Evercore (EVR) 10-K2019 FY Annual report

In this report, references to "Evercore," the "Company," "we," "us" and "our" refer to Evercore Inc., a Delaware corporation, and its consolidated subsidiaries. Unless the context otherwise requires, references to (1) "Evercore Inc." refer solely to Evercore Inc. and not to any of its consolidated subsidiaries and (2) "Evercore LP" refer solely to Evercore LP, a Delaware limited partnership, and not to any of its consolidated subsidiaries. References to the "IPO" refer to our initial public offering on August 10, 2006 of 4,542,500 shares of our Class A common stock, including shares issued to the underwriters of the IPO pursuant to their election to exercise in full their overallotment option.

Accordingly, there are or will be important factors that could cause actual outcomes or results to differ materially from those indicated in these statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements and, based on various underlying assumptions and expectations, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions and may include projections of our future financial performance based on our growth strategies and anticipated trends in Evercore's business. We believe these factors include, but are not limited to, those described under "Risk Factors" in this report. These factors should not be construed as exhaustive and should be read in conjunction with the other cautionary statements that are included or incorporated by reference in this report. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or review any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise except as required by law. You should, however, consult further disclosures we may make in future filings of our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K and any amendments thereto or in future press releases or other public statements.

We operate in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks and uncertainties emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for our management to predict all risks and uncertainties, nor can management assess the impact of all factors on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements.

We operate globally through two business segments:

At December 31, 2019, our strategic corporate advisory and capital markets advisory businesses had 112 Senior Managing Directors with expertise and client relationships in a wide variety of industry sectors and broad geographic reach.

Our Investment Banking segment also includes an interest in Luminis Partners ("Luminis"), which is accounted for under the equity method of accounting. Luminis is an independent corporate advisory firm based in Australia.

The financial services industry is intensely competitive, and we expect it to remain so. Our competitors are other investment banking, financial advisory and investment management firms. We compete both globally and on a regional, product or niche basis. We compete on the basis of a number of factors, including transaction execution skills, investment performance, quality of equity research, our range of products and services, innovation, reputation and price.

Evercore's investment banking competitors can be categorized into three main groups: (1) large universal banks and bulge bracket firms such as Bank of America, Barclays, Citigroup, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley and UBS, (2) independent advisory firms such as Lazard and Rothschild and (3) boutiques, such as Centerview, Greenhill, Houlihan Lokey, Moelis, Perella Weinberg and PJT Partners, among others. We believe, and our clients have informed us, that firms that also engage in acquisition financing, significant proprietary trading in clients' securities and the management of large private equity funds that often compete with clients can cause such firms to develop interests that may be in conflict with the interests of advisory clients. Since Evercore is able to avoid potential conflicts associated with these types of activities, we believe that Evercore is better able to develop trusted and long-term relationships with its clients than those of its competitors, which provide such services. In addition, we have a larger global presence and deeper sector expertise than many of the boutiques. Evercore ISI's business is also subject to competition from investment banks and other large and small financial institutions who offer similar services.

We believe that we face a range of competitors in our Investment Management business, with numerous other firms providing competitive services in each of our sectors. Evercore Wealth Management competes with domestic and global private banks, regional broker-dealers, independent broker-dealers, registered investment advisors, commercial banks, trust companies and other financial services firms offering wealth management services to clients, many of which have substantially greater resources and offer a broader range of services, and ECB faces substantial competition from a large number of asset management companies, many of which are larger, more established firms with greater brand name recognition and more extensive client networks and product offerings.

Competition is also intense for the attraction and retention of qualified employees. Our ability to continue to compete effectively in our businesses will depend upon our ability to attract new employees and retain and motivate our existing employees.

Our business, as well as the financial services industry generally, is subject to extensive regulation in the United States and in the other jurisdictions where we operate. As a matter of public policy, regulatory bodies in the United States and the rest of the world are charged with safeguarding the integrity of the securities and other financial markets and with protecting the interests of customers participating in those markets. In the United States, the SEC is the federal agency responsible for the administration of the federal securities laws. Evercore Group L.L.C. ("EGL"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of ours through which we conduct our U.S. investment banking business, is registered as a broker-dealer with the SEC, is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority ("FINRA") and is registered as a broker-dealer in various states and the District of Columbia. EGL is subject to regulation and oversight by the SEC. FINRA, a self-regulatory organization that is subject to oversight by the SEC, adopts and enforces rules governing the conduct, and examines the activities, of its member firms, including EGL. The SEC, FINRA, and other regulators

Broker-dealers are subject to regulations that cover all aspects of the securities business, including sales methods, trade practices, use and safekeeping of customers' funds and securities, capital structure, record-keeping, the financing of customers' purchases and the conduct and qualifications of directors, officers and employees. In particular, as a registered broker-dealer and member of a self-regulatory organization, we are subject to the SEC's uniform net capital rule, Rule 15c3-1. Rule 15c3-1 specifies the minimum level of net capital a broker-dealer must maintain and also requires that a significant part of a broker-dealer's assets be kept in relatively liquid form. The SEC and various self-regulatory organizations impose rules that require notification when net capital falls below certain predefined criteria, limit the ratio of subordinated debt to equity in the regulatory capital composition of a broker-dealer and constrain the ability of a broker-dealer to expand its business under certain circumstances. Additionally, the SEC's uniform net capital rule imposes certain requirements that may have the effect of prohibiting a broker-dealer from distributing or withdrawing capital and requiring prior notice to the SEC for certain withdrawals of capital. EGL is also subject to the SEC's Market Access Rule, Rule 15c3-5. The Market Access Rule requires EGL to have controls and procedures in place to limit financial exposure by establishing capital thresholds for its trading clients and implementing controls to prevent erroneous orders. Our broker-dealer subsidiaries are also subject to regulations, including the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001, as amended (the "Patriot Act"), which impose obligations regarding the prevention and detection of money-laundering activities, including the establishment of customer due diligence and other compliance policies and procedures. Regulatory authorities are also increasingly focused on cyber security and vendor management. Failure to comply with any legal and regulatory requirements may result in monetary, regulatory and, in certain cases, criminal penalties.

We are also subject to the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which prohibits offering, promising, giving, or authorizing others to give anything of value, either directly or indirectly, to a non-U.S. government official in order to influence official action or otherwise gain an unfair business advantage, such as to obtain or retain business.

Three of our investment management businesses, EWM, ABS and Atalanta Sosnoff, are registered as investment advisors with the SEC. Registered investment advisors are subject to the requirements and regulations of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. Such requirements relate to, among other things, fiduciary duties to clients, maintaining an effective compliance program, solicitation agreements, conflicts of interest, recordkeeping and reporting requirements, disclosure requirements, limitations on agency cross and principal transactions between an advisor and advisory clients, state and local political contributions, as well as general anti-fraud prohibitions. EWM is also an investment advisor to a mutual fund, which subjects EWM to additional regulations under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the "1940 Act"). ETC, which is limited to fiduciary activities, is regulated by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency ("OCC"), is a member bank of the Federal Reserve System and is subject to, among other things, the Patriot Act, the Bank Secrecy Act of 1970, as amended, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999, as amended, other federal banking laws and the state laws in the jurisdictions in which it operates.

ECB is authorized by the Mexican Ministry of Finance to act as a broker-dealer and financial advisor in accordance with the Mexican Securities Market Law. ECB is subject to regulation and oversight by the Mexican Ministry of Finance and the Mexican National Banking and Securities Commission, including the maintenance of minimum capital requirements. In addition, the Mexican Broker Dealer Association, a self-regulatory organization that is subject to oversight by the Mexican National Banking and Securities Commission, adopts and enforces rules governing the conduct, and examines the activities of, its member broker-dealers, including ECB. ECB has been authorized by the Mexican National Banking and Securities Commission to act as a trustee and to operate in the equity markets.

In Germany, our subsidiary, Evercore GmbH ("Evercore Germany"), is licensed by the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority ("BaFin") to conduct certain corporate finance and related activities in Germany and pursuant to cross-border/branch "passports" granted under applicable financial services laws, across the EU on a cross-border basis. Among other requirements, BaFin requires that Evercore Germany comply with capital, liquidity, governance and business conduct requirements, and has a range of supervisory and disciplinary powers which it is able to use in overseeing the activities of the firm.

In Hong Kong, our subsidiary, Evercore Asia Limited ("Evercore Asia"), is licensed by the Securities and Futures Commission ("SFC") to conduct certain corporate finance activities and securities dealing and advising activities that are related to corporate finance. The compliance requirements of the SFC include, among other things, paid-up share capital, liquid capital and conduct of business requirements. The directors and certain officers, employees and other persons affiliated with Evercore Asia are also subject to SFC licensing and/or compliance requirements.

Certain of our businesses are subject to compliance with laws and regulations of U.S. federal and state governments, non-U.S. governments, their respective agencies and/or various self-regulatory organizations or exchanges relating to, among other things, the privacy of client information, and any failure to comply with these regulations could expose us to liability and/or reputational damage. Additional legislation, changes in rules promulgated by financial authorities and self-regulatory organizations or changes in the interpretation or enforcement of existing laws and rules, either in the United States or elsewhere, may directly affect our mode of operation and profitability.

The U.S. and non-U.S. government agencies and self-regulatory organizations, as well as state securities commissions in the United States, are empowered to conduct periodic examinations and initiate administrative proceedings that can result in censure, fine, the issuance of cease-and-desist orders or the suspension or expulsion of a regulated entity or its directors, officers or employees.

As a financial services firm, our businesses are materially affected by conditions in the financial markets and economic conditions in the U.S. and throughout the world. Financial markets and economic conditions can be negatively impacted by many factors beyond our control, such as the inability to access credit markets, rising interest rates or inflation, terrorism, pandemic, political uncertainty, uncertainty in the U.S. federal fiscal or monetary policy and the fiscal and monetary policy of foreign

We also seek to generate greater business from our restructuring and capital advisory services and our Evercore ISI business. However, it is unlikely that we will be able to offset lower revenues in their entirety from a decline in our M&A activities with revenues generated from restructuring and capital advisory services or from our Evercore ISI business. Our restructuring services, which provide financial advice and investment banking services to companies in financial transition, as well as to creditors, shareholders and potential acquirers, our capital advisory services, which provide corporations and financial sponsors with advice relating to a broad array of financing issues, and our Evercore ISI business, which provides equity research and agency securities trading for institutional investors, are intentionally smaller than our M&A advisory business and we expect that they will remain that way for the foreseeable future.

Unfavorable market conditions may also lead to a reduction in revenues from our underwriting and placement agent activities, and to the extent that adverse economic market conditions affect M&A and capital raising activities generally, the demand for the research and other services provided by our Evercore ISI business could correspondingly decline.

Our senior professionals team's expertise, skill, reputation and relationships with clients and potential clients are critical elements in maintaining and expanding our businesses. For example, our Investment Banking business, including Advisory and Evercore ISI, is dependent on our senior Investment Banking professionals and on a small number of senior research analysts, traders and executives. In addition, EWM is dependent on a small number of senior portfolio managers and executives. Further, the operations and performance of ABS and Atalanta Sosnoff are dependent on a small number of senior executives. Our professionals possess substantial experience and expertise and strong client relationships. However, they are not obligated to remain employed with us and the market for qualified professionals is highly competitive. If any of these personnel were to retire, join an existing competitor, form a competing company or otherwise leave us, it could jeopardize our relationships with clients and result in the loss of client engagements and revenues, which may be material.

In addition, if any of our executive officers or other senior professionals were to join an existing competitor or form a competing company, some of our clients could choose to use the services of that competitor instead of our services or some of our other professionals could choose to follow the departing senior professional to a competitor. Although we have entered into non-competition agreements with certain senior professionals, there is no guarantee that these agreements provide sufficient incentives or protections to prevent our professionals from resigning to join our competitors or that the non-competition agreements would be upheld if we were to seek to enforce our rights. The departure of a number of executive officers or senior professionals could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may incur costs associated with new or expanded lines of business, including guaranteed or fixed compensation costs, prior to these lines of business generating significant revenue. In addition, certain aspects of our cost structure, such as costs for occupancy and equipment rentals, communication and information technology services, and depreciation and amortization are largely fixed, and we may not be able to timely adjust these costs to match fluctuations in revenue. If our revenue declines, or fails to increase commensurately with the expenses associated with new or expanded lines of business, our profitability may be materially adversely affected.

We have experienced significant growth in the past several years. Supporting this growth has placed significant demands on our operational, legal, regulatory and financial systems and resources for integration, training and business development efforts. We are often required to commit additional resources to maintain appropriate operational, legal, regulatory and financial systems to adequately support expansion, even when we only partner, enter into strategic alliances or take minority stakes in other businesses. We expect our growth to continue, which could place additional demands on our resources and increase our expenses. We cannot provide assurance that our financial controls, the level of knowledge of our personnel, our operational abilities, our legal and compliance controls and our other corporate support systems will be adequate to manage our expanding operations effectively. Any failure to do so could adversely affect our ability to pursue our growth strategy, generate revenue and control expenses.

Our revenue and profits are highly volatile, and we can experience significant fluctuations in quarterly results. We generally derive Investment Banking revenue from engagements that generate significant fees at key transaction milestones, such as closing, and the timing of these milestones is outside of our control. As a result, our financial results will likely fluctuate from quarter to quarter based on the timing of when those fees are earned. It may be difficult for us to achieve steady earnings growth on a quarterly basis, which could, in turn, lead to large adverse movements in the price of our Class A common stock or increased volatility in our stock price generally.

As we have expanded the scope of our businesses and client base, we increasingly confront actual, potential and perceived conflicts of interest relating to our Investment Banking and Investment Management businesses. It is possible that actual, potential or perceived conflicts could give rise to client dissatisfaction, litigation or regulatory enforcement actions. Appropriately identifying and managing actual or perceived conflicts of interest is complex and difficult, and our reputation could be damaged if we fail, or appear to fail, to deal appropriately with one or more potential or actual conflicts of interest. Regulatory scrutiny of, or litigation in connection with, conflicts of interest would have a material adverse effect on our reputation which would materially adversely affect our business in a number of ways, including an inability to recruit additional professionals and a reluctance of potential clients and counterparties to do business with us. Additionally, client-imposed conflicts requirements could place additional limitations on us, for example, by limiting our ability to accept Investment Banking advisory engagements.

Policies, controls and procedures that we may be required to implement to address additional regulatory requirements, including as a result of additional foreign jurisdictions in which we operate, Evercore ISI's business and our underwriting activities, or to mitigate actual or potential conflicts of interest, may result in increased costs, including for additional personnel and infrastructure and information technology improvements, as well as limit our activities and reduce the positive synergies that we seek to cultivate across our businesses. For example, due to our equity research activities through Evercore ISI, we face potential conflicts of interest, including situations where our publication of research may conflict with the interests of an advisory client, or allegations that research objectivity is being inappropriately impacted by advisory client considerations. Such conflicts may also arise if our Investment Banking advisory business has access to material non-public information that is not shared with our equity research business or vice versa.

There is a risk that our employees could engage in fraud or misconduct that adversely affects our business. Our Investment Banking business often requires that we deal with confidential matters of great significance to our clients. If our employees were to improperly use or disclose confidential information provided by our clients, we could be subject to regulatory sanctions and suffer serious harm to our reputation, financial position, current client relationships and ability to attract future clients and employees. We are also subject to a number of obligations and standards arising from our Investment Management business and our authority over the assets managed by our Investment Management business. The violation of these obligations and standards by any of our employees would adversely affect our clients and us. It is not always possible to deter employee misconduct, and the precautions we take to detect and prevent this activity may not be effective in all cases. If our employees engage in misconduct, our business may be adversely affected.

In addition, the U.S. regulators and enforcement agencies, including the U.S. Department of Justice and the SEC, continue to devote greater resources to the enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, anti-money laundering laws and anti-corruption laws, and the United Kingdom has significantly expanded the reach of its anti-bribery laws. While we have developed and implemented policies and procedures designed to ensure strict compliance with anti-bribery, anti-money laundering, anti-corruption and other laws, such policies and procedures may not be effective in all instances to prevent violations. Any determination that any of our employees have violated these laws (or similar laws of other jurisdictions in which we do business) could subject us to, among other things, civil and criminal penalties, material fines, profit disgorgement, injunction on future conduct, securities litigation and reputational damage, any one of which could adversely affect our business, financial position or results of operations.

If there are allegations of improper conduct by private litigants or regulators, whether the ultimate outcome is favorable or unfavorable to us, as well as negative publicity and press speculation about us, whether or not valid, may harm our reputation. Moreover, our role as advisor to our clients on important mergers and acquisitions or restructuring transactions often involves complex analysis and the exercise of professional judgment, including, if appropriate, rendering fairness opinions in connection with mergers and other transactions.

Particularly in highly volatile markets, the volume of claims and amount of damages claimed in litigation and regulatory proceedings against M&A financial advisors can be significant. Our business is also subject to regulation in the countries in which it operates. As this regulatory environment continues to change (in some cases potentially significantly) it is difficult to assess future litigation and regulatory risks. Regulatory changes make it harder for our clients to estimate future potential losses that may be incurred. Our M&A advisory activities may subject us to the risk of significant legal liability to our clients and third parties, including our clients' stockholders, under securities or other laws for materially false or misleading statements made in connection with securities and other transactions and potential liability for the fairness opinions and other advice provided to participants in corporate transactions. In addition, a portion of our advisory fees are obtained from restructuring clients, and often these clients do not have sufficient resources to indemnify us for costs and expenses associated with third-party subpoenas and direct claims, to the extent such claims are not barred as part of the reorganization process. Our engagements typically include broad indemnities from our clients and provisions designed to limit our exposure to legal claims relating to our services, but these provisions may not protect us or may not be adhered to in all cases. These indemnities also are dependent on our client's capacity to pay the amounts claimed. As a result, we may incur significant legal expenses in defending against litigation. In our Investment Management business, we make investment decisions on behalf of our clients that could result in substantial losses. This also may subject us to the risk of legal liability or actions alleging negligent misconduct, breach of fiduciary duty or breach of contract. These risks often may be difficult to assess or quantify and their existence and magnitude often remain unknown for substantial periods of time. Substantial legal liability or legal expenses incurred in defending against litigation could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, operating results or liquidity or cause significant reputational harm to us, which could seriously harm our business.

As a participant in the financial services industry, we are subject to extensive and evolving regulation by governmental and self-regulatory organizations in jurisdictions around the world, as described further under "Business - Regulation" above. For example, as a result of the financial crisis, the U.S. and other governments took unprecedented steps to try to stabilize the financial system, including various legislation and regulatory initiatives.

Our ability to conduct business and our operating results, including compliance costs, may be adversely affected as a result of any new requirements imposed by the SEC, FINRA, or other U.S. or foreign governmental regulatory authorities or self-regulatory organizations that regulate the financial services industry. We may also be adversely affected by changes in the interpretation or enforcement of existing laws or regulations by these governmental authorities and self-regulatory organizations. For example, the current administration in the U.S. has repealed and modified, and in the future may ultimately repeal or modify, certain regulations adopted since the financial crisis. Uncertainty about the timing and scope of any changes to existing laws and rules or the implementation of new laws or rules by any regulatory authorities that regulate financial services firms or supervise financial markets, as well as the compliance costs associated with a new regulatory regime, may negatively impact our businesses in the short term, even if the long-term impact of any such changes are positive for our businesses. In addition, policies adopted by clients or prospective clients, which may exceed regulatory requirements, may result in additional compliance costs that

Our failure to comply with applicable laws or regulations could result in adverse publicity and reputational harm, as well as fines, suspensions of personnel or other sanctions, including revocation of the registration of us or any of our subsidiaries as an investment advisor or broker-dealer. For example, we are subject to extensive bribery and anti-corruption regulation, which can present heightened risks for us due to certain jurisdictions in which we operate and our significant client relationships with governmental entities and certain businesses that receive support from government agencies. Our businesses are subject to periodic examination by various regulatory authorities, and we cannot predict the outcome of any such examinations or estimate the amount of monetary fines or penalties that could be assessed. In addition, adverse regulatory scrutiny of any of our strategic partners could have a material adverse effect on our business and reputation. For example, the SEC has focused on investment advisors, investigating and bringing enforcement actions where such advisors have breached or are alleged to have breached their fiduciary duties to clients. Any investigation by the SEC, even in the absence of wrongdoing, could damage our reputation with clients and adversely affect our operations.

Specific regulatory changes may have a direct impact on the revenue of our Investment Management business. In addition to regulatory scrutiny and potential fines and sanctions, regulators continue to examine different aspects of the investment management industry. For example, several states and municipalities in the United States have adopted "pay-to-play" rules, which could limit our ability to charge advisory fees, and could therefore affect the profitability of that portion of our business. In addition, the use of "soft dollars," where a portion of commissions paid to broker-dealers in connection with the execution of trades also pays for research and other services provided to advisors, is periodically reexamined and may in the future be limited or modified. Although a substantial portion of the research relied on by our Investment Management business in the investment decision-making process is generated internally by our investment analysts, external research, including external research paid for with soft dollars, is important to the process. This external research generally is used for information gathering or verification purposes, and includes broker-provided research, as well as third-party provided databases and research services. If the use of soft dollars is limited, we may have to bear some of these costs. Furthermore, new regulations regarding the management of hedge funds and the use of certain investment products may impact our Investment Management business and result in increased costs. For example, many regulators around the world adopted disclosure and reporting requirements relating to the hedge fund businesses or other businesses, and changes to the laws, rules and regulations in the U.S. related to the over-the-counter swaps and derivatives markets require additional registration, recordkeeping and reporting obligations.

Furthermore, it is expected that MiFID II and MiFIR, which went into effect on January 3, 2018, will have significant and wide-ranging impacts on EU securities and derivatives markets as a result of enhanced investor protection and organizational requirements, including, among other things, (i) rules regarding the ability of portfolio management firms to receive and pay for investment research relating to all asset classes, (ii) enhanced regulation of algorithmic trading, (iii) the movement of trading in certain shares and derivatives onto regulated execution venues, (iv) the extension of pre- and post-trade transparency requirements to wider categories of financial instruments, (v) restriction on the use of so-called dark pool trading, (vi) the creation of a new type of trading venue called the Organized Trading Facility for non-equity financial instruments, (vii) commodity derivative position limits and reporting requirements, (viii) a move away from vertical silos in execution, clearing and settlement, (ix) an enhanced role for European Securities and Markets Authority ("ESMA") in supervising EU securities and derivatives markets and (x) new requirements regarding non-EU investment firms access to EU financial markets. Implementation of these measures may have a direct and indirect impact on us and certain of our affiliates, including an adverse effect on the demand for our research and trading services from EU investors and an increase in legal and compliance costs.

In the absence of an agreement providing otherwise, the U.K.'s exit from the EU would cause our U.K. entities to lose the EU financial services passport licenses which allow them to operate on a cross-border and off-shore basis into all EU countries without obtaining regulatory approval outside of the U.K., which would materially adversely affect the manner in which our U.K. entities operate. The outcome of negotiations between the U.K. and the EU remain highly uncertain. More generally, the U.K.'s exit from the EU, together with the ongoing negotiations around the terms of any exit, will likely increase our legal, compliance and operational costs, could also adversely affect European and worldwide economic and market conditions, contribute to instability in global financial and foreign exchange markets, including volatility in the value of the British pound and European euro, and could introduce significant legal uncertainty and potentially divergent national laws and regulations. Our U.K. entities, Evercore U.K. and Evercore ISI U.K., primarily service European-domiciled or EU member clients, including in the U.K. Adverse conditions arising from a U.K. exit from the EU could adversely affect our U.K. business and operations, including by reducing the volume or size of mergers, acquisitions, divestitures and other strategic corporate transactions on which we seek to advise.

Given there remains significant uncertainty about the short and long term impact of the U.K.'s exit from the EU on the ability of our U.K. entities to conduct business on a cross-border basis into the EU, we are taking certain actions to prepare for the possibility of this ability being restricted immediately upon the U.K.'s exit. This includes, as noted above, the establishment of a new German subsidiary, Evercore Germany, through which regulated activities could be conducted in Germany and in other EU jurisdictions on a cross-border basis.

We face various operational risks related to our businesses on a day-to-day basis. We rely heavily on financial, accounting, communication and other data processing systems to securely process, transmit, and store sensitive and confidential client information, and communicate among our locations around the world and with our staff, clients, partners, and vendors. We also depend on third-party software and programs, as well as cloud-based storage platforms as part of our operations. These systems, including the systems of third parties on whom we rely, may fail to operate properly or become disabled as a result of tampering or a breach of our network security systems or otherwise, including for reasons beyond our or their control.

In addition, as we operate in a financial services industry, we are susceptible to attempts to gain unauthorized access of client, customer or other confidential information. We are also at risk for cyber-attacks involving the theft, dissemination and destruction of corporate information or other assets, which could result from an employee's, contractor's or other third party vendor's failure to follow data security procedures or as a result of actions by third parties, including actions by governments. Phishing attacks and email spoofing attacks are becoming more prevalent and are often used to obtain information to impersonate employees or clients in order to, among other things, direct fraudulent bank transfers or obtain valuable information. Fraudulent transfers resulting from phishing attacks or email spoofing of our employees could result in a material loss of assets, reputational harm or legal liability, and in turn materially adversely affect our business. Although cyber-attacks have not, to date, had a material impact on our operations, breaches of our, or third-party, network security systems on which we rely could involve attacks that are intended to obtain unauthorized access to and disclose our proprietary information or our client's proprietary information, destroy data or disable, degrade or sabotage our systems, often through the introduction of computer viruses, cyber-attacks and other means, and could originate from a wide variety of sources, including state actors or other unknown third parties outside the firm. The increased use of mobile technologies heighten these and other operational risks.

There can be no assurance that we, or the third parties on whom we rely, will be able to anticipate, detect or implement effective preventative measures against frequently changing cyber threats. We expect to incur significant costs in maintaining and enhancing appropriate protections to keep pace with increasingly sophisticated methods of attack. In addition to the implementation of data security measures, we require our employees to maintain the confidentiality of the proprietary information we hold. If an employee's failure to follow proper data security procedures results in the improper release of confidential information, or our systems are otherwise compromised, do not operate properly or are disabled, we could suffer a disruption of our business, financial losses, liability to clients, regulatory sanctions and damage to our reputation.

As part of our business, we manage, utilize and store sensitive or confidential client or employee data, including personal data. As a result, we are subject to various risks and costs associated with the collection, handling, storage and transmission of sensitive information, including those related to compliance with U.S. and foreign data collection and privacy laws and other contractual obligations, as well as those associated with the compromise of our systems collecting such information. These laws and regulations are increasing in complexity and number. For example, the EU's General Data Protection Regulation ("GDPR"), which became effective on May 25, 2018 across all EU member states, brought a number of changes, including requiring companies

If any person, including any of our employees, negligently disregards or intentionally breaches our established controls with respect to client or employee data, or otherwise mismanages or misappropriates that data, we could be subject to significant monetary damages, regulatory enforcement actions, fines and/or criminal prosecution. In addition, unauthorized disclosure of sensitive or confidential client or employee data, whether through cyber-attacks, systems failure, employee negligence, fraud or misappropriation, could damage our reputation and cause us to lose clients and related revenue in the future. Potential liability in the event of a security breach of client data could be significant and depending on the circumstances giving rise to the breach, this liability may not be subject to a contractual limit of liability or an exclusion of consequential or indirect damages.

Any failure to comply with these regulations could expose us to liability and/or reputational damage. In addition, our businesses are increasingly subject to laws and regulations relating to surveillance, encryption and data on-shoring in the jurisdictions in which we operate. Compliance with these laws and regulations may require us to change our policies, procedures and technology for information security, which could, among other things, make us more vulnerable to cyber-attacks and misappropriation, corruption or loss of information or technology.

We operate in businesses that are highly dependent on proper processing of financial transactions. In Evercore ISI, and our Institutional Asset Management and Wealth Management businesses in particular, we must consistently and reliably obtain securities pricing information, properly execute and process client transactions and provide reports and other customer service to our clients. The expansion of our equities business has increased the size and scope of our trading activities and, accordingly, increased the opportunities for trade errors and other operational errors in connection with the processing of transactions. The occurrence of trade or other operational errors or the failure to keep accurate books and records can render us liable to disciplinary action by governmental and self-regulatory authorities, as well as to claims by our clients. We also rely on third-party service providers for certain aspects of our business. Any interruption or deterioration in the performance of these third parties or failures of their information systems and technology could impair our operations, affect our reputation and adversely affect our businesses.

In addition, if we were to experience a disaster or other business continuity problem, such as a pandemic, other man-made or natural disaster or disruption involving electronic communications or other services used by us or third parties with whom we conduct business, our continued success will depend, in part, on the availability of our personnel and office facilities and the proper functioning of our computer, software, telecommunications, transaction processing and other related systems and operations, as well as those of third parties on whom we rely. In particular, we depend on our headquarters in New York City, where a large number of our personnel are located, for the continued operation of our business. As an example, a novel strain of coronavirus surfaced in Wuhan, China in December 2019, resulting in the extended shutdown of certain businesses in the region, and could, depending on future developments, adversely affect our operations. Although we have developed business continuity plans, a disaster or a disruption in the infrastructure that supports our businesses, a disruption involving electronic communications or other services used by us or third parties with whom we conduct business, or a disruption that directly affects our headquarters, could have a material adverse impact on our ability to continue to operate our business without interruption. The incidence and severity of disasters or other business continuity problems are unpredictable, and our inability to timely and successfully recover could materially disrupt our businesses and cause material financial loss, regulatory actions, reputational harm or legal liability.

Our ability to make scheduled payments on, or to refinance, our debt obligations depends on our financial condition and operating performance. We cannot provide assurance that we will maintain a level of cash flows from operating activities sufficient to permit us to pay the principal of, and interest on, our indebtedness, including the $170.0 million principal amount of the 2016 senior notes issued, (the "2016 Private Placement Notes") and the $175.0 million and £25.0 million principal amount of the 2019 senior notes issued, (the "2019 Private Placement Notes"), subject to semi-annual interest payments as well as principal payments beginning in 2021 and 2029, respectively. The final payments of all amounts outstanding, plus accrued interest, are due 2028, for the 2016 Private Placement Notes, and 2033, for the 2019 Private Placement Notes. See Note 14 for further information. If our cash flows and capital resources are insufficient to fund our debt service obligations, including the principal and semi-annual interest payments noted above, we may be forced to reduce or delay investments and capital expenditures, or to sell assets, seek additional capital or restructure or refinance our indebtedness, including the Private Placement Notes and other contractual commitments.

We face the risk that certain clients may not have sufficient financial resources to pay, or otherwise refuse to pay, our agreed-upon advisory fees, including in the bankruptcy or insolvency context. Our clients include some companies that may, from time to time, encounter financial difficulties. If a client's financial difficulties become severe, the client may be unwilling or unable to pay our invoices in the ordinary course of business, which could adversely affect collections of both our accounts receivable and unbilled services. On occasion, some of our clients have entered bankruptcy, which has prevented us from collecting amounts owed to us. The bankruptcy of a number of our clients that, in the aggregate, owe us substantial accounts receivable could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, if a number of clients declare bankruptcy after paying us certain invoices, courts may determine that we are not properly entitled to those payments and may require repayment of some or all of the amounts we received, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Certain clients may also be unwilling to pay our advisory fees in whole or in part, in which case we may have to incur significant costs to bring legal action to enforce our engagement agreements to obtain our advisory fees.

Goodwill, other intangible assets, equity method investments and other investments represent a portion of our assets. We assess these assets at least annually for impairment, however, we may need to perform impairment tests more frequently if events occur or circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of these assets may not be recoverable. These events or circumstances could include a significant change in the business climate, attrition of key personnel, a prolonged decline in our stock price and market capitalization, legal factors, operating performance indicators, competition, sale or disposition of a significant portion of one of our businesses and other factors. The valuation of our reporting units, long-lived intangible assets, equity method investments or other investments requires judgment in estimating future cash flows, discount rates and other factors. In making these judgments, we evaluate the financial health of our reporting units, long-lived intangible assets, equity method investments or other investments, including such factors as market performance, changes in our client base and projected growth rates. Because these factors are ever changing, due to market and general business conditions, we cannot predict whether, and to what extent, our goodwill, long-lived intangible assets, equity method investments and other investments may be impaired in future periods.

We have documented and tested our internal control procedures in order to satisfy the requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which requires annual management assessments of the effectiveness of our internal controls over financial reporting and a report by our independent auditors regarding our internal control over financial reporting. If we fail to maintain the adequacy of our internal controls as such standards are modified, supplemented or amended from time to time, our independent registered public accounting firm may not be able or willing to issue an unqualified report on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. Matters impacting our internal controls may cause us to be unable to report our financial information on a timely basis and thereby subject us to adverse regulatory consequences, including sanctions by the SEC, or violations of applicable stock exchange listing rules. There could also be a negative reaction in the financial markets due to a loss of investor confidence in us and the reliability of our financial statements. Confidence in the reliability of our financial statements is also likely to suffer if we identify a material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting. This could materially adversely affect us and lead to a decline in the market price of our shares.

For example, acquisitions and internally developed initiatives generally result in increased operating and administrative costs as the necessary infrastructure, information technology, legal and compliance systems, controls and personnel are put in place. Our inability to develop, integrate and manage acquired companies, joint ventures or other strategic relationships and growth initiatives in an efficient and cost-effective manner, or at all, could have material adverse short- and long-term effects on our operating results, financial condition and liquidity.

Our analyses of the benefits and costs of expanding our businesses necessarily involve assumptions as to future events, including general business and industry conditions, the longevity of specific customer engagements and relationships, operating costs and competitive factors, many of which are beyond our control and may not materialize. While we believe our analyses and their underlying assumptions to be reasonable, they are estimates that are necessarily speculative in nature. In addition, new regulatory requirements and conflicts may reduce the synergies that we expect to result from our growth initiatives. Even if we achieve the expected benefits, we may not be able to achieve them within the anticipated time frame. Also, the cost savings and other synergies from these acquisitions may be offset by costs incurred in integrating the companies, increases in other expenses or problems in the business unrelated to these acquisitions. In the case of joint ventures, we are subject to additional risks and uncertainties in that we may be dependent upon, and subject to liability, losses or reputational damage relating to personnel, systems and activities that are not under our direct and sole control, and conflicts and disagreements between us and our joint venture partners may negatively impact our business.

Additionally, acquiring the equity of an existing business or substantially all of the assets of a company may expose us to liability for actions taken by an acquired business and its management before the acquisition. The due diligence we conduct in connection with an acquisition and any contractual guarantees or indemnities that we receive from the sellers of acquired companies may not be sufficient to protect us from, or compensate us for, actual liabilities. A material liability associated with an acquisition, especially where there is no right to indemnification, could adversely affect our operating results, financial condition and liquidity.

We historically have earned a substantial portion of our revenue from fees paid to us by our Investment Banking clients for advisory services. These fees are typically payable upon the successful completion of a particular transaction or restructuring. Our Advisory and Underwriting services accounted for 88%, 88% and 84% of our revenues, excluding Other Revenue, net, in 2019, 2018 and 2017, respectively. We expect that we will continue to rely on Investment Banking fees from advisory services for a substantial portion of our revenue for the foreseeable future. Accordingly, a decline in our Investment Banking advisory engagements or the market for advisory services would adversely affect our business.

In addition, our Advisory professionals operate in a highly-competitive environment where typically there are no long-term contracted sources of revenue. Each revenue-generating engagement typically is separately solicited, awarded and negotiated. In addition, many businesses do not routinely engage in transactions requiring our services. As a consequence, our fee-paying engagements with many clients are not likely to be predictable and high levels of revenue in one quarter are not necessarily predictive of continued high levels of revenue in future periods. We also lose clients each year as a result of the sale or merger of a client, a change in a client's senior management, competition from other financial advisors and financial institutions and other causes. As a result, our advisory fees could decline materially due to such changes in the volume, nature and scope of our engagements.

Our top five Investment Banking clients accounted for 11%, 9% and 13% of our revenues, excluding Other Revenue, net, in 2019, 2018 and 2017, respectively. The composition of the group comprising our largest Investment Banking clients varies significantly from year to year, and a relatively small number of clients may account for a significant portion of our Investment Banking Revenues. As a result, our operating results, financial condition and liquidity may be significantly affected by even one lost mandate or the failure of one advisory assignment to be completed. However, no single client accounted for more than 10% of our revenues, excluding Other Revenue, net, for the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017.

The financial advisory industry is intensely competitive, highly fragmented and subject to rapid change, and we expect it to remain so. We compete on both a global and regional basis, and on the basis of a number of factors, including the quality of our employees, industry knowledge, transaction execution skills, our products and services, innovation, reputation, strength of relationships and price. We have experienced intense competition over obtaining advisory mandates in recent years, and we may experience pricing pressures in our Investment Banking business in the future, as some of our competitors seek to obtain increased market share by reducing fees. When making proposals for fixed-fee engagements, we estimate the costs and timing for completing the engagements. These estimates reflect our best judgment regarding the efficiencies of our methodologies and financial professionals as we plan to deploy them on engagements. Any unexpected costs or unanticipated delays in connection with the performance of such engagements could make these contracts less profitable or unprofitable, which would have an adverse effect on our profit margins.

Several of our competitors include large financial institutions, many of which have far greater financial and other resources and greater name recognition than us and, unlike us, have the ability to offer a wider range of products, which may enhance their competitive position. They also regularly support services we do not provide, such as commercial lending and other financial services and products, which puts us at a competitive disadvantage and could result in pricing pressures or lost opportunities, which could materially adversely affect our revenue and profitability. In addition, we may be at a competitive disadvantage with regard to certain of our competitors who have larger customer bases, have more professionals to serve their clients' needs and are able to provide financing or otherwise commit capital to clients that are often a crucial component of the Investment Banking transactions on which we advise.

In addition to our larger competitors, we face competition from a number of independent investment banks that offer only independent advisory services, which stress their lack of other businesses as a competitive advantage. As these independent firms

Evercore ISI has entered into service agreements with third-party service providers for client order management, trade execution and settlement and clearance of client securities transactions and research distribution. This business faces the risk of operational failure of any of the vendors we use to facilitate our securities transactions. Our senior management and officers oversee and manage these relationships. Poor oversight and control or inferior performance or service on the part of the service provider could result in loss of customers and violations of applicable rules and regulations. Any such failure could adversely affect our ability to effect transactions and to manage our exposure to risk.

We may incur losses and be subject to reputational harm to the extent that, for any reason, we are unable to sell securities we purchased as an underwriter at the anticipated price levels. As an underwriter, we also are subject to liability for material misstatements or omissions in prospectuses and other offering documents relating to offerings we underwrite. In such cases, any indemnification provisions in the applicable underwriting agreement may not be enforceable or available to us, for example, if the client is not financially able to satisfy its indemnification obligations in whole or part or the scope of the indemnity is not sufficient to protect us against financial or reputational losses arising from such liability. For example, we are currently involved in a securities law class action litigation where the issuer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. See Note 20 for further information.

In addition, through indemnification provisions in our agreement with our clearing organization, customer activities may expose us to off-balance sheet credit risk. We may have to purchase or sell securities at prevailing market prices in the event a customer fails to settle a trade on its original terms. We seek to manage the risks associated with customer trading activities through customer screening, internal review and trading procedures, but such procedures and processes may not be effective in all cases.

The revenues and profitability of our Institutional Asset Management and Wealth Management businesses are derived from providing investment management and related services. The level of our revenues depends largely on the level and mix of AUM. Fluctuations in the amount and mix of our AUM may be attributable in part to market conditions outside of our control that have had, and in the future could have, a negative impact on our revenues and income. Any decrease in the value or amount of our AUM because of market volatility or other factors negatively impacts our revenues and income. We are subject to an increased risk of asset volatility from changes in the global financial and equity markets. Individual financial and equity markets may be adversely affected by economic, political, financial, or other instabilities that are particular to the country or regions in which a market is located, including without limitation local acts of terrorism, health emergencies, economic crises or other business, social or political crises. Declines in these markets have caused in the past, and may cause in the future, a decline in our revenues and income. Global economic conditions, exacerbated by war or terrorism, health emergencies or financial crises, changes in the equity market place, trade disputes, restrictions on travel, currency exchange rates, commodity prices, interest rates, inflation rates, the yield curve, and other factors that are difficult to predict affect the mix, market values and levels of our AUM. A decline in the

Revenue from our Institutional Asset Management and Wealth Management businesses is derived from fees earned for the management of client assets, generally based on the market value of AUM. Poor investment performance by these businesses, on an absolute basis or as compared to third-party benchmarks or competitors, could stimulate higher redemptions, thereby lowering AUM and reducing the fees we earn, even in periods when securities prices are generally rising. In addition, if the investments we make on behalf of our funds and clients perform poorly, it may be more difficult for us to attract new investors, launch new products or offer new services in our Institutional Asset Management or Wealth Management businesses. Furthermore, if the volatility in the U.S. and global markets cause a decline in the price of securities that constitutes a significant portion of our AUM, our clients could withdraw funds from, or be hesitant to invest in, our Investment Management business due to the uncertainty or volatility in the market or in favor of investments they perceive as offering greater opportunity or lower risk, which would also result in lower investment management revenue. In our investments in entities that manage private equity funds, our revenues include management fees based on committed or invested capital and performance fees. If our investments in private equity funds perform poorly, whether on a realized or unrealized basis, our revenues and earnings will suffer. Poor performance by our private equity investments may also make it more difficult for the private equity funds we invest in to raise any new funds in the future or may result in such fundraising taking longer to complete than anticipated or may prevent them from raising such funds, which could negatively impact our share of future management and performance fees. In addition, to the extent that, over the life of the funds, we have received an amount of carried interest that exceeds a specified percentage of distributions made to the third-party investors in our funds, we may be obligated to repay the amount of this excess to the third-party investors.

We have entered into services agreements with third-party service providers for custodial services and trust and investment administration processing and reporting services. Our officers oversee and manage these relationships; however, poor oversight and control on our part or inferior performance or service on the part of the service providers could result in loss of customers, violation of applicable rules and regulations, including, but not limited to, privacy and anti-money laundering laws and otherwise adversely affect our business and operations.

Evercore Inc. and Evercore LP are party to a Capital and Liquidity Support Agreement, a Capital and Liquidity Maintenance Agreement and other related agreements with the OCC related to ETC (collectively, the "OCC Agreements"). The OCC Agreements require Evercore Inc. and Evercore LP to provide ETC necessary capital and liquidity support in order to ensure that ETC continues to operate safely and soundly and in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. In particular, the OCC Agreements require that Evercore Inc. and Evercore LP (1) maintain at least $5 million in Tier 1 capital in ETC or such other amount as the OCC may require and (2) maintain liquid assets in ETC in an amount at least equal to the greater of $3.5 million or 180 days coverage of ETC's operating expenses.

If we fail to comply with any of the OCC Agreements, we could become subject to civil money penalties, regulatory enforcement actions, payment of damages and, if the OCC deems it likely that we are unable to fulfill our obligations or breach the OCC Agreements, a forced disposition of ETC. The occurrence of any of these events or the disclosure that these events are probable or under consideration may cause reputational harm and erosion of client trust, due to a perception that we are unable to comply with applicable regulatory requirements, unable to successfully launch new initiatives and businesses, or that our reputation for integrity and high-caliber professional services is no longer valid, any of which could adversely affect our business and operations.

We have made principal investments in Glisco II, Glisco III, Glisco IV, Trilantic IV, Trilantic V and Trilantic VI. These funds generally invest in relatively high-risk, illiquid assets. In addition, some of these investments are, or may in the future be, in industries or sectors which are unstable, in distress or undergoing some uncertainty. Such investments may be subject to rapid changes in value caused by sudden company-specific or industry-wide developments. Contributing capital to these funds is risky, and we may lose some or all of the principal amount of our investments. There are no regularly quoted market prices for a number of investments in the funds. The value of the investments in the funds is determined using fair value methodologies described in the funds' valuation policies, which may consider, among other things, the nature of the investment, the expected cash flows from the investment, bid or ask prices provided by third parties for the investment and the trading price of recent sales of securities (in the case of publicly-traded securities), restrictions on transfer and other recognized valuation methodologies. The methodologies used in valuing individual investments are based on estimates and assumptions specific to the particular investments. Therefore, the value of the investments does not necessarily reflect the prices that would actually be obtained on behalf of the fund when such investments are sold. Realizations at values significantly lower than the values at which investments have been reflected in fund values would result in losses for the applicable fund and the loss of potential incentive income and principal investments.

The limited partnership agreements of the funds we invest in provide that the limited partners of each fund may terminate their relationship without cause with a simple majority vote of each fund's limited partners. If the limited partners of the funds we invest in terminate their relationship with such funds, we would lose management fees and carried interest from those funds.

In 2019, we earned 26% of our Total Revenues, excluding Other Revenue, and 27% of our Investment Banking Revenues from clients located outside of the United States. Generally, we intend to grow our non-U.S. business, and this growth is critical to our overall success. Many of our larger clients for our Investment Banking business are non-U.S. entities seeking to enter into transactions involving U.S. businesses. Our international operations carry special financial and business risks, which could include, but are not limited to, the following:

As part of our day-to-day operations outside of the United States, we are required to create compensation programs, employment policies, compliance policies and procedures and other administrative programs that comply with the laws of multiple countries. We also must communicate and monitor standards and directives across our global operations. Our failure to successfully manage and grow our geographically diverse operations could impair our ability to react quickly to changing business and market conditions and to enforce compliance with non-U.S. standards and procedures.

Because our financial statements are denominated in U.S. dollars and we receive a portion of our revenues in other currencies, we are exposed to fluctuations in foreign currencies. In addition, we pay certain of our expenses in such currencies. Generally, we do not enter into any transactions to hedge our exposure to foreign exchange fluctuations in our foreign subsidiaries through the use of derivative instruments or otherwise. An appreciation or depreciation of any of these currencies relative to the U.S. dollar would result in an adverse or beneficial impact, respectively, to our financial results. Fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates may also affect the levels of our AUM and, as a result, our investment advisory fees. On occasion, we enter into foreign currency exchange forward contracts as an economic hedge against exchange rate risk for foreign currency denominated accounts receivable in EGL. There were no foreign currency exchange forward contracts outstanding as of December 31, 2019.

Our Mexican affiliates have all of their assets located in Mexico and most of their revenue derived from operations in Mexico. As a financial services firm, our businesses in Mexico are materially affected by Mexico's financial markets and economic conditions. For example, a lack of liquidity in Mexican government bonds could have a material adverse effect on our Mexico businesses. Historically, interest rates in Mexico have been volatile, particularly in times of economic unrest and uncertainty. Mexico has had, and may continue to have, high real and nominal interest rates. In addition, the Mexican government exercises significant influence over many aspects of the Mexican economy; therefore, political events in Mexico, including a change in state and municipal political leadership, may result in disruptions to our business operations and adversely affect its revenue. Any action by the government, including changes in the regulation of Mexico's financial sector, could have an adverse effect on the operations of our Mexican business, especially the asset management business.

Our Mexican business derives a portion of its revenue from advisory contracts with state and local governments in Mexico. The term limit system in Mexico may prevent us from maintaining relationships with our government clients beyond these periods. As elections take place, there is no guarantee that we will be able to remain as advisors for a new government, even if the new administration is of the same political party as the previous one.

Since we operate our business both in the U.S. and internationally, we are subject to many distinct broker-dealer, employment, labor, benefits and tax laws in each jurisdiction in which we operate, including regulations affecting our employment practices and our relations with our employees and service providers. If we are required to comply with new regulations or new interpretations of existing regulations, or if we are unable to comply with these regulations or interpretations, our business could be adversely affected or the cost of compliance may make it difficult to expand into new international markets. Additionally, our competitiveness in international markets may be adversely affected by regulations requiring, among other things, the awarding of contracts to local contractors, the employment of local citizens and/or the purchase of services from local businesses.

As of December 31, 2019, there were 2,552,531 vested Class A partnership units of Evercore LP ("Class A LP Units") held by some of our Senior Managing Directors that may in the future be exchanged for shares of our Class A common stock. The exchanges may result in increases in the tax basis of the assets of Evercore LP that otherwise would not have been available. These increases in tax basis may reduce the amount of tax that we would otherwise be required to pay in the future, although the IRS may challenge all or part of that tax basis increase, and a court could sustain such a challenge.

We have entered into a tax receivable agreement with some of our Senior Managing Directors that provides for the payment by us to these Senior Managing Directors of 85% of the amount of cash savings, if any, in U.S. federal, state and local income tax or franchise tax that we actually realize as a result of these increases in tax basis. While the actual increase in tax basis, as well as the amount and timing of any payments under this agreement, will vary depending upon a number of factors, including the timing

Although we are not aware of any issue that would cause the IRS to challenge a tax basis increase, Senior Managing Directors who receive payments will not reimburse us for any payments that may previously have been made under the tax receivable agreement. As a result, in certain circumstances we could make payments to some of the Senior Managing Directors under the tax receivable agreement in excess of our cash tax savings. Our ability to achieve benefits from any tax basis increase, and the payments to be made under this agreement, will depend upon a number of factors, as discussed above, including the timing and amount of our future income.

The Company is a holding company and has no material assets other than its ownership of partnership units in Evercore LP. The Company has no independent means of generating revenue. We intend to cause Evercore LP to make distributions to its partners in an amount sufficient to cover all applicable taxes payable, other expenses and dividends, if any, declared by us.

Payments of dividends, if any, will be at the sole discretion of the Company's board of directors after taking into account various factors, including:

Deterioration in the financial condition, earnings or cash flow of Evercore LP and its subsidiaries for any reason could limit or impair their ability to pay such distributions. Additionally, to the extent that the Company requires funds and Evercore LP is restricted from making such distributions under applicable law or regulation or under the terms of financing arrangements, or is otherwise unable to provide such funds, our liquidity and financial condition could be materially adversely affected.

As of December 31, 2019, Evercore LP and its consolidated subsidiaries had approximately $470 million in cash and cash equivalents available for distribution without prior regulatory approval. Certain of the amounts held in regulated entities are subject to advance notification requirements to the relevant regulatory body prior to distribution, which could delay access to such capital.

If Evercore Inc. were to cease participation in the management of Evercore LP, its interest in Evercore LP could be deemed an "investment security" for purposes of the 1940 Act. Generally, a person is deemed to be an "investment company" if it owns investment securities having a value exceeding 40% of the value of its total assets (exclusive of U.S. government securities and cash items), absent an applicable exemption. Evercore Inc. will have no material assets other than its equity interest in Evercore

The 1940 Act and the rules thereunder contain detailed parameters for the organization and operations of investment companies. Among other things, the 1940 Act and the rules thereunder limit or prohibit transactions with affiliates, impose limitations on the issuance of debt and equity securities, prohibit the issuance of stock options, and impose certain governance requirements. We intend to conduct our operations so that Evercore Inc. will not be deemed to be an investment company under the 1940 Act. However, if anything were to happen which would cause Evercore Inc. to be deemed to be an investment company under the 1940 Act, requirements imposed by the 1940 Act, including limitations on our capital structure, ability to transact business with affiliates and ability to compensate key employees, could make it impractical for us to continue our business as currently conducted, impair the agreements and arrangements between and among Evercore Inc., Evercore LP or our Senior Managing Directors, or any combination thereof and materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our Senior Managing Directors own shares of our Class A common stock and our Class B common stock. Our certificate of incorporation provides that the holders of the shares of our Class B common stock are entitled to a number of votes that is determined pursuant to a formula that relates to the number of LP Units held by such holders. Each holder of Class B common stock is entitled, without regard to the number of shares of Class B common stock held by such holder, to one vote for each partnership unit in Evercore LP held by such holder. Our Senior Managing Directors, and certain trusts benefiting their families, collectively have a significant portion of the voting power in Evercore Inc. As a result, our Senior Managing Directors have the ability to exercise influence over the election of the members of our board of directors and, therefore, influence over our management and affairs, including determinations with respect to acquisitions, dispositions, borrowings, issuances of common stock or other securities, and the declaration and payment of dividends. In addition, they are able to exercise influence over the outcome of all matters requiring stockholder approval. This concentration of ownership could deprive our other Class A stockholders of an opportunity to receive a premium for their common stock as part of a sale of our company and might ultimately affect the market price of our Class A common stock.

The market price of our Class A common stock could decline as a result of sales of a large number of shares of Class A common stock in the market or the perception that such sales could occur. These sales, or the possibility that these sales may occur, might make it more difficult for us to sell equity securities at a time and at a price that we deem appropriate.

Further, we have historically repurchased a significant number of shares of our Class A common stock in the open market. If we were to cease or were unable to repurchase shares of Class A common stock, or choose to allocate available capital to the repayment of borrowings or other expenditures, the number of shares outstanding would increase over time, diluting the ownership of existing stockholders.

As of December 31, 2019, we had a total of 39,176,010 shares of our Class A common stock outstanding. In addition, our current and former Senior Managing Directors own an aggregate of 2,552,531 Class A LP Units, which were all fully vested as of December 31, 2019. Further, as of December 31, 2019, there were 2,742,842 vested Class E limited partnership units of Evercore LP ("Class E LP Units") and 581,978 vested and unvested Class J limited partnership units of Evercore LP ("Class J LP Units") outstanding, which convert into Class E LP Units. In addition, 400,000 unvested Class I-P units of Evercore LP ("Class I-P Units") which convert into Class I limited partnership units of Evercore LP ("Class I LP Units") based on the achievement of certain market and service conditions, and 283,992 unvested Class K-P units of Evercore LP ("Class K-P Units"), which convert into Class K limited partnership units of Evercore LP ("Class K LP Units") based on the achievement of certain defined benchmark results, were outstanding as of December 31, 2019. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation allows the exchange of Class A, Class E, Class I and Class K LP Units (other than those held by us) for shares of our Class A common stock on a one-for-one basis, subject to customary conversion rate adjustments for stock splits, stock dividends and reclassifications. The shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exchange of the partnership units that are held by our Senior Managing Directors and certain other employees of the Company are eligible for resale from time to time, subject to certain contractual and Securities Act restrictions.

As of February 18, 2020, we had a total of 46,967,003 shares of Class A common stock outstanding and units which were convertible, or potentially convertible, into Class A common stock. This is comprised of 40,641,068 shares of our Class A common stock outstanding, 2,552,531 Class A LP Units, 3,089,412 Class E LP Units, 400,000 Class I-P Units and 283,992 Class K-P Units.

Further, as part of annual bonuses and incentive compensation, we award restricted stock units ("RSUs") to employees, as well as to new hires. As of December 31, 2019, 6,022,320 RSUs issued pursuant to the Amended and Restated 2016 Evercore Inc. Stock Incentive Plan (the "2016 Plan") and the Amended and Restated 2006 Evercore Inc. Stock Incentive Plan were outstanding. Of these RSUs, 82,375 were fully vested and 5,939,945 were unvested. Each RSU represents the holder's right to receive one share of our Class A common stock following the applicable vesting date. Should we issue RSUs in excess of the amount remaining as authorized for issuance under the Evercore Inc. 2016 Stock Incentive Plan, these awards would be accounted for as liability awards, with changes in the fair value of these awards reflected as compensation expense until authorization is obtained.

Some of our Senior Managing Directors are parties to registration rights agreements with us. Under these agreements, these persons have the ability to cause us to register the shares of our Class A common stock they could acquire.

Securities markets worldwide experience significant price and volume fluctuations. This market volatility, as well as general economic, market or political conditions, could reduce the market price of our Class A common stock in spite of our operating performance. In addition, our operating results could be below the expectations of public market analysts and investors, and in response, the market price of our Class A common stock could decrease significantly.

Our certificate of incorporation and by-laws may discourage, delay or prevent a merger or acquisition that a stockholder may consider favorable by permitting our board of directors to issue one or more series of preferred stock, requiring advance notice for stockholder proposals and nominations and placing limitations on convening stockholder meetings. In addition, we are subject to provisions of the Delaware General Corporation Law that restrict certain business combinations with interested stockholders. These provisions may also discourage acquisition proposals or delay or prevent a change in control, which could harm our stock price.

Beginning on or about November 16, 2016, several putative securities class action complaints were filed against Adeptus Health Inc. ("Adeptus") and certain others, including EGL as underwriter, in connection with Adeptus’ June 2014 initial public offering and May 2015, July 2015, and June 2016 secondary public offerings. The cases were consolidated in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas where a consolidated complaint was filed asserting, in part, that the offering materials issued in connection with the four public offerings violated the U.S. Securities Act of 1933 by containing alleged misstatements and omissions. On April 19, 2017, Adeptus filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and was subsequently removed as a defendant. On November 21, 2017, the plaintiffs filed a consolidated complaint, and the defendants filed motions to dismiss on February 5, 2018. On September 12, 2018, the defendants' motions to dismiss were granted as to the claims relating to the initial public offering and the May 2015 secondary public offering, but denied as to the claims relating to the July 2015 and June 2016 secondary public offerings. EGL underwrote approximately 293,250 shares of common stock in the July 2015 secondary public offering, representing an aggregate offering price of approximately $30.8 million, but did not underwrite any shares in the June 2016 secondary public offering. On September 25, 2018, the plaintiffs filed an amended complaint relating only to the July 2015 and June 2016 secondary public offerings. On December 7, 2018, the plaintiffs filed a motion for class certification, and the defendants filed briefs in opposition. On February 16, 2019, the plaintiffs filed a second amended complaint after having been granted leave to amend by the court. On March 4, 2019, the defendants filed a motion to dismiss as to the second amended complaint. On January 9, 2020, the Court granted preliminary approval of a settlement among the parties, including the underwriters, and scheduled a final hearing for May 20, 2020. The settlement amount attributed to the Company is not material to the Company.

The Company paid quarterly cash dividends of $0.58 per share of Class A common stock for the quarters ended December 31, 2019, September 30, 2019 and June 30, 2019, $0.50 per share for the quarters ended March 31, 2019, December 31, 2018, September 30, 2018 and June 30, 2018 and $0.40 per share for the quarter ended March 31, 2018.

We pay dividend equivalents, in the form of unvested RSU awards or deferred cash dividends, concurrently with the payment of dividends to the holders of Class A common shares, on all unvested RSU grants awarded in conjunction with annual bonuses and new hire awards. The dividend equivalents have the same vesting and delivery terms as the underlying RSU award.

The declaration and payment of any future dividends will be at the sole discretion of our board of directors. Our board of directors will take into account: general economic and business conditions; our financial condition and operating results; our available cash and current and anticipated cash needs; capital requirements; contractual, legal, tax and regulatory restrictions and implications on the payment of dividends by us to our stockholders or by our subsidiaries (including Evercore LP) to us; and such other factors as our board of directors may deem relevant.

We are a holding company and have no material assets other than our ownership of partnership units in Evercore LP. We intend to cause Evercore LP to make distributions to us in an amount sufficient to cover dividends, if any, declared by us and tax distributions. If Evercore LP makes such distributions, the limited partners of Evercore LP will be entitled to receive equivalent distributions from Evercore LP on their partnership units.

None

Total revenues reflect revenues from our Investment Banking and Investment Management business segments that include fees for services, transaction-related client reimbursements plus other revenue. Net revenues reflect total revenues less interest expense.

Revenue trends in our advisory business generally are correlated to the volume of M&A activity and/or restructuring activity, which tends to be counter-cyclical to M&A. However, deviations from this trend can occur in any given year or quarter for a number of reasons. For example, changes in our market share or the ability of our clients to close certain large transactions can cause our revenue results to diverge from the level of overall M&A or restructuring activity. Revenue trends in our equities business are correlated to market volumes, which generally decrease in periods of low market volatility or unfavorable market or economic conditions. Revenue trends in our equities business may also be impacted by new regulation, such as MiFID II, which could impact the demand for our research and trading services from EU investors, as well as the manner in which institutional clients pay for research, including paying for research in cash rather than through trading commissions.

Management fees for third party clients generally represent a percentage of AUM. Fiduciary and consulting fees, which are generally a function of the size and complexity of each engagement, are individually negotiated. In 2017, we completed the sale of the Institutional Trust and Independent Fiduciary business of ETC. We record performance fees upon the earlier of the termination of the investment fund or when the likelihood of clawback is mathematically improbable. Portfolio company fees include monitoring, director and transaction fees associated with services provided to the portfolio companies of the private equity funds we hold interests in. Gains and losses include both realized and unrealized gains and losses on principal investments, including those arising from our equity interest in investment partnerships.

Other Revenue also includes interest income and income (losses) earned on investment securities, including our investment funds which are used as an economic hedge against our deferred cash compensation program, certificates of deposit, cash and cash equivalents and on our debt security investment in G5 Holdings S.A. ("G5"), as well as adjustments to amounts due pursuant to our tax receivable agreement, subsequent to its initial establishment, related to changes in enacted tax rates, and gains (losses) resulting from foreign currency fluctuations, principal trading and realized and unrealized gains and losses on interests in private equity funds which we do not manage.

We maintain compensation programs, including base salary, cash, deferred cash and equity bonus awards and benefits programs and manage compensation to estimates of competitive levels based on market conditions and performance. Our level of compensation, including deferred compensation, reflects our plan to maintain competitive compensation levels to retain key personnel, and it reflects the impact of newly-hired senior professionals, including related grants of equity awards which are generally valued at their grant date.

Increasing the number of high-caliber, experienced senior level employees is critical to our growth efforts. In our advisory businesses, these hires generally do not begin to generate significant revenue in the year they are hired.

Our annual compensation program includes share-based compensation awards and deferred cash awards as a component of the annual bonus awards for certain employees. These awards are generally subject to annual vesting requirements over a four-year period beginning at the date of grant, which occurs in the first quarter of each year; accordingly, the expense is generally amortized over the stated vesting period, subject to retirement eligibility. With respect to annual awards, our retirement eligibility criteria generally stipulates that if an employee has at least five years of continuous service, is at least 55 years of age and has a combined age and years of service of at least 65 years, the employee is eligible for retirement. Beginning in 2019, we implemented additional retirement eligibility qualifying criteria, for awards issued in 2019 and after, that stipulates if an employee has at least 10 years of continuous service and is at least 60 years of age, the employee is also eligible for retirement. Retirement eligibility allows for continued vesting of awards after employees depart from the Company, provided they give the minimum advance notice, which is generally six months to one year.

We estimate forfeitures in the aggregate compensation cost to be amortized over the requisite service period of the awards. We periodically monitor our estimated forfeiture rate and adjust our assumptions to the actual occurrence of forfeited awards. A change in estimated forfeitures is recognized through a cumulative adjustment in the period of the change. 

Our Long-term Incentive Plan provides for incentive compensation awards to Advisory Senior Managing Directors, excluding executive officers, who exceed defined benchmark results over four-year performance periods beginning January 1, 2013 (the "2013 Long-term Incentive Plan") and January 1, 2017 (the "2017 Long-term Incentive Plan"). The 2013 Long-term Incentive Plan was paid in cash in installments in 2017, 2018 and the first quarter of 2019. The 2017 Long-term Incentive Plan is due to be paid, in cash or Class A Shares, at our discretion, in three equal installments in the first quarter of 2021, 2022 and 2023, subject to employment at the time of payment. These awards are subject to retirement eligibility requirements after the performance criteria has been achieved. We periodically assess the probability of the benchmarks being achieved and expense the probable payout over the requisite service period of the award.

From time to time, we also grant performance awards to certain individuals which include both performance and service based vesting requirements. See Note 19 to our consolidated financial statements for further information.

We believe that the ratio of Employee Compensation and Benefits Expense to Net Revenues is an important measure to assess the annual cost of compensation and provides a meaningful basis for comparison of compensation and benefits expense between present, historical and future years.

Other Expenses include the following:

Our share of the income (loss) from our equity interests in ABS, Atalanta Sosnoff, Luminis and G5 (through December 31, 2017, the date we exchanged all of our outstanding equity interests for debentures of G5) are included within Income from Equity Method Investments, as a component of Income Before Income Taxes, on the Consolidated Statements of Operations.

We record noncontrolling interest relating to the ownership interests of certain of our current and former Senior Managing Directors and other officers and their estate planning vehicles in Evercore LP, as well as the portions of our operating subsidiaries not owned by Evercore. As described in Note 17 to our consolidated financial statements herein, Evercore Inc. is the sole general partner of Evercore LP and has a majority economic interest in Evercore LP. As a result, Evercore Inc. consolidates Evercore LP and records a noncontrolling interest for the economic interest in Evercore LP held by the limited partners.

We generally allocate net income or loss to participating noncontrolling interests held at Evercore LP and at the operating entity level, where required, by multiplying the relative ownership interest of the noncontrolling interest holders for the period by

During 2018, certain balances for prior periods were reclassified to conform to their current presentation. We disaggregated "Investment Banking Revenue" into "Advisory Fees," "Underwriting Fees" and "Commissions and Related Fees" and renamed "Investment Management Revenue" to "Asset Management and Administration Fees," which includes management fees from our wealth management and institutional asset management businesses.

In determining the fair value of this reporting unit, we utilized a discounted cash flow methodology based on the adjusted cash flows from operations. The discounted cash flow methodology began with the forecasted cash flows of the reporting unit and applied a discount rate of approximately17%, which reflected the weighted average cost of capital adjusted for the risks inherent in the future cash flows. The forecast inherent in the valuation assumes a compound annual growth rate in revenues of 3%.

As a result of the above analysis, we determined that the fair value of the Institutional Asset Management reporting unit was less than its carrying value as of November 30, 2019. We recorded a goodwill impairment charge of $0.8 million in the Investment Management segment, which is included within Special Charges on the Consolidated Statement of Operations for the year ended December 31, 2019. This charge resulted in a decrease of $0.5 million to Net Income Attributable to Evercore Inc. (after adjustments for noncontrolling interest and income taxes) for the year ended December 31, 2019.

We entered into an agreement to sell the trust business of ECB (the "ECB Trust Business"), which is a part of our Investment Management segment. Completion of this transaction is expected to occur in 2020. As of December 31, 2019, the ECB Trust Business includes $0.5 million of goodwill, representing an allocation of goodwill based on the relative fair value of the business being sold to the total fair value of the Institutional Asset Management reporting unit.

In accordance with ASC 350, we performed an impairment assessment of the goodwill remaining in the Institutional Asset Management reporting unit following the classification of the ECB Trust Business as Held for Sale in December 2019. In determining the fair value of this reporting unit, we utilized a discounted cash flow methodology based on the adjusted cash flows from operations. The discounted cash flow methodology began with the forecasted cash flows of the reporting unit and applied a discount rate of approximately 17%, which reflected the weighted average cost of capital adjusted for the risks inherent in the future cash flows. The forecast inherent in the valuation assumes a compound annual growth rate in revenues of 3%.

As a result of the above analysis, we determined that the fair value of the remaining business in the Institutional Asset Management reporting unit was less than its carrying value. Accordingly, we recorded a goodwill impairment charge of $2.1 million in the Investment Management segment, which is included within Special Charges on the Consolidated Statement of Operations for the year ended December 31, 2019. This charge resulted in a decrease of $1.4 million to Net Income Attributable to Evercore Inc. (after adjustments for noncontrolling interest and income taxes) for the year ended December 31, 2019.

The following table summarizes the operating results of the Investment Management segment.

Our operating cash flows are primarily influenced by the timing and receipt of investment banking and investment management fees, and the payment of operating expenses, including incentive compensation to our employees and interest expense on our repurchase agreements, Notes Payable, subordinated borrowings and lines of credit, and the payment of income taxes. Investment Banking advisory fees are generally collected within 90 days of billing. However, placement fees may be collected within 180 days of billing, with fees related to private funds capital raising being collected in a period exceeding one year. Commissions earned from our agency trading activities are generally received from our clearing broker within 11 days. Fees from our Wealth Management and Institutional Asset Management businesses are generally billed and collected within 90 days. We traditionally pay a substantial portion of incentive compensation to personnel in the Investment Banking business and to executive officers during the first three months of each calendar year with respect to the prior year's results. Likewise, payments to fund investments related to hedging our deferred cash compensation plans are generally funded in the first three months of each calendar year. Our investing and financing cash flows are primarily influenced by activities to invest our cash in highly liquid securities or bank certificates of deposit, deploy capital to fund investments and acquisitions, raise capital through the issuance of stock or debt, repurchase of outstanding Class A Shares, and/or noncontrolling interest in Evercore LP, as well as our other subsidiaries, payment of dividends and other periodic distributions to our stakeholders. We generally make dividend payments and other distributions on a quarterly basis. We periodically draw down on our lines of credit to balance the timing of our operating, investing and financing cash flow needs. A summary of our operating, investing and financing cash flows is as follows:

Our current assets include Cash and Cash Equivalents, Investment Securities and Certificates of Deposit, Accounts Receivable and contract assets, included in Other Current Assets, relating to Investment Banking and Investment Management revenues. Our current liabilities include accrued expenses, accrued liabilities related to improvements in our leased facilities, accrued employee compensation and short-term borrowings. We traditionally have made payments for employee bonus awards and year-end distributions to partners in the first quarter of the year with respect to the prior year's results. In addition, payments in respect of deferred cash compensation arrangements and related investments are also made in the first quarter. From time to time, advances and/or commitments may also be granted to new employees at or near the date they begin employment, or to existing employees for the purpose of incentive or retention. Cash distributions related to partnership tax allocations are made to the partners of Evercore LP and certain other entities in accordance with our corporate estimated payment calendar; these payments are made prior to the end of each calendar quarter. In addition, dividends on Class A Shares, and related distributions to partners of Evercore LP, are paid when and if declared by the Board of Directors, which is generally quarterly.

We regularly monitor our liquidity position, including cash, other significant working capital, current assets and liabilities, long-term liabilities, lease commitments and related fixed assets, principal investment commitments related to our Investment Management business, dividends on Class A Shares, partnership distributions and other capital transactions, as well as other matters relating to liquidity and compliance with regulatory requirements. Our liquidity is highly dependent on our revenue stream from our operations, principally from our Investment Banking business, which is a function of closing advisory transactions and earning success fees, the timing and realization of which is irregular and dependent upon factors that are not subject to our control. Our revenue stream funds the payment of our expenses, including annual bonus payments, a portion of which are guaranteed, deferred compensation arrangements, interest expense on our repurchase agreements, Notes Payable, lines of credit and other financing arrangements and income taxes. Payments made for income taxes may be reduced by deductions taken for the increase in tax basis of our investment in Evercore LP. Certain of these tax deductions, when realized, require payment under our long-term liability, Amounts Due Pursuant to Tax Receivable Agreements. The value of these future deductions and amounts pursuant to the Tax Receivable Agreement were reduced upon the enactment of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of December 22, 2017. We intend to fund these payments from cash and cash equivalents on hand, principally derived from cash flows from operations. These tax deductions, when realized, will result in cash otherwise required to satisfy tax obligations becoming available for other purposes. Our Management Committee meets regularly to monitor our liquidity and cash positions against our short and long-term obligations, as well as our capital requirements and commitments. The result of this review contributes to management's recommendation to the Board of Directors as to the level of quarterly dividend payments, if any.

As a financial services firm, our businesses are materially affected by conditions in the global financial markets and economic conditions throughout the world. Revenue generated by our advisory activities is related to the number and value of the transactions in which we are involved. In addition, revenue related to our equities business is driven by market volumes and institutional investor trends, such as the trend to passive investment strategies. During periods of unfavorable market or economic conditions, the number and value of M&A transactions, as well as market volumes in equities, generally decrease, and they generally increase during periods of favorable market or economic conditions. Restructuring activity generally is counter-cyclical to M&A activity. In addition, during periods of unfavorable market conditions our Investment Management business may be impacted by reduced equity valuations and generate relatively lower revenue because fees we receive, either directly or through our affiliates, typically are in part based on the market value of underlying publicly-traded securities. Our profitability may also be adversely affected by our fixed costs and the possibility that we would be unable to scale back other costs within a time frame and in an amount sufficient to match any decreases in revenue relating to changes in market and economic conditions. Likewise, our liquidity may be adversely impacted by our contractual obligations, including lease obligations. Reduced equity valuations resulting from future adverse economic events and/or market conditions may impact our performance and may result in future net redemptions of AUM from our clients, which would generally result in lower revenues and cash flows. These adverse conditions could also have an impact on our goodwill impairment assessment, which is done annually, as of November 30th, or more frequently if circumstances indicate impairment may have occurred.

Changes in regulation, market structure or business activity arising from the U.K.'s implementation of its separation from the European Union may have a negative impact on our business operations in the U.K., and globally, over the intermediate term. We will continue to monitor and manage the potential implications of the separation, including assessing opportunities that may arise, as the potential impact on the U.K. and European economy becomes more evident.

We assess our equity method investments for impairment annually, or more frequently if circumstances indicate impairment may have occurred. These circumstances could include unfavorable market conditions or the loss of key personnel of the investee.

For a further discussion of risks related to our business, refer to "Risk Factors" elsewhere in this Form 10-K.

On October 23, 2017, our Board of Directors authorized (in addition to the net settlement of equity awards) the repurchase of Class A Shares and/or LP Units so that from that date forward, we are able to repurchase an aggregate of the lesser of $750.0 million worth of Class A Shares and/or LP Units and 8.5 million Class A Shares and/or LP Units. Under this share repurchase program, shares may be repurchased from time to time in open market transactions, in privately-negotiated transactions or otherwise. The timing and the actual amount of shares repurchased will depend on a variety of factors, including legal requirements, price, economic and market conditions and the objective to reduce the dilutive effect of equity awards granted as compensation to employees. This program may be suspended or discontinued at any time and does not have a specified expiration date. During 2019, we repurchased 2,360,017 Class A Shares, at an average cost per share of $80.69, for $190.4 million pursuant to our repurchase program.

In addition, periodically, we buy shares into treasury from our employees in order to allow them to satisfy their minimum tax requirements for share deliveries under our share equity plan. During 2019, we repurchased 1,039,210 Class A Shares, at an average cost per share of $89.15 for $92.7 million primarily related to minimum tax withholding requirements of share deliveries.

The aggregate 3,399,227 Class A Shares repurchased during 2019, were acquired for aggregate purchase consideration of $283.1 million, at an average cost per share of $83.28.

On May 31, 2019, we purchased, at fair value, the remaining 10% of the Private Capital Advisory L.P. Common Interests for $28.4 million. On May 31, 2019, we purchased, at fair value, an additional 17% of the EWM Class A Units for $24.5 million (in cash of $21.8 million and the issuance of 31,383 Class A LP Units having a fair value of $2.7 million). On March 29, 2018, we purchased, at fair value, an additional 15% of the Private Capital Advisory L.P. Common Interests for $25.5 million. On March 3, 2017, we purchased, at fair value, an additional 13% of the Private Capital Advisory L.P. Common Interests for $7.1 million, and on December 11, 2017, we purchased, at fair value, an additional 1% of the Private Capital Advisory L.P. Common Interests for $1.4 million.

On March 30, 2016, we issued an aggregate $170.0 million of senior notes, including: $38.0 million aggregate principal amount of our 4.88% Series A senior notes due 2021 (the "Series A Notes"), $67.0 million aggregate principal amount of our 5.23% Series B senior notes due 2023 (the "Series B Notes"), $48.0 million aggregate principal amount of our 5.48% Series C senior notes due 2026 (the "Series C Notes") and $17.0 million aggregate principal amount of our 5.58% Series D senior notes due 2028 (the "Series D Notes" and together with the Series A Notes, the Series B Notes and the Series C Notes, the "2016 Private Placement Notes"), pursuant to the 2016 Note Purchase Agreement (the "2016 Note Purchase Agreement") dated as of March 30, 2016, among the Company and the purchasers party thereto in a private placement exempt from registration under the Securities Act of 1933.

Interest on the 2016 Private Placement Notes is payable semi-annually and the 2016 Private Placement Notes are guaranteed by certain of our domestic subsidiaries. We may, at our option, prepay all, or from time to time any part of, the 2016 Private Placement Notes (without regard to Series), in an amount not less than 5% of the aggregate principal amount of the 2016 Private Placement Notes then outstanding at 100% of the principal amount thereof plus an applicable "make-whole amount." Upon the occurrence of a change of control, the holders of the 2016 Private Placement Notes will have the right to require us to prepay the entire unpaid principal amounts held by each holder of the 2016 Private Placement Notes plus accrued and unpaid interest to the prepayment date. The 2016 Note Purchase Agreement contains customary covenants, including financial covenants requiring compliance with a maximum leverage ratio, a minimum tangible net worth and a minimum interest coverage ratio, and customary events of default. As of December 31, 2019, we were in compliance with all of these covenants.

On August 1, 2019, we issued $175.0 million and £25.0 million of senior unsecured notes through private placement. These notes reflect a weighted average life of 12 years and a weighted average stated interest rate of 4.26%. These notes include: $75.0 million aggregate principal amount of our 4.34% Series E senior notes due 2029 (the "Series E Notes"), $60.0 million aggregate principal amount of our 4.44% Series F senior notes due 2031 (the "Series F Notes"), $40.0 million aggregate principal amount of our 4.54% Series G senior notes due 2033 (the "Series G Notes") and £25.0 million aggregate principal amount of our 3.33% Series H senior notes due 2033 (the "Series H Notes" and together with the Series E Notes, the Series F Notes and the Series G Notes, the "2019 Private Placement Notes"), each of which were issued pursuant to the 2019 Note Purchase Agreement (the "2019 Note Purchase Agreement"), among the Company and the purchasers party thereto in a private placement exempt from registration under the Securities Act of 1933.

We have made certain capital commitments with respect to our investment activities, as well as commitments related to contingent consideration from our acquisitions, which are included in the Contractual Obligations section below.

Pursuant to deferred compensation and deferred consideration arrangements, we are obligated to make cash payments in future periods. Further, we make investments to hedge the economic risk of the return on deferred compensation. For further information see Notes 8 and 19 to our consolidated financial statements.

Certain of our subsidiaries are regulated entities and are subject to capital requirements. For further information see Note 21 to our consolidated financial statements.

On July 1, 2018, we entered into a new lease agreement for office space at our headquarters at 55 East 52nd St., New York, New York, and subsequently entered into an amendment to this lease agreement for additional office space, as well as extending our original commitment, on December 6, 2019. We expect to spend approximately $38.1 million, net of a tenant improvement allowance, to improve the premises under this lease over the next twelve months. For further information see Note 10 to our consolidated financial statements.

ECB enters into repurchase agreements with clients seeking overnight money market returns whereby ECB transfers to the clients Mexican government securities in exchange for cash and concurrently agrees to repurchase the securities at a future date for an amount equal to the cash exchanged plus a stipulated premium or interest factor. ECB deploys the cash received from, and acquires the securities deliverable to, clients under these repurchase arrangements by purchasing securities in the open market or by entering into reverse repurchase agreements with unrelated third parties. We account for these repurchase and reverse repurchase agreements as collateralized financing transactions. We record a liability on our Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition in relation to repurchase transactions executed with clients as Securities Sold Under Agreements to Repurchase. We record as assets on our Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition, Financial Instruments Owned and Pledged as Collateral at Fair Value (where we have acquired the securities deliverable to clients under these repurchase arrangements by purchasing securities in the open market) and Securities Purchased Under Agreements to Resell (where we have acquired the securities deliverable to clients under these repurchase agreements by entering into reverse repurchase agreements with unrelated third parties). These Mexican government securities included in Financial Instruments Owned and Pledged as Collateral at Fair Value on the Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition have an estimated average time to maturity of approximately 1.0 year, as of December 31, 2019, and are pledged as collateral against repurchase agreements, which are collateralized financing agreements. Generally, collateral is posted equal to the contract value at inception and is subject to market changes. These repurchase agreements are primarily with institutional customer accounts managed by ECB, generally mature within one business day and permit the counterparty to pledge the securities. Increases and decreases in asset and liability levels related to these transactions are a function of growth in ECB's AUM, as well as clients' investment allocations requiring positioning in repurchase transactions.

ECB has procedures in place to monitor the daily risk limits for positions taken, as well as the credit risk based on the collateral pledged under these agreements against their contract value from inception to maturity date. The daily risk measure is Value at Risk, ("VaR"), which is a statistical measure, at a 98% confidence level, of the potential daily losses from adverse market movements in an ordinary market environment based on a historical simulation using the prior year's historical data. ECB's Risk Management Committee (the "Committee") has established a policy to maintain VaR at levels below 0.1% of the value of the portfolio. If at any point in time the threshold is exceeded, ECB personnel are alerted by an automated interface with ECB's trading systems and begin to make adjustments in the portfolio in order to mitigate the risk and bring the portfolio in compliance. Concurrently, ECB personnel must notify the Committee of the variance and the actions taken to reduce the exposure to loss.

In addition to monitoring VaR, ECB periodically performs discrete stress tests ("Stress Tests") to assure that the level of potential losses that would arise from extreme market movements that may not be anticipated by VaR measures are within acceptable levels. The table below includes a key stress test monitored by the Committee, noted as the sensitivity to a 100 basis point change in interest rates. This analysis assists ECB in understanding the impact of an extreme move in rates, assuring the Collateralized Financing portfolio is structured to maintain risk at an acceptable level, even in extreme circumstances.

The Committee meets monthly to analyze the overall market risk exposure based on positions taken, as well as the credit risk, based on the collateral pledged under these agreements against the contract value from inception to maturity date. In these meetings the Committee evaluates risk from an operating perspective, VaR, and an exceptional perspective, Stress Tests, to determine the appropriate level of risk limits in the current environment.

We periodically assess the collectability or credit quality related to securities purchased under agreements to resell.

On July 1, 2018, we entered into a new lease agreement for office space at our headquarters at 55 East 52nd St., New York, New York. Under the terms of the agreement, we committed to extend the lease term for our current space and add space on up to seven additional floors, three of which commenced as of the lease’s effective date. We anticipate we will take possession of the remainder of these floors over the next four years. On December 6, 2019, the lease was modified to add an additional floor and to extend the lease term for all current and prospective space to end on December 31, 2035. When all floors have commenced, we will have approximately 375,000 square feet of space at this location. For further information see Note 10 to our consolidated financial statements.

We had total commitments (not reflected on our Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition) relating to future capital contributions to private equity funds of $13.8 million and $15.2 million as of December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively. We expect

We do not invest in any off-balance sheet vehicles that provide liquidity, capital resources, market or credit risk support, or engage in any leasing activities that expose us to any liability that is not reflected in our consolidated financial statements.

We, in general, are not a capital-intensive organization and as such, are not subject to significant market or credit risks. Nevertheless, we have established procedures to assess both the market and credit risk, as well as specific investment risk, exchange rate risk and credit risk related to receivables.

We hold equity securities and invest in exchange-traded funds and mutual funds, principally as an economic hedge against our deferred compensation program. As of December 31, 2019, the fair value of our investments with these products, based on closing prices, was $67.0 million.

We estimate that a hypothetical 10% adverse change in the market value of the investments would have resulted in a decrease in pre-tax income of approximately $6.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2019.

See "-Liquidity and Capital Resources" above for a discussion of collateralized financing transactions at ECB.

Through our principal investments in private equity funds and our ability to earn carried interest from these funds, we face exposure to changes in the estimated fair value of the companies in which these funds invest. Valuations and analysis regarding our investments in Trilantic and Glisco are performed by their respective professionals, and thus we are not involved in determining the fair value for the portfolio companies of such funds.

We estimate that a hypothetical 10% adverse change in the value of the private equity funds would have resulted in a decrease in pre-tax income of approximately $4.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2019.

We have foreign operations, through our subsidiaries and affiliates, primarily in Europe, Asia and Mexico, as well as provide services to clients in other jurisdictions, which creates foreign exchange rate risk. We have not entered into any transactions to hedge our exposure to foreign exchange fluctuations in these subsidiaries through the use of derivative instruments or otherwise. An appreciation or depreciation of any of these currencies relative to the U.S. dollar would result in an adverse or beneficial impact to our financial results. A significant portion of our European, Asian and Latin American revenues and expenses have been, and will continue to be, derived from contracts denominated in foreign currencies (i.e. British Pounds sterling, Euros, Mexican pesos, Brazilian real, among others). Historically, the value of these foreign currencies has fluctuated relative to the U.S. dollar. For the year ended December 31, 2019, the net impact of the fluctuation of foreign currencies recorded in Other Comprehensive Income within the Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income was $3.9 million. It is generally not our intention to hedge our foreign currency exposure in these subsidiaries, and we will reevaluate this policy from time to time.

We maintain cash and cash equivalents, as well as certificates of deposit, with financial institutions with high credit ratings. At times, we may maintain deposits in federally insured financial institutions in excess of federally insured ("FDIC") limits or enter into sweep arrangements where banks will periodically transfer a portion of our excess cash position to a money market fund. However, we believe that we are not exposed to significant credit risk due to the financial position of the depository institutions or investment vehicles in which those deposits are held.

Accounts Receivable consists primarily of advisory fees and expense reimbursements billed to our clients. Other Assets includes long-term receivables from fees related to private funds capital raising. Receivables are reported net of any allowance for doubtful accounts. We maintain an allowance for doubtful accounts to provide coverage for probable losses from our customer receivables and derive the estimate through specific identification for the allowance for doubtful accounts and an assessment of the client's creditworthiness. The Investment Banking and Investment Management receivables collection periods generally are within 90 days of invoice, with the exception of placement fees, which are generally collected within 180 days of invoice, and fees related to private funds capital raising, which are collected in a period exceeding one year. The collection period for restructuring transaction receivables may exceed 90 days. We recorded bad debt expense of approximately $10.5 million, $3.4 million and $2.6 million for the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017, respectively.

As of December 31, 2019 and 2018, total receivables recorded in Accounts Receivable amounted to $296.4 million and $309.1 million, respectively, net of an allowance for doubtful accounts, and total receivables recorded in Other Assets amounted to $63.6 million and $60.9 million, respectively.

Other Current Assets and Other Assets include arrangements in which an estimate of variable consideration has been included in the transaction price and thereby recognized as revenue that precedes the contractual due date (contract assets). As of December 31, 2019, total contract assets recorded in Other Current Assets and Other Assets amounted to $31.5 million and $2.5 million, respectively. As of December 31, 2018, total contract assets recorded in Other Current Assets and Other Assets amounted to $2.8 million and $0.5 million, respectively.

With respect to our Investment Securities portfolio, which is comprised primarily of highly-rated corporate and municipal bonds, treasury bills, exchange-traded funds, mutual funds and securities investments, we manage our credit risk exposure by limiting concentration risk and maintaining investment grade credit quality. As of December 31, 2019, we had Investment Securities of $409.2 million, of which 84% were corporate and municipal securities and treasury bills and notes, primarily with S&P ratings ranging from AAA to BB+.

The consolidated financial statements included in this report are prepared in conformity with U.S. GAAP, which requires management to make estimates and assumptions regarding future events that affect the amounts reported in our consolidated financial statements and their notes, including reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenue and expenses, and related disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities. We base these estimates on historical experience and various other assumptions that we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances. Actual results could differ materially from those estimates. We believe that the following discussion addresses our most critical accounting policies, which are those that are most important to the presentation of our financial condition and results of operations and require management's most difficult, subjective and complex judgments.

We earn investment banking fees from clients for providing advisory services on strategic matters, including mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, leveraged buyouts, restructurings, activism and defense and similar corporate finance matters. Our Investment Banking services also include services related to securities underwriting, private placement services and commissions for agency-based equity trading services and equity research. Revenue is recognized as we satisfy performance obligations, upon transfer of control of promised services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration we expect to receive in exchange for these services. Our contracts with customers may include promises to transfer multiple services to a customer. Determining whether services are considered distinct performance obligations that should be accounted for separately versus together may require significant judgment. For performance obligations satisfied over time, determining a measure of progress requires us to make significant judgments that affect the timing of revenue recognized. For certain advisory services, we have concluded that performance obligations are satisfied over time. This is based on the premise that we transfer control of services and the client simultaneously receives benefits from these services over the course of an engagement. For performance obligations satisfied at a point in time, determining when control transfers requires us to make significant judgments that affect the timing of when revenue is recognized. We record Investment Banking Revenue on the Consolidated Statements of Operations for the following:

In general, advisory fees are paid at the time we sign an engagement letter, during the course of the engagement or when an engagement is completed. In some circumstances, and as a function of the terms of an engagement letter, we may receive fixed retainer fees for financial advisory services concurrent with, or soon after, the execution of the engagement letter or over the course of the engagement, where the engagement letter will specify a future service period associated with those fees. We may also receive announcement fees upon announcement of a transaction in addition to success fees upon closing of a transaction or another defined outcome, both of which represent variable consideration. This variable consideration will be included in the transaction price, as defined, and recognized as revenue to the extent that it is probable that a significant reversal of revenue will not occur. When assessing probability, we apply careful analysis and judgment to the remaining factors necessary for completion of a transaction, including factors outside of our control. A transaction can fail to be completed for many reasons which are outside of our control, including failure of parties to agree upon final terms, to secure necessary board or shareholder approvals, to secure necessary financing, to achieve necessary regulatory approvals, or due to adverse market conditions. In the case of bankruptcy engagements, fees are subject to approval of the court.

With respect to retainer, announcement and success fees, there are no distinct performance obligations aside from advisory activities, which are generally focused on achieving a milestone (typically, the announcement and/or the closing of a transaction). These advisory services are provided over time throughout the contract period. We recognize revenue when distinct services are performed and when it is probable that a reversal of revenue will not occur, which is generally upon the announcement or closing of a transaction. Accordingly, in any given period, advisory fees recognized for certain transactions may relate to services performed in prior periods. In circumstances in which retainer fees are received in advance of services, these fees are initially recorded as deferred revenue (a contract liability), which is recorded in Other Current Liabilities on the Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition, and subsequently recognized as advisory fee revenue in Advisory Fees on the Consolidated Statements of Operations during the applicable time period within which the service is rendered. Announcement fees for advisory services are recognized upon announcement (the point at which it is determined that the reversal of revenue is not probable) and all other requirements for revenue recognition are satisfied. A portion of the announcement fee may be deferred based on the services remaining to be completed, if any. Success fees for advisory services, such as merger and acquisition advice, are recognized when it is determined that the reversal of revenue is not probable and all other requirements for revenue recognition are satisfied, which is generally at closing of the transaction.

With respect to fairness or valuation opinions, fees are fixed and there is a distinct performance obligation, since the opinion is rendered separate from any other advisory activities. Revenues related to fairness or valuation opinions are recognized at the point in time when the opinion has been rendered and delivered to the client. In the event we were to receive an opinion or success fee in advance of the completion conditions noted above, such fee would initially be recorded as deferred revenue (a contract liability) in Other Current Liabilities on the Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition and subsequently recognized as advisory fee revenue in Advisory Fees on the Consolidated Statements of Operations when the conditions of completion have been satisfied.

Placement fee revenues are attributable to capital raising on both corporations and financial sponsors. We recognize placement fees in accordance with the terms of the engagement letter, which are generally contingent on the achievement of a capital commitment by an investor, at the time of the client's acceptance of capital or capital commitments.

Underwriting fees are attributable to public and private offerings of equity and debt securities and are recognized at the point in time when the offering has been deemed to be completed by the lead manager of the underwriting group. When the offering is completed, the performance obligation has been satisfied and we recognize the applicable management fee, selling concession and underwriting fee. Offering expenses are presented gross in the Consolidated Statements of Operations.

Commissions and Related Fees include commissions received from customers for the execution of agency-based brokerage transactions in listed and over-the-counter equities. The execution of each trade order represents a distinct performance obligation and the transaction price at the point in time of trade order execution is fixed. Trade execution is satisfied at the point in time that the customer has control of the asset and as such, fees are recorded on a trade date basis or, in the case of payments under commission sharing arrangements, when earned. We also earn subscription fees for the sales of research. The delivery of research under subscription arrangements represents a distinct performance obligation that is satisfied over time. The fees are fixed and are recognized over the period in which the performance obligation is satisfied. Cash received before the subscription period ends is initially recorded as deferred revenue (a contract liability) in Other Current Liabilities on the Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition, and is recognized in Commissions and Related Fees on the Consolidated Statements of Operations ratably over the period in which the related services are rendered.

Our Investment Management business generates revenues from the management of client assets and through interests in private equity funds which are not managed by us. Our contracts with customers may include promises to transfer multiple services to a customer. Determining whether services are considered distinct performance obligations that should be accounted for separately versus together may require significant judgment. For performance obligations satisfied over time, determining a measure of progress requires us to make significant judgments that affect the timing of revenue recognized.

Asset management fees for third-party clients are generally based on the value of the assets under management and any performance fees that may be negotiated with the client. The management of asset portfolios represents a distinct performance obligation that is satisfied over time. These fees are generally recognized over the period that the related services are provided and in which the performance obligation is satisfied, based upon the beginning, ending or average value of the assets for the relevant period. Fees paid in advance of services rendered are initially recorded as deferred revenue (a contract liability), which is recorded in Other Current Liabilities on the Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition, and are recognized in Asset Management and Administration Fees on the Consolidated Statements of Operations ratably over the period in which the related service is rendered. Generally, to the extent performance fee arrangements have been negotiated, these fees are earned when the likelihood of clawback is mathematically improbable.

Fees generated for serving as an independent fiduciary and/or trustee are either based on a flat fee, are pre-negotiated with the client or are based on the value of assets under administration. The management of assets under administration represents a distinct performance obligation that is satisfied over time. For ongoing engagements, fees are billed quarterly either in advance or in arrears. Fees paid in advance of services rendered and satisfaction of the performance obligation are initially recorded as deferred revenue (a contract liability) in Other Current Liabilities on the Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition, and are recognized in Asset Management and Administration Fees on the Consolidated Statements of Operations ratably over the period in which the related services are rendered and the performance obligation is satisfied.

Accounts Receivable consists primarily of investment banking fees and expense reimbursements charged to our clients. We record Accounts Receivable, net of any allowance for doubtful accounts, when relevant revenue recognition criteria has been achieved and payment is conditioned on the passage of time. We maintain an allowance for doubtful accounts to provide coverage for estimated losses from our client receivables. We determine the adequacy of the allowance by estimating the probability of loss based on our analysis of the client's creditworthiness and specifically reserve against exposure where we determine the receivables are impaired, which may include situations where a fee is in dispute or litigation has commenced.

The Investment Banking and Investment Management receivables collection periods generally are within 90 days of invoice, with the exception of placement fees, which are generally collected within 180 days of invoice, and fees related to private funds capital raising, which are collected in a period exceeding one year. The collection period for restructuring transaction receivables may exceed 90 days. Receivables that are collected in a period exceeding one year are reflected in Other Assets on the Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition.

We record contract assets within Other Current Assets and Other Assets on the Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition when payment is due from a client conditioned on future performance or the occurrence of other events. We also recognize a contract asset for the incremental costs of obtaining a contract with a customer if the benefit of those costs is expected to be longer than one year. We apply a practical expedient to expense costs to obtain a contract as incurred when the amortization period is one year or less.

The valuation of our investments in securities and of our financial investments in the funds we manage impacts both the carrying value of direct investments and the determination of management and performance fees, including carried interest. Effective January 1, 2008, we adopted ASC 820, which among other things requires enhanced disclosures about financial instruments carried at fair value. See Note 12 to the consolidated financial statements for further information. Level I investments include financial instruments owned and pledged as collateral and readily-marketable equity securities. Level II investments include our investments in corporate and municipal bonds and other debt securities.

Our Financial Instruments Owned and Pledged as Collateral at Fair Value consist principally of foreign government obligations, which are recorded on a trade-date basis and are stated at quoted market values. Related gains and losses are reflected in Other Revenue, Including Interest and Investments, on the Consolidated Statements of Operations. We pledge our Financial Instruments Owned and Pledged as Collateral at Fair Value to collateralize certain financing arrangements which permits the counterparty to pledge the securities.

We adopted ASU 2016-09 effective January 1, 2017. ASU 2016-09 requires that the tax deduction associated with the appreciation in our share price upon vesting of employee share-based awards above the original grant price be reflected in income tax expense. See Note 2 to our consolidated financial statements for further information.

In addition, in order to determine the quarterly tax rate, we are required to estimate full year pre-tax income and the related annual income tax expense in each jurisdiction. Changes in the geographic mix or estimated level of annual pre-tax income can affect our overall effective tax rate. Furthermore, our interpretation of complex tax laws may impact our measurement of current and deferred income taxes.

ASC 740 provides a benefit recognition model with a two-step approach consisting of "more-likely-than-not" recognition criteria, and a measurement attribute that measures the position as the largest amount of tax benefit that is greater than 50% likely of being realized upon ultimate settlement. This standard also requires the recognition of liabilities created by differences between tax positions taken in a tax return and amounts recognized in the financial statements. See Note 22 to our consolidated financial statements herein in regard to the impact of the adoption of this standard on the consolidated financial statements.

The majority of the deferred tax assets relate to the U.S. operations of the Company. The realization of the deferred tax assets is primarily dependent on the amount of the Company's historic and projected future taxable income for its U.S. and foreign operations. In 2019 and 2018, we performed an assessment of the ultimate realization of our deferred tax assets and determined that the Company should have sufficient future taxable income in the normal course of business to fully realize the portion of the deferred tax assets associated with its U.S. operations and management has concluded that it is more-likely-than-not the deferred tax assets will be realized. We also concluded that the net deferred tax assets of certain foreign subsidiaries required a valuation allowance. We intend to maintain a valuation allowance until sufficient positive evidence exists to support its reversal. See Note 22 to our consolidated financial statements for further information.

The Company estimates that Evercore Inc. must generate approximately $1 billion of future taxable income to realize the gross deferred tax asset balance, including the valuation allowance, of approximately $287 million. The deferred tax balance is expected to reverse primarily over a period ranging from 5 to 15 taxable years. The Company evaluated Evercore Inc.'s historical U.S. taxable income, which has averaged approximately $197 million per year over the past 7 years, as well as the anticipated taxable income of approximately $460 million in 2019, and taxable income in the future, which indicates sufficient taxable income to support the realization of these deferred tax assets. To the extent enough taxable income is not generated in the 15 year estimated reversal period, the Company can carry forward net operating losses indefinitely, but limited to 80% of taxable income for that year under the enactment of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act on December 22, 2017.

We test goodwill for impairment at the reporting unit level. In determining the fair value for each reporting unit, we utilize either a market multiple approach and/or a discounted cash flow methodology based on the adjusted cash flows from operations. The market multiple approach includes applying the average earnings multiples of comparable public companies for their respective reporting segment multiplied by the forecasted earnings of the respective reporting unit to yield an estimate of fair value. The discounted cash flow methodology begins with the adjusted cash flows from each of the reporting units and uses a discount rate that reflects the weighted average cost of capital adjusted for the risks inherent in the future cash flows.

In addition to goodwill and intangible assets, we annually assess our equity method investments for impairment (or more frequently if circumstances indicate impairment may have occurred) per ASC 323-10.

We recorded impairment charges of $2.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2019 related to the goodwill in our Institutional Asset Management reporting unit, which resulted in a decrease of $1.9 million to Net Income Attributable to Evercore Inc. (after adjustments for noncontrolling interest and income taxes). We concluded there was no impairment of intangible assets or equity method investments during the year ended December 31, 2019. See Note 5 to our consolidated financial statements for further information.

We concluded there was no impairment of goodwill, intangible assets or equity method investments during the year ended December 31, 2018.

We recorded an impairment charge of $14.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2017 related to our former equity method investment in G5. We also recorded a goodwill impairment charge of $7.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2017 related to the goodwill in our Institutional Asset Management reporting unit, which resulted in a decrease of $3.7 million to Net Income Attributable to Evercore Inc. (after adjustments for noncontrolling interest and income taxes). We concluded there was no impairment of intangible assets or our other equity method investments during the year ended December 31, 2017. See Notes 5 and 11 to our consolidated financial statements for further information.