Asahi to buy Peroni and Grolsch
Japanese brewer Asahi says it has agreed to buy the Peroni and Grolsch beer brands for €2.55bn (£1.98bn).
The brands, which are currently part of the SABMiller portfolio, have to be sold to allow the firm's takeover by rival Anheuser-Busch InBev. Under the terms of the acquisition, agreed in October, AB InBev is paying £44 a share for SABMiller in a deal worth about £70bn. AB InBev's brands include Budweiser, Stella Artois and Corona. As part of the package, Asahi will also be acquiring London-based craft brewer Meantime Brewing Company, which SABMiller bought in May last year. What deal means for drinkers Global market share of five biggest beer companies Anheuser-Busch InBev - 20.8% SABMiller - 9.7% Heineken - 9.1% Carlsberg - 6.1% China Resources Enterprise - 6% Source: Euromonitor, based on 2014 figures SABMiller has a workforce of close to 70,000 people in more than 80 countries, and global annual sales of more than $26bn. AB InBev has a workforce of 155,000 and global revenues of more than $47bn.