Income tax provision
The income tax provision for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020 is summarized as follows:
| | | | | | | | |
| | Three Months Ended March 31,
| |
| | 2021 | | | 2020 | |
Current: | | | | | | | | |
U.S. | | $ | 2,286 | | | $ | 1,906 | |
Foreign | | | 67 | | | | 62 | |
Deferred: | | | | | | | | |
U.S. | | | (172 | ) | | | 16 | |
Foreign | | | — | | | | — | |
| | | | | | | | |
Income tax expense (benefit) | | $ | 2,181 | | | $ | 1,984 | |
| | | | | | | | |
The effective tax rate for the Company represents the income tax provision as a percentage of pre-tax income (excluding non-controlling interests). The effective tax rate was 14.58% and 9.08% for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively. The difference between the effective tax rate and the statutory NYC UBT rate of 4.0% is primarily driven by a non-deductible compensation expense for UBT purposes, and foreign taxable income subject to higher statutory tax rates.
Deferred taxes
At March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, the Company’s deferred tax asset was $0.4 million and $0.4 million, respectively. Significant components of the deferred tax asset include compensation & benefits and placement fees. At March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, the Company had no deferred tax liability. The deferred tax asset is recorded in other assets in the combined statements of financial condition.
Uncertain tax positions
Interest and penalties related to uncertain tax positions are recognized in the income tax provision. The Company had no accrued interest for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and March 31, 2020. At March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, the Company recognized no liability for interest related to unrecognized tax benefits.
Over the next 12 months, it is possible that the amount of the accrued tax liability for uncertain tax positions could change but the Company does not expect this to have a material impact on the combined financial statements.
(7) Related Party Transactions
The Company is indirectly wholly owned by the Parent. The Parent provides the Company with certain services, such as insurance and administrative support, and also provides benefits to employees, including for example, medical, dental, life and disability insurance, participation in retirement plans and certain post-employment benefits. These financial statements also include allocations of centralized corporate expenses from the Parent for services, such as sales and client services, support costs (e.g., finance, human capital management, legal, compliance, etc.), technology, and other services. These expenses were determined based on various allocation methods, including factors such as revenues, headcount, time and effort spent on matters relating to the Company. These allocated expenses are reflected within Compensation and benefits and
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