MGM Resorts (MGM) Risk Analysis

Our ownership and operation of gaming operations is subject to extensive regulation by the countries, states and provinces in which we operate. These laws, regulations and ordinances vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, but generally concern the responsibility, financial stability and character of the owners and managers of gaming operations as well as persons financially interested or involved in gaming operations. As such, our gaming regulators can require us to disassociate ourselves from suppliers or business partners found unsuitable by the regulators or, alternatively, cease operations in that jurisdiction. In addition, unsuitable activity on our part or on the part of our domestic or foreign unconsolidated affiliates or subsidiaries in any jurisdiction could have a negative effect on our ability to continue operating in other jurisdictions. The regulatory environment in any particular jurisdiction may change in the future and any such change could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations. Furthermore, our iGaming and online sports betting initiatives may be particularly subject to risks related to potential changes in the regulatory and enforcement environment as a result of the continued development of regulatory schemes in this industry in the U.S. and internationally. The regulation and legality of iGaming and online sports betting and approaches to enforcement vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction (from open licensing regimes to regimes that impose sanctions or prohibitions) and is subject to uncertainties. In certain jurisdictions, there is no legislation which is directly applicable to our business, or the legality of the supply of iGaming and online sports betting is not clear or is open to interpretation. In many jurisdictions, there are conflicting laws and/or regulations, conflicting interpretations, divergent approaches by enforcement agencies and/or inconsistent enforcement policies and, therefore, some or all forms of iGaming and online sports betting could be determined to be illegal in some of these jurisdictions, either when operated within the jurisdiction and/or when accessed by persons located in that jurisdiction. Moreover, the legality of iGaming and online sports betting is subject to uncertainties arising from differing approaches among jurisdictions as to the determination of where iGaming and online sports betting activities take place and which authorities have jurisdiction over such activities and/or those who participate in or facilitate them. In addition, there is a risk that regulators or prosecutors in jurisdictions where we provide online sports betting or iGaming services to customers without a local license or pursuant to a multi-jurisdictional license, may take legal action in respect of our operations in that jurisdiction and any defense we raise to such actions may not be successful. Actions that may be taken may include criminal sanctions and penalties, as well as civil and administrative enforcement actions, fines, excessive taxation, funds and asset seizures, authorities seeking to seize funds generated from the allegedly illegal activity, as well as payment blocks and ISP blacklisting. Even if such claims could be successfully defended, the process may result in a loss of reputation, potential loss of revenue and diversion of management resources and time. There is a significant risk that our determination to permit customers in any given jurisdiction to access any one or more of our products or engage in various types of marketing activity and customer contact may not always accurately predict the likelihood of one or more jurisdictions taking enforcement or other adverse action against us, our customers or our third-party suppliers, which could lead to fines, criminal sanctions and/or the termination of our operations in such jurisdiction or jurisdictions, and, ultimately, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. For a summary of gaming and other regulations that affect our business, see "Regulation and Licensing" and Exhibit 99.1 to this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Further, our directors, officers, key employees and investors in our properties and iGaming and online sports betting initiatives must meet approval standards of certain state and foreign regulatory authorities. If such regulatory authorities were to find such a person or investor unsuitable, we would be required to sever our relationship with that person or the investor may be required to dispose of his, her or its interest. Regulatory authorities may also conduct investigations into the conduct or associations of our directors, officers, key employees or investors to ensure compliance with applicable standards. Certain public and private issuances of securities, borrowings under credit agreements, guarantees of indebtedness and other transactions also require the approval of certain regulatory authorities. Macau laws and regulations concerning gaming and gaming concessions are complex, and a court or administrative or regulatory body may in the future render an interpretation of these laws and regulations, or issue new or modified regulations, that differ from MGM China's interpretation, which could have a material adverse effect on its business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, MGM Grand Paradise's activities in Macau are subject to administrative review and approval by various government agencies. We cannot assure you that MGM Grand Paradise will be able to obtain all necessary approvals, and any such failure to do so may materially affect its long-term business strategy and operations. Macau laws permit redress to the courts with respect to administrative actions; however, to date such redress is largely untested in relation to gaming issues. In addition to gaming regulations, we are also subject to various federal, state, local and foreign laws and regulations affecting businesses in general. These laws and regulations include, but are not limited to, restrictions and conditions concerning alcoholic beverages, environmental matters, smoking, employees, currency transactions, taxation, zoning and building codes, and marketing and advertising. For instance, we are subject to certain federal, state and local environmental laws, regulations and ordinances, including the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the Resource Conservation Recovery Act, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, the Energy Policy Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act, Renewable Portfolio Standards, the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, and many others. Under various federal, state and local environmental laws and regulations, an owner or operator of real property may be held liable for the costs of removal or remediation of certain hazardous or toxic substances or wastes located on its property, regardless of whether or not the present owner or operator knows of, or is responsible for, the presence of such substances or wastes. Such laws and regulations could change or could be interpreted differently in the future, or new laws and regulations could be enacted. There has been increasing focus from international, national, and state regulators on reporting and reducing GHG emissions and other climate change-related topics. These regulations could impose stricter standards on operations and reporting which could be costly and difficult to implement. In addition, effective since January 1, 2019, smoking in casinos in Macau, including MGM Macau and MGM Cotai, is only permitted inside specially ventilated smoking rooms, rather than outside smoking areas or VIP areas. The likelihood or outcome of similar legislation in other jurisdictions and referendums in the future cannot be predicted, though any smoking ban would be expected to negatively impact our financial performance. We also deal with significant amounts of cash in our operations and are subject to recordkeeping and reporting obligations as required by various anti-money laundering laws and regulations. For instance, in the United States, we are subject to regulation under the Currency and Foreign Transactions Reporting Act of 1970, commonly known as the "Bank Secrecy Act", which, among other things, requires us to report to the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") any currency transactions in excess of $10,000 that occur within a 24-hour gaming day, including identification of the individual(s) involved in the currency transaction. We are also required to report suspicious activity where we know, suspect or have reason to suspect transactions, among other things, involve funds from illegal activity or are intended to evade federal regulations or avoid reporting requirements or have no business or lawful purpose. In addition, under the Bank Secrecy Act and similar laws in other jurisdictions, we are subject to various other rules and regulations involving reporting, recordkeeping and retention. Our compliance with anti-money laundering regulations, including the Bank Secrecy Act, is subject to periodic examinations by the relevant regulatory agencies in each jurisdiction where we operate. Any such laws and regulations could change or could be interpreted differently in the future, or new laws and regulations could be enacted. Any violations of the anti-money laundering laws, including the Bank Secrecy Act, or regulations by any of our properties, businesses, customers, or employees could have an adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

Federal, state and local authorities domestically and internationally raise a significant amount of revenue through taxes and fees, including taxes and fees on gaming activities. From time to time, legislators and government officials have proposed changes in tax laws, or in the administration of such laws, affecting the gaming industry. Periods of economic downturn or uncertainty and budget deficits may intensify such efforts to raise revenues through increases in taxes, the imposition of new taxes or changes to tax laws that result in higher taxes than would be incurred under existing tax law or interpretation. In addition, tax law changes adopted to align with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development ("OECD") Global Anti-Base Erosion Model Rules ("Pillar Two") framework, which establishes a global minimum tax, could increase tax uncertainty. If the jurisdictions in which we operate were to increase taxes, impose new taxes or change existing tax laws, our financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

We are required to make annual rent payments of $1.8 billion, in the aggregate, under our triple net lease agreements, which leases are also subject to annual escalators as described elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. The leases also require us to spend a certain amount on capital expenditures at the leased properties. In addition, each of the leases obligates us to comply with certain financial covenants which, if not met, will require us to deposit cash collateral or issue letters of credit for the benefit of the applicable landlord equal to 6 months or 1 year of rent, as applicable to the circumstances, under the VICI Properties, Inc. ("VICI") lease, 1 year of rent under the Mandalay Bay and MGM Grand Las Vegas lease, the Aria and Vdara lease, and The Cosmopolitan lease, and 2 years of rent under the Bellagio lease. As a result of the foregoing rent and capital expenditure obligations, our ability to fund our operations, raise capital, make acquisitions, make investments, service our debt and otherwise respond to competitive and economic changes may be adversely affected. For example, our obligations under the leases may: - make it more difficult for us to satisfy our obligations with respect to our indebtedness and to obtain additional indebtedness;- increase our vulnerability to general adverse economic and industry conditions or a downturn in our business;- require us to dedicate a substantial portion of our cash flow from operations to making rent payments, thereby reducing the availability of our cash flow to fund working capital, capital expenditures, development projects, pay dividends, repurchase shares and other general corporate purposes;- limit our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes in our business and the industry in which we operate;- restrict our ability to make acquisitions, divestitures and engage in other significant transactions; and - cause us to lose our rights with respect to the applicable leased properties if we fail to pay rent or other amounts or otherwise default on the leases. Any of the above factors could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

Our ability to make payments on our substantial indebtedness and other significant financial commitments, including the rent payments under our leases, and to fund planned or committed capital expenditures and other investments depends on our ability to generate cash flow, receive distributions from our unconsolidated affiliates and subsidiaries (including BetMGM North America Venture and MGM China), and borrow under our senior credit facility or incur new indebtedness. If regional and national economic conditions deteriorate, including in connection with a recession, revenues from our operations could decline as consumer spending levels decrease and we could fail to generate cash sufficient to fund our liquidity needs or satisfy the financial and other restrictive covenants in our debt and lease instruments. If we fail to generate cash sufficient to fund our liquidity needs or satisfy the financial and other covenants in our debt and lease instruments, we cannot assure you that future borrowings will be available to us under our senior secured credit facility in an amount sufficient to enable us to pay our indebtedness or fund our other liquidity needs or that we will be able to access the capital markets in the future to borrow additional debt on terms favorable to us, or at all. In addition, we have a significant amount of indebtedness maturing in 2027, and thereafter. Our ability to fund or timely refinance and replace our indebtedness will depend upon the economic and credit market conditions discussed above. If we are unable to fund or refinance our indebtedness on a timely basis, we might be forced to seek alternate forms of financing, dispose of assets or minimize capital expenditures and other investments. There is no assurance that any of these alternatives would be available to us, if at all, on satisfactory terms, on terms that would not be disadvantageous to us, or on terms that would not require us to breach the terms and conditions of our existing or future debt agreements or leases.

Leisure and business travel, especially travel by air, are particularly susceptible to global geopolitical events, such as terrorist attacks, other acts of violence or acts of war or hostility or the outbreak of infectious diseases. We are dependent on the willingness of our customers to travel by air. Since most of our customers travel by air to our Las Vegas and Macau properties, any terrorist act or other acts of violence, outbreak of hostilities, escalation of war, or any actual or perceived threat to the security of travel by air, could adversely affect our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. In addition, the outbreak of infectious diseases, such as COVID-19, may severely disrupt domestic and international travel. Furthermore, although we have been able to purchase some insurance coverage for certain types of terrorist acts, insurance coverage against physical loss or business interruption resulting from war and some forms of terrorism continues to be unavailable.