Condensed Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Assets
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 188,246	$ 149,765
Investment in receivable portfolios, net	2,728,811	2,382,809
Property and equipment, net	71,213	72,257
Deferred court costs, net	77,361	65,187
Other assets	254,993	215,447
Goodwill	853,162	785,032
Total assets	4,173,786	3,670,497
Liabilities:
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	269,927	234,398
Debt	3,148,497	2,805,983
Other liabilities	32,207	29,601
Total liabilities	3,450,631	3,069,982
Commitments and contingencies
Redeemable noncontrolling interest	160,663	45,755
Redeemable equity component of convertible senior notes	77	2,995
Equity:
Convertible preferred stock, $.01 par value, 5,000 shares authorized, no shares issued and outstanding	0	0
Common stock, $.01 par value, 50,000 shares authorized, 25,745 shares and 25,593 shares issued and outstanding as of September 30, 2017 and December 31, 2016, respectively	257	256
Additional paid-in capital	43,006	103,392
Accumulated earnings	602,199	560,567
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(74,153)	(104,911)
Total Encore Capital Group, Inc. stockholders’ equity	571,309	559,304
Noncontrolling interest	(8,894)	(7,539)
Total equity	562,415	551,765
Total liabilities, redeemable equity and equity	4,173,786	3,670,497
Variable Interest Entities
Assets
Cash and cash equivalents	77,757	55,823
Investment in receivable portfolios, net	1,277,384	972,841
Property and equipment, net	20,193	19,284
Deferred court costs, net	26,089	22,760
Other assets	93,815	79,767
Goodwill	648,574	584,868
Liabilities:
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	129,010	99,689
Debt	1,846,308	1,514,799
Other liabilities	$ 2,951	$ 1,921