIE; how involvement with the VIE affects the entity's financial position, financial performance, and cash flows; the lack of recourse if creditors (or beneficial interest holders) of the consolidated VIE have no recourse to the general credit of the primary beneficiary (if applicable); the terms of arrangements, giving consideration to both explicit arrangements and implicit variable interests, if any, that could require the entity to provide financial support to the VIE, including events or circumstances that could expose the entity to a loss; the methodology used by the entity for determining whether or not it is the primary beneficiary of the variable interest entity; the significant factors considered and judgments made in determining that the power to direct the activities of a VIE that most significantly impact the VIE's economic performance are shared (as defined); the carrying amounts and classification of assets and liabilities of the VIE included in the statement of financial position; the entity's maximum exposure to loss, if any, as a result of its involvement with the VIE, including how the maximum exposure is determined and significant sources of the entity's exposure to the VIE; a comparison of the carrying amounts of the assets and liabilities and the entity's maximum exposure to loss; information about any liquidity arrangements, guarantees, and (or) other commitments by third parties that may affect the fair value or risk of the entity's variable interest in the VIE; whether or not the entity has provided financial support or other support (explicitly or implicitly) to the VIE that it was not previously contractually required to provide or whether the entity intends to provide that support, including the type and amount of the support and the primary reasons for providing the support; and supplemental information the entity determines necessary to provide.

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