As of December 31, 2016, the U.S. state of Delaware had added 71 pure captives, with the total number of pure captives rising from 242 the previous year to 325.
       Correspondingly, the number of Delaware series LLCs increased by 78 in 2016, while 163 were dissolved during the year, bringing the total number of series LLCs down from 740 to 655. These 655 series LLCs were sponsored by 36 core companies.

       As of 2016, Delaware had 1,056 risk retention entities in total, including 325 pure captives, 655 series captives, 15 cell captives (established by 5 sponsored captives), 1 series trust, 5 special purpose captives, 3 industrial captives, 1 association captive and 1 agency captive.
        The Series LLC is a unique organizational form in the United States, existing in 14 states. Similar to a cell captive, each legal entity may establish a number of units underneath it, forming a structure of units with mutually independent assets and liabilities, managers, business purposes or investment projects, with the assets and liabilities of each unit legally segregated from one another.

       The decline in the number of Delaware series LLCs is due, on the one hand, to new U.S. legislation on series LLCs introduced in 2015 and, on the other hand, to the PATH Act amendments to the Section 831(b) tax election, both of which reduced the attractiveness of series captives and caused some series LLCs to convert into pure captives.