million of commercial paper issued by the VIE, representing 87% of the VIE’s total commercial paper then outstanding. Effective January 1, 2010 with the adoption of amended accounting guidance regarding the consolidation of VIEs, the Bancorp was required to consolidate the assets and liabilities of this VIE. See Note 1 for further information on the amended accounting guidance. 

## Margin accounts 

FTS, a subsidiary of the Bancorp, guarantees the collection of all margin account balances held by its brokerage clearing agent for the benefit of its customers. FTS is responsible for payment to its brokerage clearing agent for any loss, liability, damage, cost or expense incurred as a result of customers failing to comply with margin or margin maintenance calls on all margin accounts. The margin account balance held by the brokerage clearing agent was $10 million and $8 million at December 31, 2010 and 2009, respectively. In the event of any customer default, FTS has rights to the underlying collateral provided. Given the existence of the underlying collateral provided and negligible historical credit losses, the Bancorp does not maintain a loss reserve related to the margin accounts. 

## Long-term borrowing obligations 

The Bancorp had fully and unconditionally guaranteed certain long-term borrowing obligations issued by wholly-owned issuing trust entities with a carrying value of $2.9 billion and $2.8 billion as of December 31, 2010 and 2009, respectively. See Note 17 for further information on these long-term borrowing obligations. 

## Visa litigation 

The Bancorp, as a member bank of Visa prior to Visa’s reorganization and initial public offerings of its Class A common shares in 2008, had certain indemnification obligations pursuant to Visa’s certificate of incorporation and by-laws and in accordance with their membership agreements. In accordance with Visa’s by- laws prior to the IPO, the Bancorp could have been required to indemnify Visa for the Bancorp’s proportional share of losses based on the pre-IPO membership interests. As part of its reorganization and IPO, the Bancorp’s indemnification obligation was modified to include only certain known litigation (the “Covered Litigation”) as of the date of the restructuring. This modification triggered a requirement to recognize a $3 million liability for the year ended December 31, 2007 equal to the fair value of the indemnification obligation. Additionally during 2007, the Bancorp recorded $169 million for its share of litigation formally settled by Visa and for probable future litigation settlements. In conjunction with the IPO, the Bancorp received 10.1 million of Visa’s Class B shares based on the Bancorp’s membership percentage in Visa prior to the IPO. The Class B shares are not transferable (other than to another member bank) until the later of the third anniversary of the IPO closing or the date which the Covered Litigation has been resolved; therefore, the Bancorp’s Class B shares were classified in other assets and accounted for at their carryover basis of $0. Visa deposited $3 billion of the proceeds from the IPO into a litigation escrow account, established for the purpose of funding judgments in, or settlements of, the Covered Litigation. If Visa’s litigation committee determines that the escrow account is insufficient, then Visa will issue additional Class A shares and deposit the proceeds from the sale of the shares into the litigation escrow account. When Visa funds the litigation escrow account, the Class B shares are subject to dilution through an adjustment in the conversion rate of Class B shares into Class A shares. During 2008, the Bancorp recorded additional reserves of $71 million for probable future settlements related to the Covered Litigation and recorded its proportional share of $169 million of the Visa escrow account net against the Bancorp’s litigation reserve. 

## NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 

During 2009, Visa announced it had deposited an additional $700 million into the litigation escrow account. As a result of this funding, the Bancorp recorded its proportional share of $29 million of these additional funds as a reduction to its net Visa litigation reserve liability and a reduction to noninterest expense. Later in 2009, the Bancorp completed the sale of its Visa, Inc. Class B shares for proceeds of $300 million. As part of this transaction the Bancorp entered into a total return swap in which the Bancorp will make or receive payments based on subsequent changes in the conversion rate of the Class B shares into Class A shares. The swap terminates on the later of the third anniversary of Visa’s IPO or the date on which the Covered Litigation is finally settled. The Bancorp calculates the fair value of the swap based on its estimate of the probability and timing of certain Covered Litigation settlement scenarios and the resulting payments related to the swap. The counterparty to the swap as a result of its ownership of the Class B shares will be impacted by dilutive adjustments to the conversion rate of the Class B shares into Class A shares caused by any Covered Litigation losses in excess of the litigation escrow account. If actual judgments in, or settlements of, the Covered Litigation significantly exceed current expectations, then additional funding by Visa of the litigation escrow account and the resulting dilution of the Class B shares could result in a scenario where the Bancorp’s ultimate exposure associated with the Covered Litigation (the “Visa Litigation Exposure”) exceeds the value of the Class B shares owned by the swap counterparty (the “Class B Value”). In the event the Bancorp concludes that it is probable that the Visa Litigation Exposure exceeds the Class B Value, the Bancorp would record a litigation reserve liability and a corresponding amount of other noninterest expense for the amount of the excess. Any such litigation reserve liability would be separate and distinct from the fair value derivative liability associated with the total return swap. 

As of the date of the Bancorp’s sale of Visa Class B shares and through December 31, 2010, the Bancorp has concluded that it is not probable that the Visa Covered Litigation Exposure will exceed the Class B Value. Based on this determination, upon the sale of Class B shares, the Bancorp reversed its net Visa litigation reserve liability and recognized a free-standing derivative liability associated with the total return swap with an initial fair value of $55 million. The sale of the Class B shares, recognition of the derivative liability and reversal of the net litigation reserve liability resulted in a pre-tax benefit of $288 million ($187 million after- tax) recognized by the Bancorp for the year ended December 31, 2009. In the second quarter of 2010, Visa funded an additional $500 million into the escrow account which resulted in further dilution in the conversion of Class B shares into Class A shares and required the Bancorp to make a $20 million cash payment (which reduced the swap liability) to the swap counterparty in accordance with the terms of the swap contract. In the fourth quarter of 2010, Visa funded an additional $800 million into the litigation escrow account which resulted in further dilution in the conversion of Class B shares into Class A shares and required the Bancorp to make a $35 million cash payment (which reduced the swap liability) to the swap counterparty in accordance with the terms of the swap contract. The fair value of the swap liability was $18 million and $55 million as of December 31, 2010 and 2009, respectively. 

