American brewing icon Anheuser-Busch has agreed to a $50 Billion takeover by Belgian based brewer InBev in a deal set to create the world’s largest beer maker. What sealed the deal in the month long negotiations between the two brewing giants was InBev raising its offer to $70.00 per share, 27% higher than Anheuser-Busch’s all time high stock price from 2002, and $5.00 per share higher than InBev’s initial offer reported on TakePart last month.

Although many American politicians including Democratic Presidential hopeful Barack Obama and Missouri Governor Matt Blunt have come out against the deal, personally I’m all for it. For one, as a matter of personal taste, Anheuser-Busch could use the help in crafting their brews from InBev, the same company that produces one of my favorite beers, Stella Artois. Secondly, the new company will be a truly international conglomerate. InBev itself was formed in a 2004 merger between Brazilian brewer AmBev and Belgian based Interbrew and although the company is based out of Leuven, Belgium, its management is made up of primarily Brazilian executives. So we’ll end up with America’s favorite beer, owned by a company operating out of Belgium and run by Brazilians - a perfect brew for a globalized, interdependent world.

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Budweiser parent corporation Anheuser-Busch has received an acquisition offer Belgian Brewer InBev, makers of Stella Artois and Beck’s. The proposed sale has American politicians in an uproar over the prospect of losing the King of Beers and his court of cronies including Michelob, Busch, Rolling Rock and King Cobra to European control.

The unsolicited share offer from InBev promises $65.00 per share of Anheuser-Busch, well above the stock’s closing price of $58.35 at the end of trading yesterday. Wall Street reacted favorably to the bid, driving the share price up to $62.80 in after hours trading last night. But politicians were not so pleased, particularly in Anheuser-Busch’s home state of Missouri. The Show-Me State’s Governor Matt Blunt had this to say, “I am strongly opposed to the sale of Anheuser-Busch, and today’s offer to purchase the company is deeply troubling to me.” Blunt has directed the Missouri Department of Economic Development to see if there is a way to stop the deal from going through.

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