Item 1A. RISK FACTORS

This report and other documents we file with the SEC contain forward-looking statements that are based on current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about us, our future performance, our business, our beliefs and our management’s assumptions. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. You should carefully consider the risks and uncertainties our business faces. The risks described below are not the only ones we face. Our business is also subject to the risks that affect many other companies, such as employment relations, general economic conditions, geopolitical events and international operations. Further, additional risks not currently known to us or that we currently believe are immaterial may in the future materially and adversely affect our business, operations, liquidity and stock price.

Below we provide, in supplemental form, the material changes to our risk factors that occurred during the past quarter. Our risk factors disclosed in Part I, Item 1A, of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, provide additional disclosure for these supplemental risks, as well as other risks to our Company, and are incorporated herein by reference.

RISKS RELATED TO ECONOMIC CONDITIONS AND OPERATING A GLOBAL BUSINESS, INCLUDING DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Our sales and operations are subject to the risks of doing business internationally, including in emerging markets*.*

As we continue our expansion efforts in emerging markets around the world, through acquisitions and licensing transactions as well as through the development and introduction, both independently and through collaborations such as our collaboration with BeiGene, of our products in new markets, we face numerous risks to our business. There is no guarantee that our efforts and strategies to expand sales in emerging markets will succeed. Our international business, including in China and emerging market countries, may be especially vulnerable to periods of global and local political, legal, regulatory and financial instability, including issues of geopolitical relations, the imposition of international sanctions in response to certain state actions and/or sovereign debt issues. Further, in the first quarter of 2022, the Asia Pacific region has also experienced a surge of COVID-19 infections, resulting in the activation of strict containment measures in certain countries in that region. If relations between the United States and other governments deteriorate, our business and investments in such markets may also be adversely affected. We may also be required to increase our reliance on third-party agents and unfamiliar operations and arrangements including those previously utilized by companies we partner with or acquire in emerging markets. See our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors—We must conduct clinical trials in humans before we commercialize and sell any of our product candidates or existing products for new indications. Our expansion efforts in China and emerging markets around the world are dependent upon the establishment of an environment that is predictable, navigable and supportive of biopharmaceutical innovation, sustained access for our products and predictable pricing controls. For example, China continues to strengthen regulations on the collection, use and transmission of Chinese human genetic resources, and has expanded regulations on the conduct of biotechnology R&D activities in China. Our applications to the HGRAC seeking approval to conduct clinical trials in China are delayed pending further guidance from HGRAC. Additionally, on March 25, 2022, BeiGene disclosed in a SEC filing its engagement of a U.S.-based independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2022 in response to the requirement that foreign companies provide access to their audit information to U.S. authorities. Our international operations and business may also be subject to less protective intellectual property or other applicable laws, diverse data privacy and protection requirements, changing tax laws and tariffs, trade restrictions or other barriers designed to protect industry in the home country against foreign competition, far-reaching antibribery and anticorruption laws and regulations and/or evolving legal and regulatory environments.

In response to the ongoing armed conflict in Ukraine, the U.S. government, numerous state governments, the EU and other countries in which we conduct business have imposed a wide range of economic sanctions that restrict commerce and business dealings with Russia, certain regions of Ukraine and certain entities and individuals. This conflict may also precipitate or amplify the other risks described herein and in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors, including risks relating to cybersecurity, global economic conditions, clinical trials and supply chains, which could adversely affect our business, operations and financial condition and results.

As we expand internationally, we are subject to fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates relative to the U.S. dollar. While we have a program in place that is designed to reduce our exposure to foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations through foreign currency hedging arrangements, our hedging efforts do not completely offset the effect of these fluctuations on our revenues and earnings. In addition, we have a number of financial instruments referencing the LIBOR. On July 27, 2017, the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority, which regulates LIBOR, announced that it will no longer require banks to submit rates for the calculation of LIBOR to the LIBOR administrator after 2021, and it is anticipated that LIBOR will be completely phased out and replaced by 2023. In March 2020 and in January 2021, the FASB issued a new accounting standard to ease the financial burdens of the expected market transition from LIBOR and other interbank offered rates to alternative reference rates. While it appears likely that Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) will be the replacement reference rate adopted in the market, the specific mechanisms to replace LIBOR in our existing LIBOR-linked financial instruments have not been finalized. As such, the replacement of LIBOR could have an adverse effect on the market for, or value of, our LIBOR-linked financial instruments. See Part IV—Note 1, Summary of significant accounting policies—Recent accounting pronouncements. We are also subject to the economic and political uncertainties stemming from the United Kingdom’s exit from the EU, commonly referred to as “Brexit,” which occurred on January 31, 2020. While our manufacturing and packaging activities take place largely outside the United Kingdom, minimizing the need to make costly and significant changes to those operations, we have nevertheless been working to put in place contingency plans to attempt to mitigate the effects of Brexit on us. Overall, the legal and operational challenges of our international business operations, along with government controls, the challenges of attracting and retaining qualified personnel and obtaining and/or maintaining necessary regulatory or pricing approvals of our products, may result in material adverse effects on our international product sales, business and results of operations.

RISKS RELATED TO GOVERNMENT REGULATIONS AND THIRD-PARTY POLICIES

The adoption and interpretation of new tax legislation or exposure to additional tax liabilities could affect our profitability.

We are subject to income and other taxes in the United States and other jurisdictions in which we do business. As a result, our provision for income taxes is derived from a combination of applicable tax rates in the various places we operate. Significant judgment is required for determining our provision for income tax.

One or more of our legal entities file income tax returns in the U.S. federal jurisdiction, various U.S. state jurisdictions and certain foreign jurisdictions. Our income tax returns are routinely examined by tax authorities in those jurisdictions. Significant disputes can and have arisen with tax authorities involving issues regarding the timing and amount of deductions, the use of tax credits and allocations of income and expenses among various tax jurisdictions because of differing interpretations of tax laws, regulations and relevant facts, and such tax authorities (including the IRS) are becoming more aggressive in their audits and are particularly focused on such matters. In 2017, we received an RAR and a modified RAR from the IRS for the years 2010, 2011 and 2012, proposing significant adjustments that primarily relate to the allocation of profits between certain of our entities in the United States and the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico. We disagreed with the proposed adjustments and calculations and pursued resolution with the IRS administrative appeals office but were unable to reach resolution. In July 2021, we filed a petition in the U.S. Tax Court to contest two duplicate Notices for 2010, 2011 and 2012 that we received in May and July 2021 which seek to increase our U.S. taxable income for 2010-2012.

In 2020, we received an RAR and a modified RAR from the IRS for the years 2013, 2014 and 2015, also proposing significant adjustments that primarily relate to the allocation of profits between certain of our entities in the United States and the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico similar to those proposed for the years 2010, 2011 and 2012. We disagreed with the proposed adjustments and calculations and pursued resolution with the IRS appeals office but were unable to reach resolution. In April 2022, we received a Notice that seeks to increase our U.S. taxable income for 2013-2015 and asserts penalties.

We firmly believe that the IRS positions set forth in the 2010-2012 and 2013-2015 Notices are without merit. We are contesting the 2010-2012 Notices through the judicial process, and we expect to file a Petition in the U.S. Tax Court to contest the 2013-2015 Notice through the judicial process. We will seek consolidation of the two periods into one case in Tax Court.

We are also currently under examination by the IRS for the years 2016, 2017 and 2018 and by a number of state and foreign tax jurisdictions.

Final resolution of these complex matters is not likely within the next 12 months. We continue to believe our accrual for income tax liabilities is appropriate based on past experience, interpretations of tax law, application of the tax law to our facts and judgments about potential actions by tax authorities; however, due to the complexity of the provision for income taxes and uncertain resolution of these matters, the ultimate outcome of any tax matters may result in payments substantially greater than amounts accrued and could have a material adverse effect on the results of our operations.

See Part I, Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Results of Operations, Income Taxes; Part I—Note 4, Income taxes, to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

Our provision for income taxes and results of operations in the future could be adversely affected by changes to our operating structure, changes in the mix of income and expenses in countries with differing tax rates, changes in the valuation of deferred tax assets and liabilities and changes in applicable tax laws, regulations or administrative interpretations thereof. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the 2017 Tax Act) is complex and a large volume of regulations and guidance has been issued and could be subject to different interpretations. We could face audit challenges to our application of the 2017 Tax Act. The Administration proposed and Congress is considering significant changes to existing tax law. These changes, if enacted, could substantially increase taxes we pay to the U.S. government. Further, the OECD recently reached agreement to align countries on a minimum corporate tax rate and an expansion of the taxing rights of market countries. If enacted, this agreement could result in tax increases in both the United States and foreign jurisdictions.

The U.S. Treasury recently released final foreign tax credit regulations that eliminate U.S. creditability of the Puerto Rico Excise Tax beginning 2023, which will increase our U.S. tax liability. The U.S. territory of Puerto Rico is considering changes to its tax system that may minimize or eliminate this impact, but the outcome of such potential changes is uncertain. Changes to existing tax law in the United States, the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, or other jurisdictions, including the potential changes discussed above, could result in tax increases where we do business and could have a material adverse effect on the results of our operations.

During the three months ended March 31, 2022, we had one outstanding stock repurchase program, under which the repurchase activity was as follows:

(1) Average price paid per share includes related expenses.

(2) As part of the stock repurchase program, the Company entered into ASR agreements with three third-party financial institutions (Dealers) in February 2022. Under the ASR agreements, the Company made payments in an aggregate amount of $6.0 billion to the Dealers and received and retired an initial 23,258,997 shares of common stock. Approximately $0.9 billion of shares of the Company’s common stock remains to be delivered by the Dealers pending final settlement. The final number of shares to be repurchased by the Company will be based on the daily volume-weighted average stock price of the Company’s common stock during the terms of the ASR agreements, less a discount and subject to adjustments pursuant to the terms and conditions of the ASR agreements. At settlement, which is scheduled to occur in the third quarter of 2022, the Dealers may be required to deliver additional shares of common stock to the Company, or under certain circumstances, the Company may be required to deliver shares of common stock or to make a cash payment, at its election, to the Dealers.