F&N shareholders vote to sell Tiger beer maker to Heineken
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SINGAPORE (REUTERS) – Shareholders of Singapore’s Fraser and Neave (F&N) voted in favour of selling the conglomerate’s beer business, Asia Pacific Breweries (APB), to Heineken NV in a US$6.3 billion (S$7.7 billion) deal.
The vote on Friday formally ends a two-month battle between Heineken and companies linked to Thai beer baron Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi for the control of the Tiger beer maker. The Thai firms, collectively the biggest shareholder of F&N, had
previously offered to take over APB.
The approval was a formality after Charoen’s firms, including Thai Beverage PCL, said last week they would vote in favour of the sale of F&N’s 40 per cent stake in APB to the Dutch brewer.
The Thai group, which owns a combined 30.7 per cent stake in F&N, is now making a $7.2 billion bid to take over the Singapore conglomerate, which also has interests in soft drinks, dairy products, property and publishing.
