Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2023

Accounting Policies [Abstract]

Basis of Accounting, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Basis of Presentation and Use of Estimates

The accompanying unaudited financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”) for interim financial information and with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 8 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by GAAP for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring accruals) considered necessary for a fair statement of results for the interim period have been included. Operating results for the three month period ended March 31, 2023 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2023.

The balance sheet at  December 31, 2022 has been derived from the audited financial statements at that date but does not include all of the information and footnotes required by GAAP for complete financial statements. For further information, refer to the financial statements and footnotes thereto included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022.

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. The significant estimates affecting the accompanying financial statements are the fair values of RMBS and derivatives. Management believes the estimates and assumptions underlying the financial statements are reasonable based on the information available as of March 31, 2023.

Reclassification, Comparability Adjustment [Policy Text Block]

Reclassification of Comparative Period Information

The Company previously reported $0.3 million of commissions, fees and other expenses associated with its derivative holdings for the three months ended March 31, 2022 in 'Direct REIT operating expenses' in the statement of operations.  These expenses have been reclassified as part of  'Gains (losses) on derivative and other hedging instruments' to conform with the presentation in the current period.

Reverse Stock Split Policy [Policy Text Block]

Common Stock Reverse Split

On August 30, 2022, the Company effected a 1-for-5 reverse stock split of its common stock and proportionately decreased the number of authorized shares of common stock. All share, per share, deferred stock unit (“DSU”) and performance unit (“PU”) information has been retroactively adjusted to reflect the reverse split. The shares of common stock retain a par value of $0.01 per share.

Consolidation, Variable Interest Entity, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Variable Interest Entities (“VIEs”)

The Company obtains interests in VIEs through its investments in mortgage-backed securities. The Company’s interests in these VIEs are passive in nature and are not expected to result in the Company obtaining a controlling financial interest in these VIEs in the future. As a result, the Company does not consolidate these VIEs and accounts for these interests in these VIEs as mortgage-backed securities. See Note 2 for additional information regarding the Company’s investments in mortgage-backed securities. The maximum exposure to loss for these VIEs is the carrying value of the mortgage-backed securities.

Cash and Cash Equivalents, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Cash and Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash

Cash and cash equivalents include cash on deposit with financial institutions and highly liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less at the time of purchase. Restricted cash includes cash pledged as collateral for repurchase agreements and other borrowings, and interest rate swaps and other derivative instruments.

The following table provides a reconciliation of cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash reported within the statement of financial position that sum to the total of the same such amounts shown in the statement of cash flows.

(in thousands)
	March 31, 2023		December 31, 2022
Cash and cash equivalents	$	143,220	$	205,651
Restricted cash		42,738		31,568
Total cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash	$	185,958	$	237,219

The Company maintains cash balances at three banks, a government securities backed overnight sweep fund, and excess margin on account with two exchange clearing members. At times, balances may exceed federally insured limits. The Company has not experienced any losses related to these balances. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insures eligible accounts up to $250,000 per depositor at each financial institution. Restricted cash balances are uninsured, but are held in separate customer accounts that are segregated from the general funds of the counterparty. The Company limits uninsured balances to only large, well-known banks and exchange clearing members and believes that it is not exposed to any significant credit risk on cash and cash equivalents or restricted cash balances.

Marketable Securities, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Mortgage-Backed Securities and U.S. Treasury Notes

The Company invests primarily in mortgage pass-through (“PT”) residential mortgage backed securities (“RMBS”) and collateralized mortgage obligations (“CMOs”) issued by Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae or Ginnie Mae, interest-only (“IO”) securities and inverse interest-only (“IIO”) securities representing interest in or obligations backed by pools of RMBS. The Company refers to RMBS and CMOs as PT RMBS. The Company refers to IO and IIO securities as structured RMBS. The Company also invests in U.S. Treasury Notes, primarily to satisfy collateral requirements of derivative counterparties. The Company has elected to account for its investment in RMBS and U.S. Treasury Notes under the fair value option. Electing the fair value option requires the Company to record changes in fair value in the statements of operations, which, in management’s view, more appropriately reflects the results of the Company’s operations for a particular reporting period and is consistent with the underlying economics and how the portfolio is managed.

The Company records securities transactions on the trade date. Security purchases that have not settled as of the balance sheet date are included in the portfolio balance with an offsetting liability recorded, whereas securities sold that have not settled as of the balance sheet date are removed from the portfolio balance with an offsetting receivable recorded.

Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell the asset or paid to transfer the liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The fair value measurement assumes that the transaction to sell the asset or transfer the liability either occurs in the principal market for the asset or liability, or in the absence of a principal market, occurs in the most advantageous market for the asset or liability. Estimated fair values for RMBS are based on independent pricing sources and/or third party broker quotes, when available. Estimated fair values for U.S. Treasury Notes are based on quoted prices for identical assets in active markets.

Income on PT RMBS and U.S. Treasury Notes is based on the stated interest rate of the security. Premiums or discounts present at the date of purchase are not amortized. Premium lost and discount accretion resulting from monthly principal repayments are reflected in unrealized gains (losses) on RMBS in the statements of operations. For IO securities, the income is accrued based on the carrying value and the effective yield. The difference between income accrued and the interest received on the security is characterized as a return of investment and serves to reduce the asset’s carrying value. At each reporting date, the effective yield is adjusted prospectively for future reporting periods based on the new estimate of prepayments and the contractual terms of the security. For IIO securities, effective yield and income recognition calculations also take into account the index value applicable to the security. Changes in fair value of RMBS during each reporting period are recorded in earnings and reported as unrealized gains or losses on mortgage-backed securities in the accompanying statements of operations. Realized gains and losses on sales of RMBS and U.S. Treasury Notes, using the specific identification method, are reported as a separate component of net portfolio income on the statements of operations.

Derivatives, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Derivative and Other Hedging Instruments

The Company uses derivative and other hedging instruments to manage interest rate risk, facilitate asset/liability strategies and manage other exposures, and it may continue to do so in the future. The principal instruments that the Company has used to date are Treasury Note (“T-Note”), federal funds (“Fed Funds”) and Eurodollar futures contracts, short positions in U.S. Treasury securities, interest rate swaps, options to enter in interest rate swaps (“interest rate swaptions”) and “to-be-announced” (“TBA”) securities transactions, but the Company may enter into other derivative and other hedging instruments in the future.

The Company accounts for TBA securities as derivative instruments. Gains and losses associated with TBA securities transactions are reported in gain (loss) on derivative instruments in the accompanying statements of operations.

Derivative and other hedging instruments are carried at fair value, and changes in fair value are recorded in earnings for each period. The Company’s derivative financial instruments are not designated as hedge accounting relationships, but rather are used as economic hedges of its portfolio assets and liabilities. Gains and losses on derivatives, except those that result in cash receipts or payments, are included in operating activities on the statements of cash flows. Cash payments and cash receipts from settlements of derivatives, including current period net cash settlements on interest rates swaps, are classified as an investing activity on the statements of cash flows.

Holding derivatives creates exposure to credit risk related to the potential for failure on the part of counterparties and exchanges to honor their commitments. In the event of default by a counterparty, the Company may have difficulty recovering its collateral and may not receive payments provided for under the terms of the agreement. The Company’s derivative agreements require it to post or receive collateral to mitigate such risk. In addition, the Company uses only registered central clearing exchanges and well-established commercial banks as counterparties, monitors positions with individual counterparties and adjusts posted collateral as required.

Fair Value of Financial Instruments, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Financial Instruments

The fair value of financial instruments for which it is practicable to estimate that value is disclosed either in the body of the financial statements or in the accompanying notes. RMBS, Fed Funds and T-Note futures contracts, interest rate swaps, interest rate swaptions and TBA securities are accounted for at fair value in the balance sheets. The methods and assumptions used to estimate fair value for these instruments are presented in Note 12 of the financial statements.

The estimated fair value of cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash, accrued interest receivable, receivable for securities sold, other assets, due to affiliates, repurchase agreements, payable for unsettled securities purchased, accrued interest payable and other liabilities generally approximates their carrying values as as Level 2 assets under the fair value hierarchy as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 due to the short-term nature of these financial instruments.

Repurchase and Resale Agreements Policy [Policy Text Block]

Repurchase Agreements

The Company finances the acquisition of the majority of its RMBS through the use of repurchase agreements under master repurchase agreements. Repurchase agreements are accounted for as collateralized financing transactions, which are carried at their contractual amounts, including accrued interest, as specified in the respective agreements.

Management Fees Policy [Policy Text Block]

Manager Compensation

The Company is externally managed by Bimini Advisors, LLC (the “Manager” or “Bimini Advisors”), a Maryland limited liability company and wholly-owned subsidiary of Bimini. The Company’s management agreement with the Manager provides for payment to the Manager of a management fee and reimbursement of certain operating expenses, which are accrued and expensed during the period for which they are earned or incurred. Refer to Note 13 for the terms of the management agreement.

Earnings Per Share, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Earnings Per Share

Basic earnings per share (“EPS”) is calculated as net income or loss attributable to common stockholders divided by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period. Diluted EPS is calculated using the treasury stock or two-class method, as applicable, for common stock equivalents, if any. However, the common stock equivalents are not included in computing diluted EPS if the result is anti-dilutive.

Compensation Related Costs, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Stock-Based Compensation

The Company may grant equity-based compensation to non-employee members of its Board of Directors and to the executive officers and employees of the Manager. Stock-based awards issued include PUs, DSUs and immediately vested common stock awards. Compensation expense is measured and recognized for all stock-based payment awards made to employees and non-employee directors based on the fair value of the Company’s common stock on the date of grant. Compensation expense is recognized over each award’s respective service period using the graded vesting attribution method. The Company does not estimate forfeiture rates; but rather, adjusts for forfeitures in the periods in which they occur.

Income Tax, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Income Taxes

Orchid has elected and is organized and operated so as to qualify to be taxed as a real estate investment trust (“REIT”) under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). REITs are generally not subject to federal income tax on their REIT taxable income provided that they distribute to their stockholders all of their REIT taxable income on an annual basis. A REIT must distribute at least 90% of its REIT taxable income, determined without regard to the deductions for dividends paid and excluding net capital gain, and meet other requirements of the Code to retain its tax status.

Orchid assesses the likelihood, based on their technical merit, that uncertain tax positions will be sustained upon examination based on the facts, circumstances and information available at the end of each period. All of Orchid’s tax positions are categorized as highly certain. There is no accrual for any tax, interest or penalties related to Orchid’s tax position assessment. The measurement of uncertain tax positions is adjusted when new information is available, or when an event occurs that requires a change.

New Accounting Pronouncements, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

In March 2020, the FASB issued ASU 2020-04 “Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848): Facilitation of the Effects of Reference Rate Reform on Financial Reporting.” ASU 2020-04 provides optional expedients and exceptions to GAAP requirements for modifications on debt instruments, leases, derivatives, and other contracts, related to the expected market transition from the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”), and certain other floating rate benchmark indices, or collectively, IBORs, to alternative reference rates. ASU 2020-04 generally considers contract modifications related to reference rate reform to be an event that does not require contract remeasurement at the modification date nor a reassessment of a previous accounting determination. The guidance in ASU 2020-04 is optional and may be elected over time, through December 31, 2022, as reference rate reform activities occur. In December 2022, the FASB issued ASU 2022-06 "Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848)," deferring the sunset date provided in ASU 2020-04 from December 31, 2022 to December 31, 2024. The Company expects to adopt this ASU during the second quarter of 2023 as SOFR replaces LIBOR for certain derivative positions but does not believe that this will have a material impact on its financial statements.

In January 2021, the FASB issued ASU 2021-01 “Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848).” ASU 2021-01 expands the scope of ASC 848 to include all affected derivatives and give market participants the ability to apply certain aspects of the contract modification and hedge accounting expedients to derivative contracts affected by the discounting transition. In addition, ASU 2021-01 adds implementation guidance to permit a company to apply certain optional expedients to modifications of interest rate indexes used for margining, discounting or contract price alignment of certain derivatives as a result of reference rate reform initiatives and extends optional expedients to account for a derivative contract modified as a continuation of the existing contract and to continue hedge accounting when certain critical terms of a hedging relationship change to modifications made as part of the discounting transition. The guidance in ASU 2021-01 is effective immediately and available generally through December 31, 2024, as reference rate reform activities occur. The Company expects to adopt this ASU during the second quarter of 2023 as SOFR replaces LIBOR for certain derivative positions but does not believe that this will have a material impact on its financial statements.