The global brewing giant made an offer to the board of its joint venture partner Fraser & Neave to acquire F&N’s interests in Tiger’s Asia Pacific Breweries for S$50 per APB share, for a total consideration of S$5.1 billion.
Heineken chairman and CEO Jean-François van Boxmeer said: “We really value our partnership with F&N which goes back over 80 years, but due to changes in the F&N and APB shareholding, the fabric of the partnership has changed. As a result, it is time for us to look ahead to the next chapter of our Asian business, in which Singapore will continue to be our regional headquarters and both the Heineken and Tiger brand will spearhead our brand portfolio in Asia.”
On July 18 2012, OCBC Bank announced that it had signed an agreement that Thai Bev will acquire OCBC Bank’s, Great Eastern Holdings and Lee Rubber’s combined 22% stake in F&N for S$8.88 per F&N share and that Kindest Place Groups will acquire a combined 8.4% stake in APB for S$45 per APB share.
A statement from Heineken concluded: “Heineken is keen to agree a consensual deal with F&N, however if Heineken is denied the ability to extend its offer to all APB shareholders it will review all options available to protect its commercial interests.”
