Restricted cash and cash equivalents

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2016

Cash and Cash Equivalents [Abstract]

Restricted cash and cash equivalents and restricted investments as of June 30, 2016 and December 31, 2015 consisted of the following:



	June 30, 2016		December 31, 2015
	($ in thousands)
Restricted cash securing letter of credit facilities (1)	$	241,321	$	270,755
Restricted cash securing other reinsurance contracts (2)	38,748		60,160
Total restricted cash and cash equivalents	280,069		330,915
Restricted investments securing other reinsurance contracts (2)	400,562		292,111
Total restricted cash and cash equivalents and restricted investments	$	680,631	$	623,026


(1)	Restricted cash securing letter of credit facilities pertains to letters of credit issued to clients and cash securing these obligations that the Company will not be released from until the underlying reserves have been settled. The time period for which the Company expects these letters of credit to be in place varies from contract to contract, but can last several years.

(2)

Restricted cash and restricted investments securing other reinsurance contracts pertain to trust accounts securing the Company’s contractual obligations under certain reinsurance contracts that the Company will not be released from until all underlying risks have expired or have been settled. Restricted investments include certain investments in debt securities including U.S. Treasury securities and sovereign debt. The time period for which the Company expects these trust accounts to be in place varies from contract to contract, but can last several years.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for cash and cash equivalent footnotes, which may include the types of deposits and money market instruments, applicable carrying amounts, restricted amounts and compensating balance arrangements. Cash and equivalents include: (1) currency on hand (2) demand deposits with banks or financial institutions (3) other kinds of accounts that have the general characteristics of demand deposits (4) short-term, highly liquid investments that are both readily convertible to known amounts of cash and so near their maturity that they present insignificant risk of changes in value because of changes in interest rates. Generally, only investments maturing within three months from the date of acquisition qualify.

+ References + Details