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Brewer InBev completes takeover of Anheuser-Busch: company
2008-11-18
BRUSSELS (AFP) - Belgian brewing giant InBev on Tuesday announced it had completed the takeover of Anheuser-Busch to create the world's biggest brewer. "Effective today, InBev has changed its name to Anheuser-Busch InBev to reflect the heritage and traditions of Anheuser-Busch," said a statement, after shareholders of both companies approved the deal. Priced at 70 dollars per Anheuser-Busch share, the deal is worth 52 billion dollars (41.1 billion euros). While ending Anheuser's roughly 150 years of independence as a premier American brewer, it creates not only the world's largest beer company but one of the top five consumer goods groups in the world. The new company will have sales of about 36 billion dollars a year, offering consumers about 300 brands, including Anheuser's Budweiser and Bud Light, and InBev's Stella Artois and Beck's. "By bringing together these two great businesses, we have created a stronger, more competitive global company with a leading international brand portfolio and distribution network, and great potential for growth all over the world," Anheuser-Busch InBev chief Carlos Brito said in the statement. Anheuser-Busch head August A. Busch IV said: "We have created a first-class international consumer products company and, without a doubt, the premier global brewer. "Together, we will achieve our goals far more effectively than either company could on its own," he added. On Friday, the US Justice Department lifted a key regulatory hurdle to the takeover, saying that it would clear the move pending the divestiture of InBev's Labatt USA beer brand. The bid for Anheuser-Busch had stirred fierce opposition in the company's home state of Missouri where Governor Matt Blunt called the prospect of a foreign takeover "deeply troubling." But many US shareholders, including billionaire investor Warren Buffett, favored the deal, and it was approved by more than two-thirds. The deal has not all been smooth. In July, Anheuser-Busch filed suit to block an approach, claiming "illegal" and "deceptive" conduct by InBev which later increased its offer price. InBev now faces other legal hurdles in many countries because of a century-old trademark dispute with Czech brewer Budejovicky Budvar. The Czech brewery, which claims to have a total of 380 registered trademarks in more than 100 countries, has frequently clashed with the much bigger Anheuser-Busch in various courts about the rights to the Budweiser brand.
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