the fourth and second quarter , respectively ; and a $ 109 million ( $ 68 million after-tax ) charge related to the renewal of our partnership with delta air lines ( delta ) in the fourth quarter . 2013 results included : a $ 66 million ( $ 41 million after-tax ) charge related to a proposed merchant litigation settlement in the fourth quarter . in addition , effective december 1 , 2015 , we transferred the card member loans and receivables related to our cobrand partnerships with costco wholesale corporation ( costco ) in the united states and jetblue airways corporation ( jetblue ) ( the hfs portfolios ) to card member loans and receivables held for sale ( hfs ) on the consolidated balance sheets . refer to note 2 to the consolidated financial statements for additional information . non-gaap measures we prepare our consolidated financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the united states of america ( gaap ) . however , certain information included within this report constitutes non-gaap financial measures . our calculations of non-gaap financial measures may differ from the calculations of similarly titled measures by other companies . business environment our performance in 2015 reflected both the strength of our business and the headwinds we have been managing throughout the year . results for the year benefited from healthy loan growth , strong card acquisitions , excellent credit performance , disciplined operating expense control and the benefits of our strong capital position . our results were also challenged by several factors . first , the cumulative impact from the initial increased costs associated with early renewals of certain of our cobrand relationships and the end of our relationship with costco in canada negatively impacted our results . second , the u.s. dollar continued to strengthen as the year progressed . third , our decision to increase spending on growth initiatives for the year , consistent with the elevated levels of 2014 , further pressured our 2015 earnings . fourth , the economic , regulatory , and competitive environments all became even more challenging as the year progressed . the combination of these factors resulted in billings and revenue growth rates that were fairly steady throughout the year . billings did grow in 2015 , although growth rates decelerated modestly during the second half of the year . international billed business continued to be strong versus the prior year after excluding canada ( due to the termination of our relationship with costco canada last year ) and adjusting for foreign currency exchange rates . in the united states , we saw softening in billings on the costco cobrand card , where volumes dropped versus the prior year . lower gas prices also continued to be a drag on billings . gcs billed business growth continued to slow due , in part , to lower airline volumes and a generally cautious corporate spending environment . our billings growth rates during the second half of 2016 will be impacted by the end of our relationship with costco in the united states , which is expected to occur around mid-year . for the full year , discount revenue was down slightly versus the prior year driven in part by a decline in our discount rate due primarily to the continued rollout of optblue , and we anticipate that the discount rate will further decline by a greater amount during 2016 , due to the continued expansion of optblue , a greater impact from international regulatory changes , and continued competitive pressures . 52 growth in net interest income remained strong during the year , driven by loan growth . card member loans held for investment were down in 2015 on a reported basis due to the transfer of the costco and jetblue loan portfolios to card member loans and receivables hfs , effective december 1 , 2015. excluding the hfs portfolios from the prior year , worldwide loans increased . we expect to see strong growth in loans held for investment in 2016 , and continue to believe there are opportunities to increase our share of lending without significantly changing our overall risk profile . our credit provision was down versus the prior year , as lending write-off rates remained at lower levels . we expect continued growth in loans will contribute to an increase in provisions ; we also expect to see some upward pressure on our write-off rates , due primarily to the seasoning of loans related to new card members . our capital position allowed us to return over $ 5 billion to our shareholders in the form of dividends and share repurchases , representing approximately 105 percent of total capital generated during the year , reflecting our ongoing commitment to using our capital strength to create value for our shareholders . as mentioned above , we are now reporting the costco portfolio as hfs . we expect the sale to close around mid-year 2016 and that our merchant acceptance agreement will extend through the transaction close . the ultimate gain on sale will be determined based on the assets actually sold , but we currently estimate a gain of approximately $ 1 billion . we have not yet signed a definitive agreement and given that we are still several months away from the close , and the card member borrowing and paydown trends are difficult to predict in this type of transition , the final gain could differ from our estimate . we expect the portfolio sale gain will be partially used to fund spending on growth initiatives throughout 2016 , resulting in some unevenness in our quarterly performance . as of december 31 , 2015 , costco cobrand accounts were responsible for approximately 19 percent of our worldwide card member loans held for investment and hfs ( combined ) and approximately 10 percent of our total cards-in-force . story_separator_special_tag accordingly , the average discount rate for prior periods was also revised , resulting in a reduction of between zero and one basis point in any period from what was originally reported . ( b ) average basic card member spending and average fee per card are computed from proprietary card activities only . average fee per card is computed based on net card fees , including the amortization of deferred direct acquisition costs divided by average worldwide proprietary cards-in-force . the average fee per card , adjusted , which is a non-gaap measure , is computed in the same manner , but excludes amortization of deferred direct acquisition costs . the amount of amortization excluded was $ 283 million , $ 306 million and $ 262 million for the years ended december 31 , 2015 , 2014 and 2013 , respectively . we present the average fee per card , adjusted , because we believe this metric presents a useful indicator of card fee pricing across a range of our proprietary card products . 58 table 6 : selected statistical information replace_table_token_10_th ( a ) the foreign currency adjusted information assumes a constant exchange rate between the periods being compared for purposes of currency translation into u.s. dollars ( i.e . , assumes the foreign exchange rates used to determine results for the current year apply to the corresponding prior year period against which such results are being compared ) . ( b ) captions in the table above not designated as proprietary or gns include both proprietary and gns data . ( c ) included in the gnms segment . ( d ) included in the uscs segment . ( e ) included in the gcs segment . ( f ) included in the ics segment . 59 table 7 : selected statistical information replace_table_token_11_th ( a ) effective december 1 , 2015 , does not reflect the hfs portfolios . ( b ) provisions on principal and fee reserve components on card member receivables and provisions for principal , interest and or fees on card member loans . ( c ) write-offs , less recoveries . ( d ) 2015 includes the impact of the transfer of the hfs receivables portfolio , which was not significant . ( e ) historically , net loss ratio as a % of charge volume and 90 days past billing as a % of receivables were presented for ics . beginning in the first quarter 2014 , as a result of system enhancements , 30 days past due as a % of total , net write-off rate ( principal only ) and net write-off rate ( principal and fees ) have been presented . ( f ) we present a net write-off rate based on principal losses only ( i.e . , excluding interest and or fees ) to be consistent with industry convention . in addition , because we consider uncollectible interest and or fees in our reserves for credit losses , a net write-off rate including principal , interest and or fees is also presented . the twelve months ended december 31 , 2015 reflect the impact of a change in the timing of charge-offs for card member receivables and loans in certain modification programs from 180 days past due to 120 days past due . 60 table 8 : net interest yield on card member loans replace_table_token_12_th ( a ) adjusted net interest income , adjusted average loans , and net interest yield on card member loans are non-gaap measures . refer to glossary of selected terminology for definitions of these terms . we believe adjusted net interest income and adjusted average loans are useful to investors because they are components of net interest yield on card member loans , which provides a measure of profitability of our card member loan portfolio . ( b ) for purposes of the calculation of net interest yield on card member loans , average loans continues to include the hfs loan portfolios . 61 business segment results we consider a combination of factors when evaluating the composition of our reportable operating segments , including the results reviewed by the chief operating decision maker , economic characteristics , products and services offered , classes of customers , product distribution channels , geographic considerations ( primarily united states versus outside the united states ) and regulatory considerations . refer to note 25 of the consolidated financial statements for additional discussion of the products and services by segment . in light of the organizational changes discussed under business ,  our financial disclosures will reflect segment changes starting in the first quarter of 2016. this overview discusses the operating segments used for financial reporting in 2015. results of the business segments generally treat each segment as a stand-alone business . the management reporting process that derives these results allocates revenue and expense using various methodologies as described below . total revenues net of interest expense we allocate discount revenue and certain other revenues among segments using a transfer pricing methodology . within the uscs , ics and gcs segments , discount revenue generally reflects the issuer component of the overall discount revenue generated by each segment 's card members ; within the gnms segment , discount revenue generally reflects the network and acquirer component of the overall discount revenue . net card fees and travel commissions and fees are directly attributable to the segment in which they are reported . interest and fees on loans and certain investment income is directly attributable to the segment in which it is reported . interest expense represents an allocated funding cost based on a combination of segment funding requirements and internal funding rates . provisions for losses the provisions for losses are directly attributable to the segment in which they are reported . expenses marketing and promotion expenses are included in each segment based on actual expenses incurred , with the exception of brand advertising , which

consolidated capital resources and liquidity our balance sheet management objectives are to maintain : a solid and flexible equity capital profile ; a broad , deep and diverse set of funding sources to finance our assets and meet operating requirements ; and liquidity programs that enable us to continuously meet expected future financing obligations and business requirements for at least a 12-month period , even in the event we are unable to continue to raise new funds under our traditional funding programs during a substantial weakening in economic conditions . capital strategy our objective is to retain sufficient levels of capital generated through earnings and other sources to maintain a solid equity capital base and to provide flexibility to support future business growth . we believe capital allocated to growing businesses with a return on risk-adjusted equity in excess of our costs will generate shareholder value . the level and composition of our consolidated capital position are determined through our internal capital adequacy assessment process , which takes into account our business activities , as well as marketplace conditions and requirements or expectations of credit rating agencies , regulators and shareholders , among others . our consolidated capital position is also influenced by subsidiary capital requirements . as a bank holding company , we are also subject to regulatory requirements administered by the u.s. federal banking agencies . the federal reserve has established specific capital adequacy guidelines that involve quantitative measures of assets , liabilities and certain off-balance sheet items .


 Write a concise suspicious activity report of the following text delimited by triple backquotes. Return your response as a formal report which covers the key points highlighting the location,dates,entity names and account holder information in chronological order of the text.
     ```consolidated capital resources and liquidity our balance sheet management objectives are to maintain : a solid and flexible equity capital profile ; a broad , deep and diverse set of funding sources to finance our assets and meet operating requirements ; and liquidity programs that enable us to continuously meet expected future financing obligations and business requirements for at least a 12-month period , even in the event we are unable to continue to raise new funds under our traditional funding programs during a substantial weakening in economic conditions . capital strategy our objective is to retain sufficient levels of capital generated through earnings and other sources to maintain a solid equity capital base and to provide flexibility to support future business growth . we believe capital allocated to growing businesses with a return on risk-adjusted equity in excess of our costs will generate shareholder value . the level and composition of our consolidated capital position are determined through our internal capital adequacy assessment process , which takes into account our business activities , as well as marketplace conditions and requirements or expectations of credit rating agencies , regulators and shareholders , among others . our consolidated capital position is also influenced by subsidiary capital requirements . as a bank holding company , we are also subject to regulatory requirements administered by the u.s. federal banking agencies . the federal reserve has established specific capital adequacy guidelines that involve quantitative measures of assets , liabilities and certain off-balance sheet items .
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 Suspicious Activity Report : the fourth and second quarter , respectively ; and a $ 109 million ( $ 68 million after-tax ) charge related to the renewal of our partnership with delta air lines ( delta ) in the fourth quarter . 2013 results included : a $ 66 million ( $ 41 million after-tax ) charge related to a proposed merchant litigation settlement in the fourth quarter . in addition , effective december 1 , 2015 , we transferred the card member loans and receivables related to our cobrand partnerships with costco wholesale corporation ( costco ) in the united states and jetblue airways corporation ( jetblue ) ( the hfs portfolios ) to card member loans and receivables held for sale ( hfs ) on the consolidated balance sheets . refer to note 2 to the consolidated financial statements for additional information . non-gaap measures we prepare our consolidated financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the united states of america ( gaap ) . however , certain information included within this report constitutes non-gaap financial measures . our calculations of non-gaap financial measures may differ from the calculations of similarly titled measures by other companies . business environment our performance in 2015 reflected both the strength of our business and the headwinds we have been managing throughout the year . results for the year benefited from healthy loan growth , strong card acquisitions , excellent credit performance , disciplined operating expense control and the benefits of our strong capital position . our results were also challenged by several factors . first , the cumulative impact from the initial increased costs associated with early renewals of certain of our cobrand relationships and the end of our relationship with costco in canada negatively impacted our results . second , the u.s. dollar continued to strengthen as the year progressed . third , our decision to increase spending on growth initiatives for the year , consistent with the elevated levels of 2014 , further pressured our 2015 earnings . fourth , the economic , regulatory , and competitive environments all became even more challenging as the year progressed . the combination of these factors resulted in billings and revenue growth rates that were fairly steady throughout the year . billings did grow in 2015 , although growth rates decelerated modestly during the second half of the year . international billed business continued to be strong versus the prior year after excluding canada ( due to the termination of our relationship with costco canada last year ) and adjusting for foreign currency exchange rates . in the united states , we saw softening in billings on the costco cobrand card , where volumes dropped versus the prior year . lower gas prices also continued to be a drag on billings . gcs billed business growth continued to slow due , in part , to lower airline volumes and a generally cautious corporate spending environment . our billings growth rates during the second half of 2016 will be impacted by the end of our relationship with costco in the united states , which is expected to occur around mid-year . for the full year , discount revenue was down slightly versus the prior year driven in part by a decline in our discount rate due primarily to the continued rollout of optblue , and we anticipate that the discount rate will further decline by a greater amount during 2016 , due to the continued expansion of optblue , a greater impact from international regulatory changes , and continued competitive pressures . 52 growth in net interest income remained strong during the year , driven by loan growth . card member loans held for investment were down in 2015 on a reported basis due to the transfer of the costco and jetblue loan portfolios to card member loans and receivables hfs , effective december 1 , 2015. excluding the hfs portfolios from the prior year , worldwide loans increased . we expect to see strong growth in loans held for investment in 2016 , and continue to believe there are opportunities to increase our share of lending without significantly changing our overall risk profile . our credit provision was down versus the prior year , as lending write-off rates remained at lower levels . we expect continued growth in loans will contribute to an increase in provisions ; we also expect to see some upward pressure on our write-off rates , due primarily to the seasoning of loans related to new card members . our capital position allowed us to return over $ 5 billion to our shareholders in the form of dividends and share repurchases , representing approximately 105 percent of total capital generated during the year , reflecting our ongoing commitment to using our capital strength to create value for our shareholders . as mentioned above , we are now reporting the costco portfolio as hfs . we expect the sale to close around mid-year 2016 and that our merchant acceptance agreement will extend through the transaction close . the ultimate gain on sale will be determined based on the assets actually sold , but we currently estimate a gain of approximately $ 1 billion . we have not yet signed a definitive agreement and given that we are still several months away from the close , and the card member borrowing and paydown trends are difficult to predict in this type of transition , the final gain could differ from our estimate . we expect the portfolio sale gain will be partially used to fund spending on growth initiatives throughout 2016 , resulting in some unevenness in our quarterly performance . as of december 31 , 2015 , costco cobrand accounts were responsible for approximately 19 percent of our worldwide card member loans held for investment and hfs ( combined ) and approximately 10 percent of our total cards-in-force . story_separator_special_tag accordingly , the average discount rate for prior periods was also revised , resulting in a reduction of between zero and one basis point in any period from what was originally reported . ( b ) average basic card member spending and average fee per card are computed from proprietary card activities only . average fee per card is computed based on net card fees , including the amortization of deferred direct acquisition costs divided by average worldwide proprietary cards-in-force . the average fee per card , adjusted , which is a non-gaap measure , is computed in the same manner , but excludes amortization of deferred direct acquisition costs . the amount of amortization excluded was $ 283 million , $ 306 million and $ 262 million for the years ended december 31 , 2015 , 2014 and 2013 , respectively . we present the average fee per card , adjusted , because we believe this metric presents a useful indicator of card fee pricing across a range of our proprietary card products . 58 table 6 : selected statistical information replace_table_token_10_th ( a ) the foreign currency adjusted information assumes a constant exchange rate between the periods being compared for purposes of currency translation into u.s. dollars ( i.e . , assumes the foreign exchange rates used to determine results for the current year apply to the corresponding prior year period against which such results are being compared ) . ( b ) captions in the table above not designated as proprietary or gns include both proprietary and gns data . ( c ) included in the gnms segment . ( d ) included in the uscs segment . ( e ) included in the gcs segment . ( f ) included in the ics segment . 59 table 7 : selected statistical information replace_table_token_11_th ( a ) effective december 1 , 2015 , does not reflect the hfs portfolios . ( b ) provisions on principal and fee reserve components on card member receivables and provisions for principal , interest and or fees on card member loans . ( c ) write-offs , less recoveries . ( d ) 2015 includes the impact of the transfer of the hfs receivables portfolio , which was not significant . ( e ) historically , net loss ratio as a % of charge volume and 90 days past billing as a % of receivables were presented for ics . beginning in the first quarter 2014 , as a result of system enhancements , 30 days past due as a % of total , net write-off rate ( principal only ) and net write-off rate ( principal and fees ) have been presented . ( f ) we present a net write-off rate based on principal losses only ( i.e . , excluding interest and or fees ) to be consistent with industry convention . in addition , because we consider uncollectible interest and or fees in our reserves for credit losses , a net write-off rate including principal , interest and or fees is also presented . the twelve months ended december 31 , 2015 reflect the impact of a change in the timing of charge-offs for card member receivables and loans in certain modification programs from 180 days past due to 120 days past due . 60 table 8 : net interest yield on card member loans replace_table_token_12_th ( a ) adjusted net interest income , adjusted average loans , and net interest yield on card member loans are non-gaap measures . refer to glossary of selected terminology for definitions of these terms . we believe adjusted net interest income and adjusted average loans are useful to investors because they are components of net interest yield on card member loans , which provides a measure of profitability of our card member loan portfolio . ( b ) for purposes of the calculation of net interest yield on card member loans , average loans continues to include the hfs loan portfolios . 61 business segment results we consider a combination of factors when evaluating the composition of our reportable operating segments , including the results reviewed by the chief operating decision maker , economic characteristics , products and services offered , classes of customers , product distribution channels , geographic considerations ( primarily united states versus outside the united states ) and regulatory considerations . refer to note 25 of the consolidated financial statements for additional discussion of the products and services by segment . in light of the organizational changes discussed under business ,  our financial disclosures will reflect segment changes starting in the first quarter of 2016. this overview discusses the operating segments used for financial reporting in 2015. results of the business segments generally treat each segment as a stand-alone business . the management reporting process that derives these results allocates revenue and expense using various methodologies as described below . total revenues net of interest expense we allocate discount revenue and certain other revenues among segments using a transfer pricing methodology . within the uscs , ics and gcs segments , discount revenue generally reflects the issuer component of the overall discount revenue generated by each segment 's card members ; within the gnms segment , discount revenue generally reflects the network and acquirer component of the overall discount revenue . net card fees and travel commissions and fees are directly attributable to the segment in which they are reported . interest and fees on loans and certain investment income is directly attributable to the segment in which it is reported . interest expense represents an allocated funding cost based on a combination of segment funding requirements and internal funding rates . provisions for losses the provisions for losses are directly attributable to the segment in which they are reported . expenses marketing and promotion expenses are included in each segment based on actual expenses incurred , with the exception of brand advertising , which

