Grupo Modelo is the largest beer company in Mexico, and their most popular beer, of course, is Corona. For many years, Anheuser-Busch has owned a non-controlling 50% share of the company, but after the InBev merger they own 50.2% but only 49.3% voting. And I think they’ve been coveting control for a long, long time and now they may finally get it.
Yesterday, Reuters had an item, AB InBev to Buy Modelo This Year, suggesting it’s likely a deal will go through, and will be completed later this year. The price tag looks to be about $10.8 billion. Earlier this year, Heineken bought FEMSA, Mexico’s second largest beer company. So if ABI buys Modelo, the majority of the country’s beer market will be owned by foreign companies, just like in the U.S.
This was to be expected. I was in St. Louis when the AB/InBev buyout was going down. I thought it amusing when ABs half-hearted attempt to stop the buyout consisted of the threat to buy Grupo Modelo.