F&N to sell stake in Tiger brewer to Heineken for $4.1 bn

Heineken NV, the world's third-largest brewer, yesterday said that Singaporean conglomerate Fraser and Neave (F&N) agreed to sell its entire stake in Tiger beer maker, Asia Pacific Breweries (APB) to Heineken NV for S$5.1 billion ($4.1 billion).

The agreed deal surprised analysts as they were expecting F&N to seek as much as S$60 per share, or a counter bid either by Thai Beverage Ltd, owned by tycoon Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi or from Japanese brewer Kirin Holdings, both of whom hold stakes in F&N.

Citing sources close to knowledge of the deal, Reuters reported that F&N's board had approved the deal after Heineken raised its offer a little over S$50 a share. (See: Heineken bags Singapore's Tiger beer maker APB with raised bid: report)

Heineken, which currently holds 41.9 per cent of APB, will acquire the 40-per cent stake held by F&N in APB for S$50 a share, a premium of 45 per cent over the one-month volume weighted average price per share, for a total of S$5.1 billion.

The Amsterdam-based brewer will make a mandatory general offer at the same price for all of the remaining shares of APB once F&N's shareholders vote on the deal. The voting pattern of Thai Beverage and Kirin Holdings will be crucial since both companies hold 24.1 per cent and 15 per cent in F&N, respectively.

Kindest Place, a company owned by a son-in-law of Charoen, holds a direct 8.6 per cent in APB, while the remaining 9.5 per cent free shares are floating on the Singapore Exchange where APB is listed.