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Turkey: Efes Brewing International is an intriguing cocktail of a company. The international arm of a Turkish beer monopoly, EBI is headquartered in the Netherlands and, if all goes according to plan, will have a stock market listing in London later this month.

George Soros, the financier, is to cash in on the flotation of a Turkish brewer that aims to raise up to $165m (£90m) when it lists on the London Stock Exchange, Business Telegraph posted on October 5. Efes, which is majority-owned by Istanbul-quoted beer and soft drinks maker Anadolu Efes, has set an indicative price range of $20.75-$23.75 a share, valuing the company at $614m-$703m.

Soros Capital owns around 7pc in Netherlands-based Efes Breweries International. He is one of a number of minority shareholders, including The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and Templeton Investments. Between them they own 15pc.

Anadolu owns a 85pc stake in Efes and is not selling any shares, although its holding will be diluted to 70pc. A spokesman for Efes said the intentions on the minority shareholders were not yet known. But he said: "There is a strong indication that they may sell at least some of their shares, as it presents an opportunity to realise the value of their holdings."

The brewer expects to raise $145m-$165m from the initial public offering, with a 10pc over allotment option, which it will use to fund expansion. The shares, which will be traded as global depositary receipts, will be priced by the end of this month.

Efes' largest market is Russia, where demand for beer is growing rapidly with "younger people wanting to drink beer rather than vodka", a spokesman said. The company decided to list in London because "it is the right sort of market with enough liquidity and investors who are used to this sort of company," he said.



05 October, 2004