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Business Unity chief Mabuza gets top spot in SABMiller merger

Cape Town - Telkom chairperson and head of Business Unity South Africa Jabu Mabuza will chair the African division of Anheuser-Busch InBev's (AB InBev) [SE:ANB] merged company with SABMiller [JSE:SAB], the company announced on Thursday.

This forms part of AB InBev's announcement of its new organisational structure, leadership team and other key appointments for the combined group intended to be implemented following completion of the R1.45trn merger with SABMiller.

AB InBev said in a statement to shareholders the organisational design would allow the combined group to focus on delivering its ambitious long-term organic growth objectives while integrating the two businesses, "capturing the best of both".

Through the largely complementary geographical footprints and brand portfolios of AB InBev and SABMiller, the combined group would have operations in virtually every major beer market and would provide tremendous growth opportunities across new and existing markets around the world.

Mabuza will work with CEO Carlos Brito to finalise the governance and constitution of the board, AB Inbev said.

Mabuza's successful entrepreneurial background, pan-African experience and involvement with the public sector will be invaluable to the combined group and the Africa board, which will play an important role in advising the business across the continent as it moves forward, AB Inbev said.

Mabuza has held a number of board memberships, including the Tanzanian Breweries, Castle Brewing Company (Kenya) and South African Tourism. He was also group chief executive of Tsogo Sun Holdings and CEO of Fabcos Marketing.

"We are fully committed to driving growth across the African continent, working very closely with the communities in which the business operates to advance both the commercial and social agendas,” said Brito.

"I am honoured that Mr Jabu Mabuza has agreed to lead our Africa Board as chairman," he said. "His successful entrepreneurial background, pan-African experience and involvement with the public sector will be invaluable to the combined group and the Africa board, which will play an important role in advising the business across the continent as it moves forward."

Africa a critical driver of growth

AB InBev said it believes Africa will be a critical driver of growth for the combined company, and it aims to build on the strong heritage of SABMiller in the region.

The executive board of management of the new company will be composed of the zone presidents and functional heads, or ‘chiefs,’ reporting to Brito. Mauricio Leyva of SABMiller, now managing director of SAB, will join this team as zone president for Middle Americas.

Yokesh Maharaj, currently sales and distribution director for SAB, has been appointed as business unit president South Africa, in the place of  Leyva. Maharaj has been with SAB for 15 years in a number of positions within the organisation.

SABMiller CEO Alan Clark's name does not appear in the new organisational structure.

For integration and continuity, John Davidson (general counsel and corporate affairs officer at SABMiller), Johann Nel (group human resources director, SABMiller) and Mark Bowman (managing director, SABMiller Africa) will remain with the combined group for a transitional period of at least six months following completion to assist with the critical tasks of integration, talent retention and stakeholder management.

Merger to be completed by October

AB InBev anticipates the successful completion of the recommended business combination to be completed on 10 October 2016. This followed AB InBev getting competition approval in 23 jurisdictions around the world, including South Africa, the US and China.

It hit a stumbling block late in July over concerns the Brexit vote devalued the deal, which led to AB In Bev offering a higher offer by one pound a share to £45 and also increased the amount of cash for shareholders who choose a cash-and-stock alternative.

SABMiller ordered work to stop on the deal last week as shareholders indicated they were not happy with the increase, but this quickly changed as most shareholders approved the increase last Friday.

AB InBev started the process of forming a new company called Newbelco on Tuesday by entering a document with the Brussels commercial registry, where the company is based.

Geographic structure

The group will be headquartered in Leuven, Belgium, and will have its global functional management office in New York, AB InBev said on Thursday.

Following the completion of the combination, it is intended that a presence will be retained in SABMiller’s UK offices in Woking for people working on integration and business continuity for a transitional period, allowing the combined group to fully capture synergies and best practices while continuing to grow the business.

The combined group will be divided in nine zones to maximise growth opportunities and build on the strengths of both SABMiller and AB InBev in their respective markets.

The Zones and their corresponding countries will be:

1.    North America (headquartered in St. Louis): United States and Canada

2.    Middle Americas (headquartered in Mexico City): Mexico, El Salvador and Honduras

3.    Latin America North (headquartered in São Paulo): Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Panama, St. Vincent, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Barbados, Dominica and the Caribbean

4.    Latin America South (headquartered in Buenos Aires): Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Paraguay and Bolivia

5.    Latin America COPEC (headquartered in Bogotá): Colombia, Peru and Ecuador

6.    Europe (headquartered in Leuven): UK, Ireland, France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria, Ukraine, Russia and Export Europe and Middle East (EEME)

7.    Asia Pacific North (headquartered in Shanghai): China, South Korea and Japan

8.    Asia Pacific South (headquartered in Melbourne): Australia, New Zealand, India, Vietnam and other South and Southeast Asian countries

9.    Africa (headquartered in Johannesburg): South Africa, Botswana, Swaziland, Mozambique, Malawi, Namibia, Zambia, Lesotho, Uganda, Ethiopia, African Islands, Tanzania, South Sudan, Kenya, Nigeria and Ghana.



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