Justice Department may approve of MegaBrew this month
A potential approval for the USD 100 billion-plus deal between AB-InBev and SABMiller may include measures to keep the merged entity from edging craft brewers out of the market, Bloomberg reported on 1 June 2016. These steps could include limiting the company’s ownership of distributors.
Craft beer makers have expressed concerns that the deal will hurt the fast-growing U.S. craft beer industry, as they use the same network of distributors as AB-InBev and MillerCoors.
However, the smaller brewers do not appear to be getting much traction in meetings with Justice Department officials about their complaints, Bloomberg reported.
To alleviate regulator’s concerns, AB-InBev has already offered an upfront divestiture to a specific purchaser. Under the proposal, Molson Coors would acquire SABMiller’s stake in the MillerCoors joint venture, which Molson Coors already co-owns.
Keywords
USA acquisitions international beverage market mergers
Authors
Ina Verstl
Source
BRAUWELT International 2016