LAS VEGAS, Feb. 8, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- MGM Resorts
International (NYSE: MGM) ("MGM Resorts") today announced the
inaugural Board of Directors of MGM Growth Properties LLC ("MGP").
The MGP Board will feature two independent directors, Thomas Roberts and Michael Rietbrock. Roberts is a strategic
advisor and corporate governance consultant to public and private
companies and was previously a partner at Weil, Gotshal &
Manges for more than two decades, where he served as Chairman of
the Corporate Department. Rietbrock has a highly distinguished
career analyzing and investing in Real Estate, Gaming, and Lodging
securities and was most recently the Head of Global Equity Research
and Co-Head of U.S. Equities at Nomura Securities, where he played
a key leadership role in the development of the firm's U.S.
operations.
Jim Murren, Chairman and CEO of
MGM Resorts International, said, "We welcome Tom and Mike to the
MGP Board of Directors. Tom's experience advising companies on
complex, high-profile situations coupled with his deep knowledge of
corporate governance matters and best practices will support the
establishment of guidelines and procedures for the MGP Board, while
Mike's background in finance and global equity markets,
particularly in Real Estate, Gaming, and Lodging, will provide a
solid foundation to help oversee MGP's execution of its financial
strategy and industry positioning. They will bring significant
relevant experience to the MGP Board that we believe will
drive an expertly managed board that will be aligned with
shareholder interests and entirely focused
on the success of this newly formed company."
Murren continued, "We are also pleased to announce that
Elisa Gois will join the MGP
Board. Elisa joined MGM Resorts from Host Hotels &
Resorts, where she created and led the Corporate Strategy
Analytics, Feasibility and Business Intelligence & Portfolio
Analysis departments. As Chief Analytics Officer and Senior Vice
President of Enterprise Analytics at MGM Resorts, she brings
important analytical perspectives and a track record of driving
growth and results. In addition to Elisa, Tom and Mike, we will
fill the remaining seats on the MGP Board with MGM leaders who will
provide invaluable strategic oversight across a range of key areas
at MGM Resorts and also bring critical knowledge of the assets that
will initially comprise the REIT. We look forward to growing MGP's
Board as the company expands in the coming years."
The full MGP Board will be composed of the following
individuals:
- Elisa Gois, Chief
Analytics Officer and Senior Vice President of Enterprise Analytics
at MGM Resorts.
- Bill Hornbuckle,
President of MGM Resorts.
- John McManus, Executive
Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of MGM Resorts.
- Jim Murren, Chairman and
Chief Executive Officer of MGM Resorts.
- Michael Rietbrock
(Independent Director), former Head of Global Equity
Research and Co-Head of US Equities at Nomura Securities.
- Thomas Roberts
(Independent Director), former Senior Partner at Weil,
Gotshal & Manges.
- Dan Taylor, Executive at
Tracinda Corporation and Independent Director of MGM Resorts.
Murren concluded, "Today's announcement, combined with the
appointments of James Stewart and
Andy Chien, as MGP's CEO and CFO
respectively, underscores the deliberate steps we are taking to
create a premier company in this space. MGP's independent directors
and executive team will provide extensive and applicable experience
and complement our Board members from MGM Resorts."
As previously announced, MGM Resorts will create a controlled
Real Estate Investment Trust ("REIT") to which MGM Resorts will
contribute ten premier real estate properties, with more than
24,000 hotel rooms and more than 2.3 million square feet of
convention and meeting space, including:
- Seven large-scale Las Vegas
resorts and entertainment properties: Mandalay Bay, The Mirage,
Monte Carlo, New York-New York, Luxor, Excalibur, and The
Park.
- Three regional casino resort properties: MGM Grand Detroit in
Michigan and Beau Rivage and Gold
Strike Tunica, both of which are located in Mississippi.
About Elisa Gois
Elisa Gois has served as the
Chief Analytics Officer and Senior Vice President of Enterprise
Analytics at MGM Resorts International since 2015. In this
role, she leads a team of professionals responsible for optimizing
revenues and cash flow by aligning analytic insights and
initiatives with business strategies, guiding priorities from an
enterprise-wide perspective and leading the development of the
Business Intelligence and Data Governance platforms. Prior to
joining MGM Resorts International, she served as Senior Vice
President of Global Business Strategy & Analytics for 17 years
at Host Hotels & Resorts. Over her 17-year career at Host, she
led the underwriting of billions of dollars of portfolio and single
asset acquisitions, dispositions and return on investment
projects. She developed the Business Intelligence function
that drove the implementation of millions of dollars of revenue
generating and cost savings opportunities, and she played a key
leadership role in the development and implementation of the
company's global strategy.
Gois received a Masters in Social Work from the University of Maryland and a Bachelor of Science
degree from Towson State University. Additionally, she has
participated in numerous continuing education programs at Harvard
Business School, New York University,
Cornell University, and other
institutions.
About Michael
Rietbrock
Michael Rietbrock was most
recently the Head of Global Equity Research and Co-Head of U.S.
Equities at Nomura Securities after previously serving as the Head
of U.S. Equity Research at Bank of America Securities, where he led
a major expansion of the bank's research department, and managed
its acquisition of and integration with Merrill Lynch. Prior to
joining Bank of America, Rietbrock was a Portfolio Manager at
Caxton Associates, where he managed a portfolio of Real Estate,
Gaming, and Lodging securities. Rietbrock began his career at
Citigroup, where he served for more than 15 years and was rated
among the top three Gaming & Lodging analysts on Wall Street by
Institutional Investor and Greenwich Associates from 1996 - 2005,
including #1 every year from 2001 – 2005, respectively, among other
years.
Rietbrock serves on the Board of Trustees of the Ideal School of
Manhattan. He graduated from
Harvard College with a degree in
Economics.
About Thomas Roberts
Thomas Roberts is a strategic
advisor and corporate governance consultant. Previously, he was a
Senior Partner at Weil, Gotshal & Manges, where he served for
more than 20 years and held numerous senior management and
board-level positions, including as one of the leaders responsible
for the firm's strategic redirection and globalization. His clients
were involved in many diverse industries including oil and gas,
manufacturing, hospitality, financial services, insurance and real
estate. Roberts' practice primarily involved domestic and
cross-border mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, contested
takeovers, as well as advising board of directors and committees of
boards generally on strategic matters including matters involving
REITs. He has served as lead corporate and governance advisor in
some of the most complex and critical financial crises in recent
history including Enron, Lehman and American Airlines, and in
connection with numerous internal and external investigations,
regulatory controversies, financial restatements and the securities
litigation related to such matters.
Roberts served as a member of the Board of Directors of
Make-A-Wish Foundation of Metro New York from 1998 and served as
Chairman from 2006 to 2010. He was named "Dealmaker of the Year" by
The American Lawyer in 2001 and 2002. He has a Bachelor of Arts and
Juris Doctor from Georgetown
University.
About MGM Resorts International
MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) is one of the world's
leading global hospitality companies, operating a portfolio of
destination resort brands including Bellagio, MGM Grand, Mandalay
Bay and The Mirage. The Company is in the process of developing MGM
National Harbor in Maryland and
MGM Springfield in Massachusetts.
The Company also owns 51 percent of MGM China Holdings Limited,
which owns the MGM Macau resort and casino and is developing a
gaming resort in Cotai, and 50 percent of CityCenter in
Las Vegas, which features ARIA
Resort & Casino. For more information about MGM Resorts
International, visit the Company's website at
www.mgmresorts.com.
Statements in this release that are not historical facts are
forward-looking statements, within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and involve risks and/or
uncertainties, including those described in the Company's public
filings with the SEC. The Company has based forward-looking
statements on management's current expectations and assumptions and
not on historical facts. Examples of these statements include, but
are not limited to, the Company's decision to complete the REIT
transaction. These forward-looking statements involve a number of
risks and uncertainties. Among the important factors that could
cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in
such forward-looking statements include the operational
complexities to be addressed by the Company to effect the REIT
transaction, the ability and timing of the Company's receipt of
regulatory approvals (including approval from gaming regulators)
regarding the REIT transaction, effects of economic conditions and
market conditions in the markets in which the Company operates and
the REIT will operate, the condition of the U.S. debt and equity
capital markets, the design, timing and costs of expansion
projects, risks relating to international operations, permits,
licenses, financings, approvals and other contingencies in
connection with growth in new or existing jurisdictions and
additional risks and uncertainties described in the Company's Form
10-K, Form 10-Q and Form 8-K reports (including all amendments to
those reports). In providing forward-looking statements, the
Company is not undertaking any duty or obligation to update these
statements publicly as a result of new information, future events
or otherwise, except as required by law. If the Company updates one
or more forward-looking statements, no inference should be drawn
that it will make additional updates with respect to those other
forward-looking statements.
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SOURCE MGM Resorts International