USA: US Senate to hold hearing into AB InBev-SABMiller deal on December 8

The US Senate late on November 30 said it will hold a hearing next week into the proposed takeover of SABMiller PLC by rival Anheuser-Busch InBev, Alliance News reported.

The Senate Judiciary Committee said its antitrust subcommittee will hold a meeting on the proposed merger of the two largest beer companies in the world on December 8.

AB InBev is acquiring London-listed SABMiller for GBP71.0 billion, creating a combined company which will be responsible for around a third of beers sold globally.

The deal is set to face a significant number of regulatory hurdles, and the pair already have agreed a deal to sell SABMiller's stake in the MillerCoors joint venture in the US to Molson Coors, SABMiller's partner in the joint venture, for USD12.0 billion.

On November 30, the Financial Times also reported AB InBev was considering offloading the Peroni and Grolsch lager brands in order to ease any regulatory concerns about the deal in Europe.

02 December, 2015