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Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2023
Accounting Policies [Abstract]  
Basis of Presentation
Basis of Presentation
The consolidated financial statements for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022 are unaudited. In the opinion of management, all adjustments necessary for a fair presentation of the consolidated financial statements have been included. Such adjustments consisted of normal recurring items. Interim results are not necessarily indicative of results for a full year. The consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes are presented as permitted by Form 10-Q and do not contain certain information included in the annual consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes of Fiserv, Inc. (the “Company”). These interim consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022.
Principles of Consolidation
Principles of Consolidation
The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Fiserv, Inc. and its subsidiaries in which the Company holds a majority controlling financial interest. All intercompany transactions and balances between the Company and its subsidiaries have been eliminated in consolidation. Control is typically established when ownership and voting interests in an entity are greater than 50%. Investments in which the Company has significant influence but not control are accounted for using the equity method of accounting, for which the Company’s share of net income or loss is reported within (loss) income from investments in unconsolidated affiliates and the related tax expense or benefit is reported within the income tax provision in the consolidated statements of income. Significant influence over an affiliate’s operations generally coincides with an ownership interest of between 20% and 50%; however, for partnerships and limited liability companies, an ownership interest of between 3% and 50% or board of director representation may also constitute significant influence.
The Company maintains a majority controlling financial interest in certain entities, mostly related to consolidated merchant alliances (see Note 19). Noncontrolling interests represent the minority shareholders’ share of the net income or loss and equity in consolidated subsidiaries. The Company’s noncontrolling interests presented in the consolidated statements of income include net income attributable to noncontrolling interests and redeemable noncontrolling interests. Noncontrolling interests are presented as a component of equity in the consolidated balance sheets. Noncontrolling interests that are redeemable upon the occurrence of an event that is not solely within the Company’s control are presented outside of equity and are carried at their estimated redemption value if it exceeds the initial carrying value of the redeemable interest
Use of Estimates
Use of Estimates
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“U.S.”) requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ materially from those estimates.
Cash and Cash Equivalents Cash and Cash EquivalentsCash and cash equivalents consist of cash and investments with original maturities of 90 days or less and are stated at cost in the consolidated balance sheets, which approximates market value. Cash and cash equivalents that were restricted from use due to regulatory or other requirements are included in other long-term assets in the consolidated balance sheets. Cash and cash equivalents held on behalf of merchants and other payees are included in settlement assets in the consolidated balance sheets.
Allowance for Doubtful Accounts Allowance for Doubtful AccountsThe Company analyzes the collectability of trade accounts receivable by considering historical bad debts and issued client credits, client creditworthiness, current economic trends, changes in client payment terms and collection trends when evaluating the adequacy of the allowance for doubtful accounts. Any change in the assumptions used in analyzing a specific account receivable may result in an additional allowance for doubtful accounts being recognized in the period in which the change occurs.
Settlement Assets and Obligations
Settlement Assets and Obligations
Settlement assets and obligations represent intermediary balances arising from the settlement process which involves the transferring of funds between card issuers, payment networks, processors, merchants and consumers, and collateral amounts held to manage merchant credit risk, primarily associated with the Company’s merchant acquiring services. As a processor, the Company facilitates the clearing and settlement activity for the merchant and records settlement assets and obligations upon processing a payment transaction. Settlement assets represent cash received or amounts receivable from agents, payment networks, bank partners, merchants or direct consumers. Settlement obligations represent amounts payable to merchants and payees.
Certain merchant settlement assets (included within settlement receivables) that relate to settlement obligations are held by partner banks to which the Company does not have legal ownership, but which the Company has the right to use, to satisfy the related settlement obligations. The Company records settlement obligations for amounts payable to merchants and for outstanding payment instruments issued to payees that have not yet been presented for settlement.
Allowance for Merchant Credit Losses
Allowance for Merchant Credit Losses
With respect to the Company’s merchant acquiring business, the Company’s merchant customers have the legal obligation to refund any charges properly reversed by the cardholder. However, in the event the Company is not able to collect the refunded amounts from the merchants, the Company may be liable for the reversed charges. The Company’s risk in this area primarily relates to situations where a cardholder has purchased goods or services to be delivered in the future. The Company requires cash deposits, guarantees, letters of credit or other types of collateral from certain merchants to mitigate this risk. Collateral held by the Company, or held by partner banks for the Company’s benefit, is classified within settlement assets, and the obligation to repay the collateral is classified within settlement obligations in the consolidated balance sheets. The Company also utilizes a number of systems and procedures to manage merchant credit risk. Despite these efforts, the Company experiences losses due to merchant defaults. The aggregate merchant credit loss expense, recognized by the Company within cost of processing and services in the consolidated statements of income, was $25 million and $18 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, respectively, and $62 million and $46 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, respectively.
The Company maintains an allowance for merchant credit losses that are expected to exceed the amount of merchant collateral. The amount of collateral available to the Company was $0.9 billion and $1.5 billion at September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. The allowance includes estimated losses from anticipated chargebacks and fraud events that have been incurred on merchants’ payment transactions that have been processed but not yet reported to the Company, which is recorded within accounts payable and accrued expenses in the consolidated balance sheets, as well as estimated losses on refunded amounts to cardholders that have not yet been collected from the merchants, which is recorded within prepaid expenses and other current assets in the consolidated balance sheets. The allowance is based primarily on the Company’s historical experience of credit losses and other factors such as changes in economic conditions or increases in merchant fraud.
Goodwill GoodwillGoodwill represents the excess of purchase price over the fair value of identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed in a business combination. The Company evaluates goodwill for impairment on an annual basis, or more frequently if circumstances indicate possible impairment. Goodwill is tested for impairment at a reporting unit level, which is one level below the Company’s reportable segments. The Company’s most recent annual impairment assessment of its reporting units in the fourth quarter of 2022 determined that its goodwill was not impaired as the estimated fair values exceeded the carrying values. However, it is reasonably possible that future developments related to the interest or currency exchange rate environments; a shift in strategic initiatives; a deterioration in financial performance within a particular reporting unit; or significant changes in the composition of, or assumptions used in, the quantitative test on certain of the Company’s reporting units (such as an increase in risk-adjusted discount rates) could have a future material impact on one or more of the estimates and assumptions used to evaluate goodwill impairment. Additionally, a significant change in a merchant alliance business relationship or operating performance could result in a material goodwill impairment charge.
Other Equity Investments
Other Equity Investments
The Company maintains investments, over which it does not have significant influence, in various equity securities without a readily determinable fair value. Such investments totaled $138 million and $135 million at September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively, and are included within other long-term assets in the consolidated balance sheets. The Company reviews these investments each reporting period to determine whether an impairment or observable price change for the investment has occurred. To the extent such events or changes occur, the Company evaluates the fair value compared to its cost basis in the investment. Gains or losses from a sale of these investments or a change in fair value are included within other expense, net in the consolidated statements of income for the period. Adjustments made to the values recorded for certain equity securities and gains and losses from sales of equity securities during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, were not significant.
Foreign Currency
Foreign Currency
The U.S. dollar is the functional currency of the Company’s U.S.-based businesses and certain foreign-based businesses. Where the functional currency differs from the U.S. dollar, assets and liabilities are translated into U.S. dollars at the exchange rates in effect at the balance sheet date. Revenue and expenses are translated at the average exchange rates during the reporting period. Gains and losses from foreign currency translation are recorded as a separate component of accumulated other comprehensive loss. Gains and losses from foreign currency transactions are included in determining net income for the reporting period.
Financial statements of subsidiaries located in highly inflationary economies outside of the U.S. are remeasured into U.S. dollars, and the foreign currency gains and losses from the remeasurement of monetary assets and liabilities are reflected in the consolidated statements of income, rather than as foreign currency translation within accumulated other comprehensive loss in the consolidated balance sheets. The remeasurement of monetary assets and liabilities in highly inflationary economies, primarily Argentina, resulted in foreign currency exchange losses of $38 million and $14 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, respectively, and $88 million and $31 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, respectively, which is included within other expense, net within the consolidated statements of income.
To reduce exposure to changes in the value of the Company’s net investments in certain of its foreign currency-denominated subsidiaries due to changes in foreign currency exchange rates, the Company uses fixed-to-fixed cross-currency rate swap contracts and foreign currency-denominated debt as economic hedges of its net investments in such foreign currency-denominated subsidiaries. Foreign currency transaction gains or losses on the qualifying net investment hedge instruments are recorded as foreign currency translation, net of tax, within other comprehensive income (loss) in the consolidated statements of comprehensive income (loss) and will remain in accumulated other comprehensive loss within the consolidated balance sheets until the sale or complete liquidation of the underlying foreign subsidiaries.
Derivatives
Derivatives
Derivatives are entered into for periods consistent with related underlying exposures and are recorded in the consolidated balance sheets as either an asset or liability measured at fair value. If the derivative is designated as a cash flow hedge, changes in the fair value of the derivative are recorded as a component of accumulated other comprehensive loss and recognized in the consolidated statements of income when the hedged item affects earnings. If the derivative is designated as a net investment hedge, changes in the fair value of the derivative, net of tax, are recorded in the foreign currency translation component of other comprehensive income (loss) until the sale or complete liquidation of the underlying net investment. If the derivative is designated as a fair value hedge, changes in the fair value of the derivative are recorded in the same line item as the changes in the fair value of the hedged item and recognized in the consolidated statements of income. To the extent a derivative is not designated as a hedge, changes in fair value are recognized in the consolidated statements of income. The Company’s policy is to enter into derivatives with creditworthy institutions and not to enter into such derivatives for speculative purposes.
Interest Expense, Net Interest Expense, NetInterest expense, net consists of interest expense primarily associated with the Company’s outstanding borrowings and finance lease obligations, as well as interest income primarily associated with the Company’s investment securities.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements Recent Accounting Pronouncements
In 2022, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2022-02, Financial Instruments – Credit Losses (Topic 326): Troubled Debt Restructurings and Vintage Disclosures (“ASU 2022-02”), which among other items, requires that entities disclose current-period gross write-offs by year of origination for financing receivables and net investments in leases. For public entities, the provisions within ASU 2022-02 are to be applied prospectively and are effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2022, including interim periods within those fiscal years. The Company adopted ASU 2022-02 effective January 1, 2023, and the adoption did not have a material impact on the Company’s financial statement disclosures for the nine months ended September 30, 2023.
In 2022, the FASB issued ASU No. 2022-03, Fair Value Measurement (Topic 820): Fair Value Measurement of Equity Securities Subject to Contractual Sale Restrictions (“ASU 2022-03”), which clarifies the guidance in Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 820, Fair Value Measurement (“Topic 820”), when measuring the fair value of an equity security subject to contractual restrictions that prohibit the sale of an equity security and introduces new disclosure requirements for equity securities subject to contractual sale restrictions that are measured at fair value in accordance with ASC Topic 820. For public entities, ASU 2022-03 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2023, including interim periods within those fiscal years. The provisions within ASU 2022-03 are to be applied prospectively with any adjustments from the adoption
recognized in earnings and disclosed on the date of adoption. The adoption of ASU 2022-03 is not expected to have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements or disclosures.
Revenue Recognition Revenue RecognitionThe Company generates revenue from the delivery of processing, service and product solutions. Revenue is measured based on consideration specified in a contract with a customer, and excludes any amounts collected on behalf of third parties. The Company recognizes revenue when it satisfies a performance obligation by transferring control over a product or service to a customer which may be at a point in time or over time.Contract assets, reported within other long-term assets in the consolidated balance sheets, primarily result from revenue being recognized where payment is contingent upon the transfer of services to a customer over the contractual period. Contract liabilities primarily relate to advance consideration received from customers (deferred revenue) for which transfer of control occurs, and therefore revenue is recognized, as services are provided. Contract balances are reported in a net contract asset or liability position on a contract-by-contract basis at the end of each reporting period.The Company applies the optional exemption under ASC Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (“ASC 606”), and does not disclose information about remaining performance obligations for account- and transaction-based processing fees that qualify for recognition under the as-invoiced practical expedient. These multi-year contracts contain variable consideration for stand-ready performance obligations for which the exact quantity and mix of transactions to be processed are contingent upon the customer’s request. The Company also applies the optional exemptions under ASC 606 and does not disclose information for variable consideration that is a sales- or usage-based royalty promised in exchange for a license of intellectual property or that is allocated entirely to a wholly unsatisfied performance obligation or to a wholly unsatisfied promise to transfer a distinct good or service in a series. The amounts disclosed above as remaining performance obligations consist primarily of fixed or monthly minimum processing fees and maintenance fees under contracts with an original expected duration of greater than one year.
Fair Value Measurements Fair Value MeasurementsThe fair values of cash equivalents, trade accounts receivable, other current assets, settlement assets and obligations, accounts payable, and client deposits approximate their respective carrying values due to the short period of time to maturity. Derivative instruments maintained by the Company (see Note 7) are measured on a recurring basis based on foreign currency spot rates and forwards quoted by banks and foreign currency dealers and are marked to market each period. Contingent consideration related to certain of the Company’s acquisitions (see Note 4) is estimated using the present value of a probability-weighted assessment approach based on the likelihood of achieving the earn-out criteria. The fair value of the Company’s contingent liability for current expected credit losses associated with its debt guarantees, as further described below, is estimated based on assumptions of future risk of default and the corresponding level of credit losses at the time of default.