Fair value option

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2012

Note 16 – Fair value option

ASC 825 provides an option to elect fair value as an alternative measurement for selected financial assets, financial liabilities, unrecognized firm commitments and written loan commitments.

The following table presents the assets and liabilities, by type, of consolidated investment management funds recorded at fair value.


Assets and liabilities of consolidated investment management funds, at fair value (in millions)	March 31, 2012		Dec. 31, 2011
Assets of consolidated investment management funds:
Trading assets	$	11,079	$	10,751
Other assets		530		596
Total assets of consolidated investment management funds	$	11,609	$	11,347
Liabilities of consolidated investment management funds:
Trading liabilities	$	10,290	$	10,053
Other liabilities		38		32
Total liabilities of consolidated investment management funds	$	10,328	$	10,085

BNY Mellon values assets in consolidated CLOs using observable market prices observed from the secondary loan market. The returns to the note holders are solely dependent on the assets and accordingly equal the value of those assets. Accordingly, mark-to-market best reflects the limited interest BNY Mellon has in the economic performance of the consolidated CLOs. Changes in the values of assets and liabilities are reflected in the income statement as investment income of consolidated investment management funds.

We have elected the fair value option on $240 million of long-term debt in connection with ASC 810. At March 31, 2012, the fair value of this long-term debt was $320 million. The long-term debt is valued using observable market inputs and is included in Level 2 of the ASC 820 hierarchy.

The following table presents the changes in fair value of the long-term debt included in foreign exchange and other trading revenue in the consolidated income statement.


Foreign exchange and other trading revenue
	Quarter ended
(in millions)	March 31, 2012		March 31, 2011
Long-term debt (a)	$	6	$	1

(a)

The change in fair value of the long-term debt is approximately offset by an economic hedge included in trading.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for a company's election to apply the fair value option for measurement and reporting of eligible financial assets and liabilities (as defined), as well as certain other eligible items (as defined) included in the statement of financial position, whether such option is elected for a single eligible item or a group of similar eligible items and is in addition to other disclosures concerning fair value which the company may be required to provide. Such disclosure might be expected to include: (1) for items included in the statement of financial position: (a) the reasons for electing a fair value option for each eligible item or group of similar eligible items; (b) if the fair value option is elected for some but not all eligible items within a group of similar eligible items: (i) a description of those similar items and the reasons for partial election and (ii) information of how the group of similar items relates to individual balance sheet line items; (c) for each line item in the statement of financial position that includes an item or items for which the fair value option has been elected: (i) information of how each line item in the statement of financial position relates to major categories of assets and liabilities presented in accordance with other fair value disclosures and (ii) the aggregate carrying amount of ineligible items included in each line item in the balance sheet, if any; (d) the difference between the aggregate fair value and the aggregate unpaid principal balance (assuming contractual principal amounts and fair value option elected) of: (i) loans and long-term receivables (other than securities otherwise reported at fair value) and (ii) long-term debt instruments; (e) for loans held as assets for which the fair value option has been elected: (i) the aggregate fair value of loans that are 90 days or more past due, (ii) if the policy is to recognize interest income separately from other changes in fair value, the aggregate fair value of loans in nonaccrual status, and (iii) the difference between the aggregate fair value and the aggregate unpaid principal balance for loans that are 90 days or more past due, in nonaccrual status, or both; (f) for investments that would have been accounted for under the equity method if the entity had not chosen to apply the fair value option, the information required for such investments, if material either individually or in the aggregate; (2) for items included in the income statement: (a) the amounts of gains and losses from fair value changes included in earnings and in which line in the income statement those gains and losses are reported whether or not combined with gains and losses from items required to be accounted for at fair value; (b) a description of how interest and dividends are measured and where they are reported in the income statement; (c) for loans and other receivables held as assets: (i) the estimated amount of gains or losses included in earnings attributable to changes in instrument-specific credit risk and (ii) how the gains or losses attributable to changes in instrument-specific credit risk were determined; (d) for liabilities with fair values that have been significantly affected during the reporting period by changes in the instrument-specific credit risk: (i) the estimated amount of gains and losses from fair value changes included in earnings that are attributable to changes in the instrument-specific credit risk, (ii) qualitative information about the reasons for those changes, and (iii) how the gains and losses attributable to changes in instrument-specific credit risk were determined; and (3) certain other disclosures as required or determined to be provided.

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