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Global: AB InBev could swoop in after SABMiller/Heineken fail

By  |  September 15, 2014

The world’s largest brewery, Anheuser-Busch InBev, could be eyeing a takeover of its closest rival, SABMiller, after reports confirmed that SAB’s bid to acquire Heineken was rejected by the family-owned business.

UK-based SAB’s attempt to take over Heineken is considered by industry experts as the company’s way to fend off a takeover by AB InBev. With the failure of that plan, rumors are once again heating up of a mega beer deal that would combine the world’s first- and second-largest breweries. Some reports said AB InBev, based in Belgium, is already speaking to banks about financing a deal that could reach $122 billion, according to an unnamed source.

That source added that AB InBev had not yet made a formal bid for SABMiller, but was waiting to do so until it had its finances in line.

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