Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2019

DERIVATIVE INSTRUMENTS AND HEDGING ACTIVITIES [Abstract]

DERIVATIVE INSTRUMENTS AND HEDGING ACTIVITIES

The Company is exposed to foreign currency exchange risk resulting from (i) the collection of funds or the settlement of money transfer transactions in currencies other than the U.S. Dollar, (ii) derivative contracts written to its customers in connection with providing cross-currency money transfer services and (iii) short-term borrowings that are payable in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. The Company enters into foreign currency derivative contracts, primarily foreign currency forwards and cross-currency swaps, to minimize its exposure related to fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates. As a matter of Company policy, the derivative instruments used in these activities are economic hedges and are not designated as hedges under ASC Topic 815, Derivatives and Hedging ("ASC Topic 815"), primarily due to either the relatively short duration of the contract term or the effects of fluctuations in currency exchange rates being reflected concurrently in earnings for both the derivative instrument and the hedged transaction and having an offsetting effect.

Foreign currency exchange contracts - Ria Operations and Corporate

In the United States, the Company's Ria operations use short-duration foreign currency forward contracts, generally with maturities up to 14 days, to offset the fluctuation in foreign currency exchange rates on the collection of money transfer funds between initiation of a transaction and its settlement. Due to the short duration of these contracts and the Company’s credit profile, the Company is generally not required to post collateral with respect to these foreign currency forward contracts. Most derivative contracts executed with counterparties in the U.S. are governed by an International Swaps and Derivatives Association agreement that includes standard netting arrangements; therefore, asset and liability positions from forward contracts and all other foreign exchange transactions with the same counterparty are net settled upon maturity. As of June 30, 2019, the Company held in its Ria operations foreign currency forward contracts outstanding in the U.S. with a notional value of $278 million, primarily in Australian dollars, Canadian dollars, British pounds, euros and Mexican pesos.

In addition, the Company uses forward contracts, typically with maturities from a few days to less than one year, to offset foreign exchange rate fluctuations on certain foreign currency denominated other asset and liability positions. As of June 30, 2019, the Company had foreign currency forward contracts outstanding with a notional value of $86 million, primarily in euros and Polish zloty.

Foreign currency exchange contracts - xe Operations

xe writes derivative instruments, primarily foreign currency forward contracts and cross-currency swaps, mostly with counterparties comprised of individuals and small-to-medium size businesses and derives a currency margin from this activity as part of its operations. xe aggregates its foreign currency exposures arising from customer contracts and may hedge some or all of the resulting net currency risks by entering into offsetting contracts with established financial institution counterparties. Foreign exchange revenues from xe's total portfolio of positions were $16.1 million and $34.7 million for the three and six months ended June 30, 2019, respectively, and $16.8 million and $35.5 million for the three and six months ended June 30,

2018, respectively. All of the derivative contracts used in the Company's xe operations are economic hedges and are not designated as hedges under ASC Topic 815. The duration of these derivative contracts is generally less than one year.

The fair value of xe's total portfolio of positions can change significantly from period to period based on, among other factors, market movements and changes in customer contract positions. xe manages counterparty credit risk (the risk that counterparties will default and not make payments according to the terms of the agreements) on an individual counterparty basis. It mitigates this risk by entering into contracts with collateral posting requirements and/or by performing financial assessments prior to contract execution, conducting periodic evaluations of counterparty performance and maintaining a diverse portfolio of qualified counterparties. xe does not expect any significant losses from counterparty defaults.

The aggregate equivalent U.S. dollar notional amounts of foreign currency derivative customer contracts held by the Company in its xe operations as of June 30, 2019 was approximately $1.4 billion. The majority of customer contracts are written in major currencies such as the U.S. dollar, euro, New Zealand dollar, British pound, and Australian dollar.

Balance Sheet Presentation

The following table summarizes the fair value of the derivative instruments as recorded in the Consolidated Balance Sheets as of the dates below:



	Asset Derivatives					Liability Derivatives
		Fair Value					Fair Value
(in thousands)	Balance Sheet Location	June 30, 2019		December 31, 2018		Balance Sheet Location	June 30, 2019			December 31, 2018
Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments
Foreign currency exchange contracts	Prepaid expenses and other current assets	$	38,182	$	44,637	Accrued expenses and other current liabilities	$	(25,577	)	$	(36,102	)

The following tables summarize the gross and net fair value of derivative assets and liabilities as of June 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018 (in thousands):

Offsetting of Derivative Assets



							Gross Amounts Not Offset in the Consolidated Balance Sheet
As of June 30, 2019	Gross Amounts of Recognized Assets		Gross Amounts Offset in the Consolidated Balance Sheet		Net Amounts Presented in the Consolidated Balance Sheet		Financial Instruments			Cash Collateral Received			Net Amounts
Derivatives subject to a master netting arrangement or similar agreement	$	38,182	$	—	$	38,182	$	(19,279	)	$	(3,838	)	$	15,065

As of December 31, 2018
Derivatives subject to a master netting arrangement or similar agreement	$	44,637	$	—	$	44,637	$	(25,187	)	$	(9,918	)	$	9,532

Offsetting of Derivative Liabilities



									Gross Amounts Not Offset in the Consolidated Balance Sheet
As of June 30, 2019	Gross Amounts of Recognized Liabilities			Gross Amounts Offset in the Consolidated Balance Sheet		Net Amounts Presented in the Consolidated Balance Sheet			Financial Instruments		Cash Collateral Paid		Net Amounts
Derivatives subject to a master netting arrangement or similar agreement	$	(25,577	)	$	—	$	(25,577	)	$	19,279	$	969	$	(5,329	)

As of December 31, 2018
Derivatives subject to a master netting arrangement or similar agreement	$	(36,102	)	$	—	$	(36,102	)	$	25,187	$	2,048	$	(8,867	)

See Note 9, Fair Value Measurements, for the determination of the fair values of derivatives.

Income Statement Presentation

The following table summarizes the location and amount of gains and losses on derivatives in the Consolidated Statements of Income for the three and six months ended June 30, 2019 and 2018:



		Amount of Gain (Loss) Recognized in Income on Derivative Contracts (a)
	Location of Gain (Loss) Recognized in Income on Derivative Contracts	Three Months Ended June 30,					Six Months Ended June 30,
(in thousands)		2019			2018		2019		2018
Foreign currency exchange contracts	Foreign currency exchange gain (loss), net	$	(2,126	)	$	7,085	$	334	$	8,380

(a) The Company enters into derivative contracts such as foreign currency exchange forwards and cross-currency swaps as part of its xe operations. These derivative contracts are excluded from this table as they are part of the broader disclosure of foreign currency exchange revenues for this business discussed above.