Japanese spirits maker Suntory Holdings has agreed to buy Beam Inc, one of the biggest names in US whisky, in a deal valued at $16bn including debt, underscoring the group’s global ambitions and Asia’s thirst for premium spirits.
The takeover is the biggest in the industry since French group Pernod Ricard’s €5.6bn acquisition in 2008 of Vin & Sprit, the Swedish owner of Absolut vodka. The deal, unanimously approved by both companies’ boards, will close in the second quarter of the year, subject to Beam shareholder approval.
The two sides said it would result in “a stronger global player in premium spirits with annual net sales of spirits products exceeding $4.3bn”.
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