18. VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES

Variable interest entities (VIEs) are entities that either have a total equity investment that is insufficient to permit the entity to finance its activities without additional subordinated financial support or whose equity investors lack the characteristics of a controlling financial interest (i.e., ability to make significant decisions, through voting rights, right to receive the expected residual returns of the entity, and obligation to absorb the expected losses of the entity). VIEs can be structured as corporations, trusts, partnerships, or other legal entities. United’s business practices include relationships with certain VIEs. For United, the business purpose of these relationships primarily consists of funding activities in the form of issuing trust preferred securities.

United currently sponsors fifteen statutory business trusts that were created for the purpose of raising funds that qualify for Tier I regulatory capital. These trusts, of which several were acquired through bank acquisitions, issued or participated in pools of trust preferred capital securities to third-party investors with the proceeds invested in junior subordinated debt securities of United. The Company, through a small capital contribution, owns 100% of the voting equity shares of each trust. The assets, liabilities, operations, and cash flows of each trust are solely related to the issuance, administration, and repayment of the preferred equity securities held by third-party investors. United fully and unconditionally guarantees the obligations of each trust and is obligated to redeem the junior subordinated debentures upon maturity.

The trusts utilized in these transactions are VIEs as the third-party equity holders lack a controlling financial interest in the trusts through their inability to make decisions that have a significant effect on the operations and success of the entities. United does not consolidate these trusts as it is not the primary beneficiary of these entities because United’s equity interest does not absorb the majority of the trusts’ expected losses or receive a majority of their expected residual returns.

Information related to United’s statutory trusts is presented in the table below:


Description	Issuance Date	Amount of Capital Securities Issued		Interest Rate	Maturity Date
Century Trust	March 23, 2000	$	8,800	10.875% Fixed	March 8, 2030
Sequoia Trust I	March 28, 2001	$	2,000	10.18% Fixed	June 8, 2031
United Statutory Trust III	December 17, 2003	$	20,000	3-month LIBOR + 2.85%	December 17, 2033
United Statutory Trust IV	December 19, 2003	$	25,000	3-month LIBOR + 2.85%	January 23, 2034
United Statutory Trust V	July 12, 2007	$	50,000	3-month LIBOR + 1.55%	October 1, 2037
United Statutory Trust VI	September 20, 2007	$	30,000	3-month LIBOR + 1.30%	December 15, 2037
Premier Statutory Trust II	September 25, 2003	$	6,000	3-month LIBOR + 3.10%	October 8, 2033
Premier Statutory Trust III	May 16, 2005	$	8,000	3-month LIBOR+1.74%	June 15, 2035
Premier Statutory Trust IV	June 20, 2006	$	14,000	3-month LIBOR + 1.55%	September 23, 2036
Premier Statutory Trust V	December 14, 2006	$	10,000	3-month LIBOR + 1.61%	March 1, 2037
Centra Statutory Trust I	September 20, 2004	$	10,000	3-month LIBOR + 2.29%	September 20, 2034
Centra Statutory Trust II	June 15, 2006	$	10,000	3-month LIBOR + 1.65%	July 7, 2036
Virginia Commerce Trust II	December 19, 2002	$	15,000	6-month LIBOR + 3.30%	December 19, 2032
Virginia Commerce Trust III	December 20, 2005	$	25,000	3-month LIBOR + 1.42%	February 23, 2036
Virginia Commerce Trust IV	September 24, 2008	$	25,000	10.20% Fixed	September 30, 2038

United, through its banking subsidiaries, also makes limited partner equity investments in various low income housing and community development partnerships sponsored by independent third-parties. United invests in these partnerships to either realize tax credits on its consolidated federal income tax return or for purposes of earning a return on its investment. These partnerships are considered VIEs as the limited partners lack a controlling financial interest in the entities through their inability to make decisions that have a significant effect on the operations and success of the partnerships. United’s limited partner interests in these entities is immaterial, however; these partnerships are not consolidated as United is not deemed to be the primary beneficiary.

The following table summarizes quantitative information about United’s significant involvement in unconsolidated VIEs:


	As of June 30, 2014						As of December 31, 2013
	Aggregate Assets		Aggregate Liabilities		Risk Of Loss ⁽¹⁾		Aggregate Assets		Aggregate Liabilities		Risk Of Loss ⁽¹⁾
Trust preferred securities	$	268,323	$	259,500	$	8,823	$	201,186	$	194,453	$	6,733

(1)	Represents investment in VIEs.