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INVESTMENTS | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2020
Schedule of Equity Method Investments [Abstract] |
INVESTMENTS | INVESTMENTS The following table summarizes investments as of December 31, 2020 and 2019 (dollars in thousands):
| December 31, 2020 |  | Percent Ownership of Voting Stock |  | December 31, 2019 |  | Percent Ownership of Voting Stock
Available-for-sale securities - redeemable preferred shares | $ | — |  |  | 19% | to | 25% |  | $ | — |  |  | 19% | to | 25%
Fair value option investments | — |  |  | 10% | to | 19% |  | 1,405 |  |  | 10% | to | 19%
Other equity investments | 37,671 |  |  | 1% | to | 19% |  | 75,171 |  |  | 1% | to | 19%
Total investments | $ | 37,671 |  |  |  |  |  |  | $ | 76,576 |  |  |  |  |
Available-for-Sale Securities The fair value of redeemable preferred shares was $0.0 million as of December 31, 2020 and 2019. We recorded $10.0 million and $5.6 million of impairments of available-for-sale securities for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018 due to declines in the financial performance of the investee. Those impairments are classified within Other income (expense), net on the consolidated statements of operations. In September 2018, we sold an available-for-sale security for total consideration of $8.6 million, which approximated its carrying amount and amortized cost as of the closing date. Fair Value Option Investments In connection with the dispositions of controlling stakes in Ticket Monster, an entity based in the Republic of Korea, and Groupon India in prior periods, we obtained minority investments in Monster Holdings LP ("Monster LP") and in Nearbuy Pte Ltd. ("Nearbuy"). We made an irrevocable election to account for both of those investments at fair value with changes in fair value reported in earnings. We elected to apply fair value accounting to those investments because we believe that fair value is the most relevant measurement attribute for those investments, as well as to reduce operational and accounting complexity. Our election to apply fair value accounting to those investments has and may continue to cause fluctuations in our earnings from period to period. The following table summarizes gains and losses due to changes in fair value of those investments for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018 (in thousands):
| Year Ended December 31,
| 2020 |  | 2019 |  | 2018
Monster LP | $ | — |  |  | $ | (69,408) |  |  | $ | (9,509) |
Nearbuy | (1,405) |  |  | (3,089) |  |  | 445 |
Total | $ | (1,405) |  |  | $ | (72,497) |  |  | $ | (9,064) |
Monster LP In 2015, we completed the sale of a controlling stake in Ticket Monster to an investor group, whereby we contributed all of the issued and outstanding share capital of Ticket Monster to Monster LP in exchange for Class B units of Monster LP, a newly-formed limited partnership, and $285.0 million in cash consideration. In February 2017, we participated in a recapitalization transaction with Monster LP whereby it exchanged all of its Class B units for 16,609,195 newly issued Class A-1 units. Upon closing of the transaction, we own 57% of the outstanding Class A-1 units, which represents 9% of the total outstanding partnership units. Following the February 2017 recapitalization transaction, the Class A-1 units are entitled to a $150.0 million liquidation preference, including an $85.0 million liquidation preference attributable to the Class A-1 units held by us, which must be paid prior to any distributions to the holders of the Class A-2, Class B and Class C units. Class A-1 unit holders are also entitled to share in distributions between $950.0 million and $1,494.0 million in accordance with the terms of Monster LP's distribution waterfall and in distributions in excess of $1,494.0 million based on their pro rata ownership of total outstanding partnership units. As a result of the February 2017 recapitalization transaction, we currently hold an investment in the most senior equity units in Monster LP’s capital structure. However, while providing more downside protection, those Class A-1 units provide less opportunity for appreciation than the Class B units previously held by us. We determined that the fair value of our investment in Monster LP was $0.0 million as of December 31, 2020 and 2019. In 2019 we recognized a $69.4 million loss from changes in the fair value of our investment in Monster LP mainly due to revised cash flow projections provided by Monster LP and an increase in the discount rate applied to those forecasts to 26.0% as of March 31, 2019, as compared with 21.0% as of December 31, 2018. The revisions to the financial projections were made as a result of the deterioration in Ticket Monster's financial condition and continued underperformance compared with prior projections. Nearbuy In 2015, Groupon India completed an equity financing transaction with a third-party investor that obtained a majority voting interest in the entity, whereby (a) the investor contributed $17.0 million in cash to Nearbuy, a newly formed Singapore-based entity, in exchange for Series A Preference Shares and (b) we contributed the shares of Groupon India to Nearbuy in exchange for seed preference shares of Nearbuy. In January 2017, Nearbuy issued additional Series A Preference Shares to its controlling investor for total proceeds of $3.0 million. Upon closing of that transaction, the Series A Preference Shares are entitled to a $20.0 million liquidation preference, which must be paid prior to any distributions to other equity holders. In December 2017, Nearbuy sold its subsidiary Nearbuy India Pte Ltd., which represented substantially all of its business operations, to a third-party investor in exchange for a minority investment in the acquirer. We determined that the fair value of our investment in Nearbuy was $0.0 million as of December 31, 2020 and $1.4 million as of December 31, 2019. During the first quarter 2020, we recognized a $1.4 million loss from changes in the fair value of our investment in Nearbuy due to revised cash flow projections and an increase in the discount rate applied to those forecasts, which increased to 30% as of March 31, 2020, as compared with 20% as of December 31, 2019. The revisions to the financial projections and the increase in the discount rate applied as of March 31, 2020 were due to the deterioration in the financial condition of Nearbuy as a result of COVID-19, which resulted in underperformance as compared with prior projections and an increase to financial projection risk. In 2019, we recognized a $3.1 million loss from changes in the fair value of our investment in Nearbuy due to revised cash flow projections. Other Equity Investments Other equity investments represent equity investments without readily determinable fair values. We have elected to record equity investments without readily determinable fair values at cost adjusted for observable price changes and impairments. The following table summarizes other equity investment activity for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 (in thousands):
Balance as of December 31, 2018 | $ | 24,273 |
Upward adjustments for observable price changes | 51,397 |
Dispositions | (640) |
Foreign currency translation | 141 |
Balance as of December 31, 2019 | $ | 75,171 |
Impairment of investments included in earnings | (6,684) |
Dispositions | (33,843) |
Foreign currency translation | 3,027 |
Balance as of December 31, 2020 | $ | 37,671 |
In the first quarter 2020, we recorded a $6.7 million impairment to an other equity method investment as a result of revised cash flow projections and a deterioration in financial condition due to COVID-19. This impairment is classified within Other income (expense), net on the consolidated statements of operations. We did not recognize any other impairments to other equity investments during the year ended December 31, 2020. In the fourth quarter 2019, we adjusted the carrying value of an other equity investment due to observable price changes in orderly transactions, which resulted in an unrealized gain of $51.4 million. This unrealized gain is classified within Other income (expense), net on the consolidated statements of operations for the year ended December 31, 2019. During the first quarter 2020, we sold 50% of our shares in that investment for total cash consideration of $34.0 million, which approximated the cost adjusted for observable price changes as of December 31, 2019. For the year ended December 31, 2018, we recorded a $4.6 million impairment of an other equity investment. This impairment is classified within Other income (expense), net on the consolidated statements of operations.

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