Following is a summary of key events in the history of SABMiller, based on company reports.

1886

SABMiller's origins lie in the Johannesburg gold rush of 1886. Charles Glass, an enterprising brewer and founder of the Castle Brewery, started selling beer to growing population, and his business soon caught the attention of investors.

1895

South African Breweries (SAB) was founded, with its head office being the Castle Brewery. Two years later, SAB became the first industrial company to list on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.

1955

SAB became one of the three largest brewers in South Africa, alongside Ohlsson's and Chandlers Union Breweries.

Change in excise duty saw beer become the most heavily-taxed beverage in South Africa. Despite being a smaller company than Ohlsson's and Chandlers, SAB bought the two competitors and streamlined production and distribution within the sector.

1956 – 1992

Having acquired Ohlsson's and Chandlers, SAB had a 98 percent share of the South African beer market.

1974

SAB began diversifying into mass-market retailing and by the 1990s it had become a conglomerate selling everything from food to furniture.

1992 – 2001

SAB makes a foray into international brewing with a focus on the developing economies of central Europe, China and Africa.

1997

SAB appoints Graham Mackay as its CEO. In the next year, Mackay moves company's primary listing from Johannesburg to London, which was completed in March 1999.

2002

SAB shifts its focus from developing markets to the world's most developed market: the United States. In 2002, SAB acquired the Miller Brewing Company, the country's second largest brewer.

2005 - 2011

In 2005 SAB moved into Latin America through the acquisition of Colombia's Bavaria S.A. In 2007 it acquired Dutch brewer Koninklijke Grolsch N.V and in 2008 it combined Miller Brewing Company with the U.S. business of Molson Coors, to create MillerCoors joint venture. In 2011, it acquired the Foster's Group in Australia.

2015

SABMiller says it now has 69,000 employees working in more than 80 countries, producing more than 200 different beers.

(Reporting by Aastha Agnihotri in Bengaluru; Editing by Greg Mahlich)

Stocks treated in this article : ANHEUSER-BUSCH INBEV, SABMiller plc