Note 7: Concentrations of Credit Risk
Financial instruments that potentially subject us to concentrations of credit risk consist principally of investments in debt instruments, derivative financial instruments, loans receivable, and trade receivables. When possible, we enter into master netting arrangements with counterparties to mitigate credit risk in derivative transactions. A master netting arrangement may allow counterparties to net settle amounts owed to each other as a result of multiple, separate derivative transactions. For presentation on our consolidated balance sheets, we do not offset fair value amounts recognized for derivative instruments under master netting arrangements.
We generally place investments with high-credit-quality counterparties and, by policy, we limit the amount of credit exposure to any one counterparty based on our analysis of that counterparty’s relative credit standing. Most of our investments in debt instruments are in A/A2 or better rated issuances, and the majority of the issuances are rated AA-/Aa3 or better. Our investment policy requires substantially all investments with original maturities at the time of investment of up to six months to be rated at least A-2/P-2 by Standard & Poor’s/Moody’s, and specifies a higher minimum rating for investments with longer maturities. For instance, investments with maturities of greater than three years generally require a minimum rating of AA-/Aa3 at the time of investment. Government regulations imposed on investment alternatives of our non-U.S. subsidiaries, or the absence of A rated counterparties in certain countries, result in some minor exceptions. Credit-rating criteria for derivative instruments are similar to those for other investments. Due to master netting arrangements, the amounts subject to credit risk related to derivative instruments are generally limited to the amounts, if any, by which the counterparty’s obligations exceed our obligations with that counterparty. As of December 28, 2013, our total credit exposure to any single counterparty, excluding Japan government bonds, did not exceed $750 million. We obtain and secure available collateral from counterparties against obligations, including securities lending transactions, when we deem it appropriate.
A substantial majority of our trade receivables are derived from sales to original equipment manufacturers and original design manufacturers. We also have accounts receivable derived from sales to industrial and retail distributors. Our three largest customers accounted for 44% of net revenue for 2013 (43% for 2012 and 2011). Additionally, these three largest customers accounted for 34% of our accounts receivable as of December 28, 2013 (33% as of December 29, 2012). We believe that the receivable balances from these largest customers do not represent a significant credit risk based on cash flow forecasts, balance sheet analysis, and past collection experience.
We have adopted credit policies and standards intended to accommodate industry growth and inherent risk. We believe that credit risks are moderated by the financial stability of our major customers. We assess credit risk through quantitative and qualitative analysis, and from this analysis, we establish credit limits and determine whether we will seek to use one or more credit support devices, such as obtaining a parent guarantee or standby letter of credit, or obtaining credit insurance.
