Summary of Significant Accounting Policies and New Accounting Standards

12 Months Ended

Oct. 29, 2023

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies and New Accounting Standards

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies and New Accounting Standards

Note 2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies and New Accounting Standards

The following are significant accounting policies in addition to those included in other notes to the consolidated financial statements.

Use of Estimates in Financial Statements

Certain accounting policies require management to make estimates and assumptions in determining the amounts reflected in the financial statements and related disclosures. Actual results could differ from these estimates.

Cash and Cash Equivalents

We consider investments with purchased maturities of three months or less to be cash equivalents.

Revenue Recognition

Financing revenue, including compensation from John Deere for waived or reduced finance charges, is recorded over the lives of the related receivables using the interest method. Deferred costs on the origination of receivables are recognized as a reduction in finance revenue over the lives of the receivables using the interest method. Operating lease revenue, including compensation from John Deere, and deferred costs on the origination of operating leases are recognized on a straight-line basis over the scheduled lease terms in lease revenue.

Receivables and Allowance for Credit Losses

Receivables are reported on the consolidated balance sheets at outstanding principal and accrued interest, adjusted for any write-offs and any unamortized deferred fees or costs on originated Receivables. We also record an allowance for credit losses and provision for credit losses related to the Receivables. The allowance represents an estimate of the credit losses expected over the life of the Receivable portfolio. Receivables are written off to the allowance when the account is considered uncollectible. Refer to Note 4 for additional information.

Securitization of Receivables

Certain Receivables are periodically transferred to SPEs in securitization transactions (see Note 5). These securitizations qualify as collateral for secured borrowings and no gains or losses are recognized at the time of securitization. The receivables remain on the consolidated balance sheets and are classified as “Retail notes securitized.” We recognize finance income over the lives of these receivables using the interest method.

Depreciation

We estimate residual values of equipment on operating leases at the inception of the lease, and the equipment is depreciated over the lease terms to the estimated residual value using the straight-line method. We review residual value estimates during the lease term and depreciation is adjusted prospectively on a straight-line basis over the remaining lease term if residual estimates are revised.

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets

We evaluate the carrying value of long-lived assets, including equipment on operating leases, when events or circumstances warrant such a review. If the carrying value of the long-lived asset is considered impaired, it is written down to its fair value.

Fees and Interest Paid to John Deere

Fees and interest paid to John Deere include corporate support fees and interest on intercompany borrowings from John Deere based on approximate market rates.

Derivative Financial Instruments

It is our policy to use derivative transactions only to manage exposures from the normal course of business. We do not execute derivative transactions for the purpose of creating speculative positions or trading. We have interest rate and foreign currency fluctuation risk between the types and amounts of our Receivable and Lease portfolios and how these portfolios are funded. We also have foreign currency exposures at some of our foreign and domestic operations related to financing in currencies other than the functional currencies.

All derivatives are recorded at fair value on the consolidated balance sheets. Cash collateral received or paid is not offset against the derivative fair values on the consolidated balance sheets. The cash flows from the derivative contracts are recorded in operating activities in the statements of consolidated cash flows. Each derivative is designated as a cash flow hedge, fair value hedge, or remains undesignated.

Changes in the fair value of derivatives are recorded as follows:

● Cash flow hedges are recorded in other comprehensive income (OCI) and subsequently reclassified into interest expense in the same periods during which the effects of the hedged item (borrowings) impact earnings. These amounts offset the effects of interest rate changes on the related borrowings in interest expense.

● Fair value hedges are recorded in interest expense, and the gains or losses are generally offset by the fair value gains or losses on the hedged items (fixed-rate borrowings), which are also recorded in interest expense.

● Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments are recorded in interest expense (interest rate contracts) or administrative and operating expenses (foreign currency exchange contracts).

All designated hedges are formally documented as to the relationship with the hedged item as well as the risk-management strategy. Both at inception and on an ongoing basis, the hedging instrument is assessed for its effectiveness. If and when a derivative is determined not to be highly effective as a hedge, the underlying hedged transaction is no longer likely to occur, the hedge designation is removed, or the derivative is terminated, hedge accounting is discontinued (see Note 20).

Financing Incentives

We provide incentive funds to John Deere dealers that meet certain performance metrics, which include minimum finance volume and finance market share with us over a defined period. At the end of the qualification period, dealers are granted incentive funds, which can be applied to certain predefined uses, including interest rate reductions on future loan and lease originations. In addition, certain dealers may elect to receive cash for a portion of their earned funds. We accrue for the incentive costs over the qualification period, which are reported as “Administrative and operating expenses” in the consolidated income statements and “Accounts payable and accrued expenses” in the consolidated balance sheets. The accrued liability is released as dealers utilize the funds.

As mentioned in Note 1, in the second quarter of 2023 we corrected our accounting policy for financing incentives offered to John Deere dealers. Under the previous accounting treatment, we amortized the non-cash portion of the incentive program costs as a reduction to finance income or lease revenue after the dealers designated the use of the incentive award. There was no change to the accounting treatment for the cash portion of the incentive program costs, which continues to be accrued over the qualification period.

Foreign Currency Translation

The functional currencies for most of our foreign operations are their respective local currencies. The assets and liabilities of these operations are translated into U.S. dollars using the exchange rates at the end of the period. The revenues and expenses are translated at weighted-average rates for the period. The gains or losses from these translations are recorded in OCI. Gains or losses from transactions denominated in a currency other than the functional currency of the subsidiary involved and foreign currency exchange components of derivative contracts are included in net income. The pretax net losses for foreign currency exchange in 2023, 2022, and 2021 were $20.4, $25.6, and $14.9 respectively, which are reported in “Administrative and operating expenses” and primarily related to our Argentina operations (see Note 1).

New Accounting Standards

We closely monitor all Accounting Standard Updates (ASUs) issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and other authoritative guidance. We adopted the following standards in 2023, none of which had a material effect on our consolidated financial statements:

New Accounting Standards Adopted

No. 2021-10 — Government Assistance (Topic 832): Disclosures by Business Entities about Government Assistance

No. 2021-05 — Leases (Topic 842): Lessors – Certain Leases with Variable Lease Payments

No. 2021-04 — Issuer's Accounting for Certain Modifications or Exchanges of Freestanding Equity Classified Written Call Options

We will adopt the following standards in future periods, none of which are expected to have a material effect on our consolidated financial statements:

New Accounting Standards to be Adopted

No. 2022-02 — Financial Instruments – Credit Losses (Topic 326): Troubled Debt Restructurings and Vintage Disclosures

No. 2022-01 — Derivatives and Hedging (Topic 815): Fair Value Hedging – Portfolio Layer Method

No. 2021-08 — Business Combinations (Topic 805): Accounting for Contract Assets and Contract Liabilities from Contracts with Customers