AB Inbev to make takeover bid for SAB Miller

“Downward rating pressure could result if a deal goes through due to higher leverage and certain integration risks, despite the enhanced scale and diversification of the businesses”, Moody’s said. Beijing-based CRE would be the likely buyer of AB InBev’s post-merger interest.

“AB InBev’s intention is to work with SABMiller’s Board toward a recommended transaction”, the Anheuser-Busch InBev company said in a statement, according to the Associated Press. Anheuser-Busch InBev is based in Belgium, and it’s the manufacturer behind Budweiser, Stella Artois, Corona, Beck’s, Michelob Ultra, Modelo Especial, Goose Island, Rolling Rock, and so, so many more.

Britain’s top share index rose on Wednesday, with SABMiller surging about 20 percent after news that AB InBev, the world’s largest brewer, was to make an offer to acquire the British firm, the world’s No. 2.

“The real attraction is Africa, where AB InBev has no presence, as well as some add-ons in Asia and Latin America”, said Societe Generale analyst Andrew Holland, Reuters reported.

SABMiller said it “would review and respond as appropriate to any proposal which might be made”. The companies also would have to address concerns about the deal’s potential impact on the craft brewing sector, where growth has outpaced that of the major brewers.

If successful, the deal would be the largest merger in beer industry history, with a value of roughly $275 billion.

“No proposal has yet been received and the board of SABMiller has no further details about the terms of any such proposal”, SABMiller said in a statement.

The company bought Czech brewer Plzensky Prazdroj, maker of Pilsner Urquell, in 1999, U.S.-based Miller Brewing Co.in 2002 and Foster’s of Australia in 2011. The company owns several worldwide beer brands like Budweiser and local brands like Harbin and Sedrin.

However, SABMiller might make eyes at other brewers like Heineken or Diageo, in a bid to cover their own behinds.

Anheuser-Busch InBev has until 5pm on October 14 to make an offer or walk away under a “put up or shut up” deadline set by the City Takeover Panel. SABMiller sells beers, including Miller Lite, Coors Light and Blue Moon in the United States and Puerto Rico through a joint venture with Molson Coors.

The combined revenue would exceed $69 billion per year and overtake 30 percent of worldwide beer sales, according to the New York Times.