Philip Morris clinches £14bn deal to buy smoke-free tobacco firm

The maker of Marlboro cigarettes will snap up the Swedish manufacturer of smoke-free tobacco products for £14billion after Elliott Management backed the deal.

Philip Morris International will take control of Swedish Match, having secured approval from 83 per cent of its shareholders.

Activist investor Elliott had built a 10.5 per cent stake in the Stockholm-based business and initially opposed the offer.

But it is now believed to have offered up its shares to Philip Morris, paving the way for the takeover to proceed. 

Swedish Match makes alternatives to cigarettes, including snus, a tobacco product placed between the upper lip and gum. The business also sells tobacco-free nicotine pouch Zyn.

Philip Morris is picking up the business as it looks to move away from cigarettes to so-called next generation products to create a ‘smoke-free future’. 

Buying Swedish Match will also give it a foothold in the smoke-free tobacco market in the US, where the Swedish firm is a major player.