F&N bid part of ThaiBev's overseas expansion
If it succeeds in buying significant stakes in Fraser and Neave, Thai Beverage expects to expand its international coverage immediately, especially in Southeast Asia.
The transaction is in line with the group’s plans to grow its profile beyond its predominantly domestic market focus, and allow it to tap a range of attractive demographics and consumer spending trends, it says.
Thapana Sirivadhanabhakdi, president and chief executive officer of ThaiBev, said in a recent company statement: “To become a shareholder of F&N is a great opportunity, as it will contribute to synergy of both parties and ThaiBev will gain exposure to knowledge and experiences of the F&N management team, which has keen expertise in the overall Asean region.
“On behalf of Thai Beverage Public Co Ltd, I would like to convey my great appreciation to the board of directors and management team of F&N for giving us the opportunity and such prestige. The company is confident that with the know-how, experience and expertise in the food and beverage business of F&N, both parties will enhance our capability of offering high-quality products to consumers.
“ThaiBev believes that the strong relationship will lead to fruitful collaborative efforts.”
According to the statement, ThaiBev entered three sale and purchase agreements to acquire 313,036,775 ordinary shares of Singapore Exchange-listed consumer group Fraser and Neave from Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp, Great Eastern Holdings and Lee Rubber Co. This purchase would be for the account of ThaiBev, or International Beverage Holdings Ltd, or such other wholly owned subsidiary of ThaiBev that the company may nominate.
The total number of shares represents approximately 22 per cent of the current issued share capital of F&N. The proposed purchase price of 8.88 Singapore dollars per F&N share (equivalent to Bt223.78) amounts to a total consideration of about S$2.78 billion (equivalent to Bt70.05 billion). ThaiBev said it intended to finance the transaction through a mixture of external borrowings and internal funds.
ThaiBev was listed in Singapore in 2006.
F&N has a history of more than 80 years in Southeast Asia and has three core businesses, namely food and beverage, properties and publishing and printing. Its food and beverage business operates 31 breweries in 15 countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
As the largest beverage company in Singapore and Malaysia, F&N also owns a portfolio of renowned brands across multiple product classes and enjoys leadership positions in key markets. ThaiBev said it believed F&N was highly complementary to its existing capabilities and would increase the group’s profile in the food and beverage sector.
