South Africa Clears Anheuser-Busch InBev's Purchase of SABMiller
June 30 2016 - 5:50AM
Dow Jones News
Anheuser-Busch InBev NV's roughly $108 billion deal to buy
SABMiller PLC has been cleared by regulators in South Africa, with
the world's largest brewer on Thursday saying it is "well on track"
to close the acquisition in the second half of this year.
South Africa's Competition Tribunal's approval of the
combination of Belgian-based AB InBev with SABMiller leaves the
brewer now needing a formal nod from regulators in the U.S. and
China before the deal can close.
AB InBev in recent weeks had taken a series of steps to push the
deal through in South Africa—where regulators typically evaluate
how mergers affect employment—pledging to create a $69 million
investment fund in South Africa and promising that no employees in
the country would lose their jobs as a result of the merger. In
April, AB InBev said the investment fund would support farmers,
local manufacturing, jobs and the reduction of harmful alcohol use
in South Africa.
Those moves helped it get approval from the South Africa
Competition Commission last month, leaving it needing just the
Tribunal's nod, which it has now secured. The deal, if approved by
the U.S. and China, will create the world's largest brewer, with a
nearly 30% market share.
AB InBev in May got approval from the European Union after
agreeing to shed nearly all of SABMiller's European assets.
To appease U.S. regulators AB InBev has agreed to sell
SABMiller's interest in MillerCoors LLC to joint-venture partner
Molson Coors Brewing Co. In China, it has said it would sell
SABMiller's interest in the joint venture known as CR Snow to China
Resources Beer Holdings Co.
Write to Saabira Chaudhuri at saabira.chaudhuri@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 30, 2016 05:35 ET (09:35 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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