World’s largest brewer lists on the JSE with R3 trillion
Belgian brewing giant Anheuser-Busch (AB) InBev on Friday morning listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange’s (JSE) main board, with an opening price of R1938 a share.
The R3 trillion listing is a culmination of AB InBev’s takeover of brewer SABMiller. As part of the planned acquisition, AB InBev pledged to list the combined entity in South Africa.
AB InBev agreed to buy SABMiller for £68bn (now R1.62trn) in October with a £44 (now R1,048) offer. SAB’s share price on the JSE propelled from R610 in August to R966.53 by Friday.
AB InBev CEO Carlos Brito said the listing was a demonstration of the company’s commitment to South Africa and Africa, “which is central to the rationale of the deal”.
He said it also demonstrated the company’s vote of confidence in South Africa as an investment destination.
JSE CEO Nicky Newton-King said the fast-tracked listing, which took 21 days complete, sets the bar high for the bourse, which seeks to attract major listings.
AB InBev is one of the world’s largest consumer goods companies.
The listing comes after US competition officials started an investigation of the planned takeover, seeking additional information related to the deal.
AB InBev and SABMiller expect to close the transaction in the second half of this year, a person who remained anonymous, told Bloomberg.
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