our consolidated and combined financial statements may not be indicative of our results had we been a separate stand-alone entity throughout the periods presented , nor are the results stated herein indicative of what our financial position , results of operations and cash flows may be in the future . 28 table of contents all significant transactions between the company and fortive have been included in the accompanying consolidated and combined financial statements for all periods presented . cash transactions with fortive prior to the separation are reflected in the accompany consolidated and combined statements of changes in stockholders ' equity as “ net transfers to former parent ” and “ consideration to former parent in connection with the separation ” and in the accompanying consolidated and combined balance sheets within “ former parent 's investment ” . former parent 's investment , which included retained earnings ( accumulated deficit ) prior to the separation , represents fortive 's interest in our recorded net assets prior to the separation . in addition , the accumulated net effect of intercompany transactions between us and fortive or fortive affiliates for periods prior to the separation are included in former parent 's investment . on october 9 , 2020 , in connection with the separation , former parent 's investment was redesignated within stockholders ' equity . the agreements include a “ wrong-pockets provision ” that allows the parties to make adjustments to ensure the separation-related transactions were executed in accordance with the agreements . in periods subsequent to the separation , we may make adjustments to balances transferred at the separation date in accordance with the wrong-pockets provision . any such adjustments are recorded through stockholders ' equity . the financial statements include our accounts and the accounts of our subsidiaries . all intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated upon consolidation . the consolidated and combined financial statements also reflect the impact of noncontrolling interests . noncontrolling interests do not have a significant impact on our consolidated and combined results of operations , therefore net earnings and net earnings per share attributable to noncontrolling interests are not presented separately in our consolidated and combined statements of earnings and comprehensive income . net earnings attributable to noncontrolling interests have been reflected in selling , general and administrative expenses ( “ sg & a ” ) and were insignificant in all periods presented . our historical consolidated and combined financial statements include expense allocations for certain support functions that are provided on a centralized basis within fortive , such as corporate costs , shared services and other selling , general and administrative costs that benefit the company , among others . the allocations were determined on a reasonable basis ; however , the amounts are not necessarily representative of the amounts that would have been reflected in the financial statements had the company been an entity that operated independently of fortive during the applicable periods . related-party allocations prior to the separation , including the method for such allocation , are discussed further in note 20. related-party transactions to the consolidated and combined financial statements . following the distribution , pursuant to agreements with fortive , we expect that fortive will continue to provide us with some of the services related to these functions on a transitional basis in exchange for agreed-upon fees , and we expect to incur other costs to replace the services and resources that will not be provided by fortive . we will also incur additional costs as a separate public company . as a separate public company , our total costs related to such support functions may differ from the costs that were historically allocated to us . these additional costs are primarily for the following : additional personnel costs , including salaries , benefits and potential bonuses and or share-based compensation awards for staff additions to replace support provided by fortive that is not covered by the transition services agreement ; and corporate governance costs , including board of director compensation and expenses , audit and other professional services fees , annual report and proxy statement costs , sec filing fees , transfer agent fees , consulting and legal fees and stock exchange listing fees . certain factors could impact the nature and amount of these separate public company costs , including the finalization of our staffing and infrastructure needs . we expect these additional separate public company costs in excess of the costs that have been historically allocated to us to range between approximately $ 35 million and $ 45 million per year . moreover , we expect we may incur certain nonrecurring internal costs to implement certain new systems . prior to the separation , we were dependent upon fortive for all our working capital and financing requirements under fortive 's centralized approach to cash management and financing of operations of its subsidiaries . with the exception of cash , cash equivalents and borrowings clearly associated with vontier and related to the separation , including the financial transactions described below , financial transactions relating to our business operations prior to the separation were accounted for through former parent 's investment . accordingly , none of the former parent 's cash , cash equivalents or debt at the corporate level was assigned to us in the financial statements for periods prior to the separation . 29 table of contents overview general please see “ item 1. business – general ” included in this annual report for a discussion of the company 's strategies for delivering long-term shareholder value . vontier offers critical technical equipment , components , software and services for manufacturing , repair , and servicing in the mobility infrastructure industry worldwide . story_separator_special_tag we exclude the effect of currency translation and certain other items from sales from existing businesses because these items are either not under management 's control or relate to items not directly correlated to sales from existing businesses . management believes the exclusion of these items from sales from existing businesses may facilitate 34 table of contents assessment of underlying business trends and may assist in comparisons of long-term performance . references to sales volume refer to the impact of both price and unit sales . interest costs for a discussion of our outstanding indebtedness , refer to note 11. financing to the consolidated and combined financial statements . we recorded interest expense , net of $ 10.0 million during the year ended december 31 , 2020 as compared to interest income , net of $ 3.3 million during the comparable period in 2019. the increase of interest expense , net of $ 13.3 million was primarily due to the higher average debt balances during the year resulting from the term loans entered into as part of the separation . before the separation , we depended on fortive for all of our working capital and financing requirements under fortive 's centralized approach to cash management and financing of operations of its subsidiaries . as a result , with the exception of cash , cash equivalents and borrowings clearly associated with vontier and related to the separation , we recorded no interest expense in our financial statements prior to the separation . in the event that additional liquidity is required , particularly in connection with acquisitions , we may enter into additional borrowings under our credit facilities and or access the capital markets . if we enter into such additional financing transactions , the amount of annual interest expense will increase . income taxes general income tax expense and deferred tax assets and liabilities reflect management 's assessment of future taxes expected to be paid on items reflected in our financial statements . our effective tax rate can be affected by , among other items , changes in the mix of earnings in countries with differing statutory tax rates ( including as a result of business acquisitions and dispositions ) , changes in the valuation of deferred tax assets and liabilities , the implementation of tax planning strategies , tax rulings , court decisions , settlements with tax authorities and changes in tax laws . prior to the separation , our operating results were included in fortive 's various consolidated u.s. federal and certain state income tax returns , as well as certain non-u.s. returns . for periods prior to the separation , our combined financial statements reflect income tax expense and deferred tax balances as if we had filed tax returns on a standalone basis separate from fortive . the separate return method applies the accounting guidance for income taxes to the standalone financial statements as if we were a separate taxpayer and a standalone enterprise for the periods prior to the separation . for periods prior to the separation , our pretax operating results include any transactions with fortive as if it were an unrelated party . in connection with the separation , we entered into agreements with fortive , including a tax matters agreement . the tax matters agreement distinguishes between the treatment of tax matters for “ joint ” filings compared to “ separate ” filings prior to the separation . “ joint ” filings are returns , such as the united states federal return , that include operations from both fortive legal entities and the company . by contrast , “ separate ” filings are tax returns ( primarily u.s. state returns and non-u.s. returns ) , that exclusively include either fortive 's or the company 's operations , respectively . in accordance with the tax matters agreement , the company is liable for and has indemnified fortive against all income tax liabilities involving “ separate ” filings for periods prior to the separation . on march 27 , 2020 , the u.s. government passed the coronavirus aid , relief , and economic security act ( the “ cares act ” ) as an emergency economic stimulus package in response to the covid-19 outbreak . the cares act contains , among other things , numerous income tax provisions . some of these tax provisions are expected to be effective retroactively for years ended before the date of enactment . the cares act did not have a significant impact on our income tax provision . we are routinely examined by various domestic and international taxing authorities . the amount of income taxes we pay is subject to audit by federal , state and foreign tax authorities , which may result in proposed assessments . the company is subject to examination in the united states , various states and foreign jurisdictions . in accordance with the tax matters agreement with fortive , the company is liable for taxes arising from examinations of the following : ( i ) the company 's initial u.s. federal taxable year october 9 , 2020 through december 31 , 2020 ; ( ii ) separate company state tax returns for all periods ; ( iii ) joint state tax returns for the period october 9 , 2020 through december 31 , 2020 ; ( iv ) international separate company returns for all periods ; and ( v ) joint international tax returns that include only vontier legal entities for all periods . we review our global tax positions on a quarterly basis . based on these reviews , the results of discussions and resolutions of matters with certain tax authorities , tax rulings and court decisions and the expiration of statutes of limitations reserves for contingent tax liabilities are accrued or adjusted as necessary . pursuant to u.s. tax law , the company 's initial u.s. federal income tax return is for the short taxable year october 9 , 2020 35 table of

cash and cash requirements as of december 31 , 2020 , we held approximately $ 380.5 million of cash and cash equivalents that were held in either operating accounts or invested in highly liquid investment-grade instruments with a maturity of 90 days or less with an annual effective rate of less than 1.0 % . approximately 55 % of our cash was held outside of the united states . we have cash requirements to support working capital needs , capital expenditures and acquisitions , pay interest and service debt , pay taxes and any related interest or penalties , fund our restructuring activities and pension plans as required and support other business needs or objectives . with respect to our cash requirements , we generally intend to use available cash and internally generated funds to meet these cash requirements , but in the event that additional liquidity is required , particularly in connection with acquisitions , we may also borrow under our credit facilities , enter into new credit facilities and borrow directly thereunder and or access the capital markets . we also may from time to time access the capital markets , including to take advantage of favorable interest rate environments or other market conditions . conversely , we have made an assertion regarding the amount of earnings that we do not intend to repatriate due to local working capital needs , local law restrictions , high foreign remittance costs , previous investments in physical assets and acquisitions , or future growth needs . such earnings are intended for indefinite foreign reinvestment and no provision for non-u.s. income taxes has been made .


 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.
     ```cash and cash requirements as of december 31 , 2020 , we held approximately $ 380.5 million of cash and cash equivalents that were held in either operating accounts or invested in highly liquid investment-grade instruments with a maturity of 90 days or less with an annual effective rate of less than 1.0 % . approximately 55 % of our cash was held outside of the united states . we have cash requirements to support working capital needs , capital expenditures and acquisitions , pay interest and service debt , pay taxes and any related interest or penalties , fund our restructuring activities and pension plans as required and support other business needs or objectives . with respect to our cash requirements , we generally intend to use available cash and internally generated funds to meet these cash requirements , but in the event that additional liquidity is required , particularly in connection with acquisitions , we may also borrow under our credit facilities , enter into new credit facilities and borrow directly thereunder and or access the capital markets . we also may from time to time access the capital markets , including to take advantage of favorable interest rate environments or other market conditions . conversely , we have made an assertion regarding the amount of earnings that we do not intend to repatriate due to local working capital needs , local law restrictions , high foreign remittance costs , previous investments in physical assets and acquisitions , or future growth needs . such earnings are intended for indefinite foreign reinvestment and no provision for non-u.s. income taxes has been made .
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 Suspicious Activity Report : our consolidated and combined financial statements may not be indicative of our results had we been a separate stand-alone entity throughout the periods presented , nor are the results stated herein indicative of what our financial position , results of operations and cash flows may be in the future . 28 table of contents all significant transactions between the company and fortive have been included in the accompanying consolidated and combined financial statements for all periods presented . cash transactions with fortive prior to the separation are reflected in the accompany consolidated and combined statements of changes in stockholders ' equity as “ net transfers to former parent ” and “ consideration to former parent in connection with the separation ” and in the accompanying consolidated and combined balance sheets within “ former parent 's investment ” . former parent 's investment , which included retained earnings ( accumulated deficit ) prior to the separation , represents fortive 's interest in our recorded net assets prior to the separation . in addition , the accumulated net effect of intercompany transactions between us and fortive or fortive affiliates for periods prior to the separation are included in former parent 's investment . on october 9 , 2020 , in connection with the separation , former parent 's investment was redesignated within stockholders ' equity . the agreements include a “ wrong-pockets provision ” that allows the parties to make adjustments to ensure the separation-related transactions were executed in accordance with the agreements . in periods subsequent to the separation , we may make adjustments to balances transferred at the separation date in accordance with the wrong-pockets provision . any such adjustments are recorded through stockholders ' equity . the financial statements include our accounts and the accounts of our subsidiaries . all intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated upon consolidation . the consolidated and combined financial statements also reflect the impact of noncontrolling interests . noncontrolling interests do not have a significant impact on our consolidated and combined results of operations , therefore net earnings and net earnings per share attributable to noncontrolling interests are not presented separately in our consolidated and combined statements of earnings and comprehensive income . net earnings attributable to noncontrolling interests have been reflected in selling , general and administrative expenses ( “ sg & a ” ) and were insignificant in all periods presented . our historical consolidated and combined financial statements include expense allocations for certain support functions that are provided on a centralized basis within fortive , such as corporate costs , shared services and other selling , general and administrative costs that benefit the company , among others . the allocations were determined on a reasonable basis ; however , the amounts are not necessarily representative of the amounts that would have been reflected in the financial statements had the company been an entity that operated independently of fortive during the applicable periods . related-party allocations prior to the separation , including the method for such allocation , are discussed further in note 20. related-party transactions to the consolidated and combined financial statements . following the distribution , pursuant to agreements with fortive , we expect that fortive will continue to provide us with some of the services related to these functions on a transitional basis in exchange for agreed-upon fees , and we expect to incur other costs to replace the services and resources that will not be provided by fortive . we will also incur additional costs as a separate public company . as a separate public company , our total costs related to such support functions may differ from the costs that were historically allocated to us . these additional costs are primarily for the following : additional personnel costs , including salaries , benefits and potential bonuses and or share-based compensation awards for staff additions to replace support provided by fortive that is not covered by the transition services agreement ; and corporate governance costs , including board of director compensation and expenses , audit and other professional services fees , annual report and proxy statement costs , sec filing fees , transfer agent fees , consulting and legal fees and stock exchange listing fees . certain factors could impact the nature and amount of these separate public company costs , including the finalization of our staffing and infrastructure needs . we expect these additional separate public company costs in excess of the costs that have been historically allocated to us to range between approximately $ 35 million and $ 45 million per year . moreover , we expect we may incur certain nonrecurring internal costs to implement certain new systems . prior to the separation , we were dependent upon fortive for all our working capital and financing requirements under fortive 's centralized approach to cash management and financing of operations of its subsidiaries . with the exception of cash , cash equivalents and borrowings clearly associated with vontier and related to the separation , including the financial transactions described below , financial transactions relating to our business operations prior to the separation were accounted for through former parent 's investment . accordingly , none of the former parent 's cash , cash equivalents or debt at the corporate level was assigned to us in the financial statements for periods prior to the separation . 29 table of contents overview general please see “ item 1. business – general ” included in this annual report for a discussion of the company 's strategies for delivering long-term shareholder value . vontier offers critical technical equipment , components , software and services for manufacturing , repair , and servicing in the mobility infrastructure industry worldwide . story_separator_special_tag we exclude the effect of currency translation and certain other items from sales from existing businesses because these items are either not under management 's control or relate to items not directly correlated to sales from existing businesses . management believes the exclusion of these items from sales from existing businesses may facilitate 34 table of contents assessment of underlying business trends and may assist in comparisons of long-term performance . references to sales volume refer to the impact of both price and unit sales . interest costs for a discussion of our outstanding indebtedness , refer to note 11. financing to the consolidated and combined financial statements . we recorded interest expense , net of $ 10.0 million during the year ended december 31 , 2020 as compared to interest income , net of $ 3.3 million during the comparable period in 2019. the increase of interest expense , net of $ 13.3 million was primarily due to the higher average debt balances during the year resulting from the term loans entered into as part of the separation . before the separation , we depended on fortive for all of our working capital and financing requirements under fortive 's centralized approach to cash management and financing of operations of its subsidiaries . as a result , with the exception of cash , cash equivalents and borrowings clearly associated with vontier and related to the separation , we recorded no interest expense in our financial statements prior to the separation . in the event that additional liquidity is required , particularly in connection with acquisitions , we may enter into additional borrowings under our credit facilities and or access the capital markets . if we enter into such additional financing transactions , the amount of annual interest expense will increase . income taxes general income tax expense and deferred tax assets and liabilities reflect management 's assessment of future taxes expected to be paid on items reflected in our financial statements . our effective tax rate can be affected by , among other items , changes in the mix of earnings in countries with differing statutory tax rates ( including as a result of business acquisitions and dispositions ) , changes in the valuation of deferred tax assets and liabilities , the implementation of tax planning strategies , tax rulings , court decisions , settlements with tax authorities and changes in tax laws . prior to the separation , our operating results were included in fortive 's various consolidated u.s. federal and certain state income tax returns , as well as certain non-u.s. returns . for periods prior to the separation , our combined financial statements reflect income tax expense and deferred tax balances as if we had filed tax returns on a standalone basis separate from fortive . the separate return method applies the accounting guidance for income taxes to the standalone financial statements as if we were a separate taxpayer and a standalone enterprise for the periods prior to the separation . for periods prior to the separation , our pretax operating results include any transactions with fortive as if it were an unrelated party . in connection with the separation , we entered into agreements with fortive , including a tax matters agreement . the tax matters agreement distinguishes between the treatment of tax matters for “ joint ” filings compared to “ separate ” filings prior to the separation . “ joint ” filings are returns , such as the united states federal return , that include operations from both fortive legal entities and the company . by contrast , “ separate ” filings are tax returns ( primarily u.s. state returns and non-u.s. returns ) , that exclusively include either fortive 's or the company 's operations , respectively . in accordance with the tax matters agreement , the company is liable for and has indemnified fortive against all income tax liabilities involving “ separate ” filings for periods prior to the separation . on march 27 , 2020 , the u.s. government passed the coronavirus aid , relief , and economic security act ( the “ cares act ” ) as an emergency economic stimulus package in response to the covid-19 outbreak . the cares act contains , among other things , numerous income tax provisions . some of these tax provisions are expected to be effective retroactively for years ended before the date of enactment . the cares act did not have a significant impact on our income tax provision . we are routinely examined by various domestic and international taxing authorities . the amount of income taxes we pay is subject to audit by federal , state and foreign tax authorities , which may result in proposed assessments . the company is subject to examination in the united states , various states and foreign jurisdictions . in accordance with the tax matters agreement with fortive , the company is liable for taxes arising from examinations of the following : ( i ) the company 's initial u.s. federal taxable year october 9 , 2020 through december 31 , 2020 ; ( ii ) separate company state tax returns for all periods ; ( iii ) joint state tax returns for the period october 9 , 2020 through december 31 , 2020 ; ( iv ) international separate company returns for all periods ; and ( v ) joint international tax returns that include only vontier legal entities for all periods . we review our global tax positions on a quarterly basis . based on these reviews , the results of discussions and resolutions of matters with certain tax authorities , tax rulings and court decisions and the expiration of statutes of limitations reserves for contingent tax liabilities are accrued or adjusted as necessary . pursuant to u.s. tax law , the company 's initial u.s. federal income tax return is for the short taxable year october 9 , 2020 35 table of

