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Long-Term Debt (Notes) | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2018
Debt Disclosure [Abstract] |
Long-term Debt | 13. LONG-TERM DEBT The carrying value of long-term debt was as follows:
December 31, |  | 2018 |  | 2017
Ambac Assurance: |  |  |  |
5.1% surplus notes due 2020 |  | $ | 487,110 |  |  | $ | 668,667 |
5.1% junior surplus notes due 2020 |  | 249,785 |  |  | 249,036 |
Ambac Note |  | 1,940,289 |  |  | — |
Tier 2 Notes |  | 251,745 |  |  | — |
Secured borrowing |  | — |  |  | 73,993 |
Ambac Assurance long-term debt |  | $ | 2,928,929 |  |  | $ | 991,696 |
Variable Interest Entities long-term debt |  | $ | 5,268,596 |  |  | $ | 12,160,544 |
Surplus Notes Ambac Assurance surplus notes, with a par amount of $530,744 and $754,811 at December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively have a scheduled maturity of June 7, 2020. On February 12, 2018, the Rehabilitation Exit Transactions were consummated, resulting in a $463,624 reduction of consolidated surplus notes par outstanding. On August 3, 2018, in connection with the AMPS Exchange, Ambac Assurance issued surplus notes with a par amount of $212,740. Also, during the year ended December 31, 2018, sales of surplus notes held by Ambac and other transactions resulted in additional net issuance of $26,817 Ambac Assurance surplus note par value. In 2017, Ambac purchased $147,236 par amount of these surplus notes. The retirement of certain notes as part of the Rehabilitation Exit Transactions in 2018 and Ambac purchases in 2017 resulted in gains of $3,121 and $3,815 for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively, recognized in Net realized gains (losses) on extinguishment of debt on the Consolidated Statements of Total Comprehensive Income. Surplus notes outstanding are recorded at their fair value at the date of issuance. The discount on surplus notes is accreted into income using the effective interest method based on projected cash flows at the date of issuance. The weighted average imputed interest rate on surplus notes outstanding as of December 31, 2018 is 10.1%. All payments of principal and interest on these surplus notes are subject to the prior approval of the OCI. Annually from 2011 through 2018, OCI issued its disapproval of the requests of Ambac Assurance to pay the full interest on outstanding surplus notes on the annual scheduled interest payment date of June 7th. If the OCI does not approve the payment of interest on these surplus notes, such interest will accrue and compound annually until paid. In connection with the Rehabilitation Exit Transactions, Ambac Assurance made a one-time current interest payment on remaining surplus notes (other than junior surplus notes) of $13,501, of which $2,618 was received by Ambac for surplus notes that it owned and that are considered extinguished for accounting purposes. Refer to Note 1. Background and Business Description for further discussion of both the Rehabilitation Exit Transactions and the AMPS Exchange. Junior Surplus Notes The junior surplus notes have a par value of $366,644 and $370,237 at December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively. Pursuant to the Second Amended Plan of Rehabilitation, Ambac Assurance became the obligor under the junior surplus notes (originally issued by the Segregated Account) as of February 12, 2018. These junior surplus notes have a scheduled maturity of June 7, 2020, subject to the following restrictions. Principal and interest payments on these junior surplus notes cannot be made until all Ambac Assurance surplus notes (other than junior surplus notes) are paid in full and after all of Ambac Assurance's future and existing senior indebtedness, policy and other priority claims have been paid in full. All payments of principal and interest on these junior surplus notes are subject to the prior approval of the OCI. If the OCI does not approve the payment of interest on the junior surplus notes, such interest will accrue and compound annually until paid. No such approval has been sought or obtained to pay interest on junior surplus notes since their issuance.
• | Par value at December 31, 2018 and 2017 includes $16,644 and $20,237, respectively, of junior surplus notes issued in connection with a settlement agreement (the “OSS Settlement Agreement”) entered into among Ambac, Ambac Assurance, the Segregated Account and One State Street, LLC (“OSS”) with respect to the termination of Ambac’s office lease with OSS. Part of these junior surplus notes ($1,661 current par value at December 31, 2018) are reducing periodically as rent payments under the replacement lease (beginning in January 2016) are made by Ambac Assurance. Par value of these junior surplus notes was reduced by $3,593 and $3,799 during the year ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively, as rent payments were made by Ambac Assurance. These junior surplus notes were recorded at their fair value at the date of issuance. The discount on these notes are currently being accreted into income using the effective interest method at an imputed interest rate of 19.5%.
• | Par value at December 31, 2018 and 2017 includes $350,000 face amount of a junior surplus note originally issued to Ambac pursuant to Ambac's Chapter 11 Reorganization Plan in accordance with the Mediation Agreement dated September 21, 2011 among Ambac, Ambac Assurance, the Segregated Account, the Rehabilitator, the OCI and the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors of Ambac, and that Ambac sold to a Trust on August 28, 2014. This junior surplus note was recorded at a discount to par based on its fair value on August 28, 2014. Ambac is accreting the discount on this junior surplus note into earnings using the effective interest method, based on an imputed interest rate of 8.4%.
Ambac Note The Ambac Note, issued in connection with the Rehabilitation Exit Transactions on February 12, 2018, as more fully described in Note 1. Background and Business Description, has a par value of $1,940,289 at December 31, 2018, and has a legal maturity of February 12, 2023. Interest on the Ambac Note is payable quarterly (on the last day of each quarter beginning with June 30, 2018) at an annual rate of 3-month U.S. Dollar LIBOR + 5.00%, subject to a 1.00% LIBOR floor. During the year ended December 31, 2018, $214,062 par value of the Ambac Note was redeemed. The maturity date for the Ambac Note is the earlier of (x) February 12, 2023, and (y) if the Secured Notes are then outstanding, the date that is five business days prior to the date for which OCI has approved the repayment of the outstanding principal amount of the surplus notes (other than junior surplus notes) issued by Ambac Assurance. Promptly, and in any event within four business days after the receipt (whether directly or indirectly) of any representation and warranty subrogation recoveries, Ambac Assurance shall (i) apply an amount (the “Mandatory Redemption Amount”) equal to the lesser of (a) the amount of such representation and warranty subrogation recoveries and (b) all outstanding principal and accrued and unpaid interest on the Ambac Note to redeem the Ambac Note, in whole or in part, as applicable; provided, that any non-cash representation and warranty subrogation recoveries shall be deemed to be received upon the receipt of the applicable appraisal. The portion of the Ambac Note issued in connection with the exchange of surplus notes ("Ambac Note A") was accounted for as a debt modification since the creditors before and after the exchange remained the same and the change in terms was not considered substantial. A substantial change is considered to be a change in cash flows of equal to or greater than 10%, and because the change in cash flows was less than 10%, debt modification accounting is appropriate. Under debt modification accounting, Ambac Note A was recorded at a discount to par based on the carrying value of the surplus notes less the cash consideration paid. Furthermore, no gain or loss was recorded on the surplus note exchange and a new effective interest rate was established based on the cash flows of Ambac Note A. Any consideration paid directly related to the issuance of Ambac Note A was expensed as incurred. The portion of the Ambac Note issued in connection with the exchange of Deferred Amounts ("Ambac Note B") was recorded at fair value. The Deferred Amount exchange was accounted for as an extinguishment of the Deferred Amounts with the gain reflected as a benefit to loss and loss expenses. Any consideration paid directly related to the issuance of Ambac Note B was capitalized and amortized as part of the effective yield calculation. The aggregate discount on the entire Ambac Note (portions A and B) was accreted into earnings from the date of issuance through September 30, 2018 using the effective interest method, based on an imputed interest rate of 7.6%. As of December 31, 2018 the discount on the Ambac Note has been fully amortized. Tier 2 Notes The Tier 2 Notes, issued in connection with the Rehabilitation Exit Transactions on February 12, 2018, with a par value of $258,585 (including paid-in-kind interest of $18,585) at December 31, 2018 have a legal maturity of February 12, 2055. Interest on the Tier 2 Notes is at an annual rate of 8.50%. Other than upon payment of principal at redemption or maturity, interest payments will not be made in cash on interest payment dates and shall be paid-in-kind and compounded on the last day of each calendar quarter. The Tier 2 Notes were recorded at a discount to par as any consideration paid that was directly related to the issuance of the Tier 2 Notes was capitalized and is part of the effective yield calculation. Ambac is accreting the discount on the Tier 2 Notes into earnings using the effective interest method, based on an imputed interest rate of 9.9%. The Tier 2 Notes are subject to mandatory redemption triggers upon: (i) receipt of subject representation and warranty subrogation recoveries in excess of $1,600,000 ("Tier 2 Net Proceeds") or (ii) payment of principal or interest on Ambac Assurance surplus notes (other than junior surplus notes). Promptly, and in any event within five business days after the receipt (whether directly or indirectly) of Tier 2 Net Proceeds, Ambac Assurance shall deposit an amount equal to the Tier 2 Net Proceeds to a collateral account, provided, that any non-cash representation and warranty subrogation recoveries shall be deemed to be received upon the receipt of the applicable appraisal. Similarly, within five business dates after a surplus note payment (other than in connection with the Rehabilitation Exit Transactions), Ambac Assurance shall deposit an amount based on the percentage of surplus notes paid applied to the outstanding balance of the Tier 2 Notes to a collateral account. In both cases, the amount deposited shall not be in excess of the amount required to redeem all outstanding Tier 2 Notes. Also, such amounts shall be used to initiate a redemption. The Tier 2 Notes may also be redeemed, in whole or in part, at the option of Ambac Assurance. Both mandatory and optional redemptions may be made at a price equal to 100% of the aggregate principal amount redeemed, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, plus a make-whole premium. Make-whole premiums are calculated based on future interest payments through the contractual call date ("Initial Call Date"). The Initial Call Date at issuance of December 17, 2020 extends ratably beginning the first anniversary of issuance to September 17, 2021 by the second anniversary, and to March 17, 2022 by the third anniversary of issuance. There are no extensions of the Initial Call Date beyond March 17, 2022. The Initial Call Date for redemptions is determined based on the date the applicable amounts are deposited to the collateral account. Secured Borrowing The secured borrowing, with a par value of $0 and $73,993 at December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively had a legal maturity of July 25, 2047. Interest on the secured borrowing was payable monthly at an annual rate of one month LIBOR + 2.8%. On June 22, 2018, the Secured Borrowing was fully redeemed. Refer to Note 3. Variable Interest Entities for further discussion on the secured borrowing transaction. Variable Interest Entities, Long-term Debt The variable interest entity notes were issued by consolidated VIEs. Ambac is the primary beneficiary of the VIEs as a result of providing financial guarantees on certain of the variable interest obligations. Consequently, Ambac has consolidated these variable interest entity notes and all other assets and liabilities of the VIEs. Ambac is not primarily liable for the debt obligations of these entities. Ambac would only be required to make payments on these debt obligations in the event that the issuer defaults on any principal or interest due and to the extent such obligations are guaranteed by Ambac. The total unpaid principal amount of outstanding long-term debt associated with VIEs consolidated as a result of the financial guarantee provided by Ambac was $4,552,643 and $9,387,884 as of December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively. As of December 31, 2018 and 2017, the ranges of final maturity dates of the outstanding long-term debt associated with these VIEs were September 2019 to December 2047 as of December 31, 2018, and November 2018 to December 2047 as of December 31, 2017. As of December 31, 2018 and 2017, the interest rates on these VIEs’ long-term debt ranged from 1.36% to 7.93% and from 0.96% to 8.35%, respectively. Final maturities of VIE long-term debt for each of the five years following December 31, 2018 are as follows: 2019-$255,040; 2020-$0; 2021-$0; 2022-$0; 2023-$124,233.

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