AB InBev Spends Billions For SABMiller

After all this time, it actually happened.

What's being called the third-largest acquisition in history was finalized yesterday, as giant beer conglomerate Anheuser-Busch InBev acquired slightly smaller beer conglomerate SABMiller for roughly $100 billion. AB InBev owns brands like Budweiser, Corona, Stella and Shock Top, to give you an idea of its scope. SABMiller owns Miller, Pilsen, Blue Moon and a slew of other international brands. This merger has been brewing for quite some time and finally moved forward in July when SABMiller received U.S. regulatory approval after agreeing to sell off its Miller brands. 

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The news might be rosy for the companies involved, but it's also highly controversial. Craft brewers aren't too happy, for one. The largest craft brewery in the country, D.G. Yuengling & Son Inc. (maker, of course, of your uber-cheap Yuengling beer) filed a complaint with the Justice Department, according to The Morning Call. It's worried that such a monopoly on the marketplace will limit the beer company's ability to distribute its brews in the U.S. That complaint did little to stop the deal, however, and a new brewing powerhouse has been born.

Time will tell how the acquisition will personally affect you as a beer drinker, so in the mean time, sit back and watch closely. And crack open a cold one while you're at it.