Beer producers AB InBev and Anadolu Efes merge businesses operating in Russia and Ukraine

The world major brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev) and Turkish leading beer producer Anadolu Efes (Efes) agreed to merge on equal terms in Russia and Ukraine. The companies plan to introduce a wide assortment of the beer brands cumulatively in order to gain a leading position in the markets of Ukraine and Russia, according to the joint press release. Upon the completion of the deal in H1/2018, all the relevant changes will come into effect. Meantime, AB InBev and Anadolu Efes will operate as separate entities. The two companies are confident that joint efforts in Russian and Ukrainian markets will be successful contributing to tackling competition in the markets. At this, the move is attributed to the recent merger of AB InBev and SABMiller, as a result of which ABInBev got 24% share stake in Anadolu Efes.  The new entity will be titled AB InBev-Efes. The executive board will include equal number of representative of the two companies.