“Potential Store Merger Deal in the Works as Talks Commence”
TOKYO (Reuters) – Seven & i Holdings of Japan announced on Monday that discussions have initiated with Alimentation Couche-Tard (ACT) of Canada regarding a proposal for the sale of stores, potentially paving the way for ACT’s $47 billion acquisition bid. Last week, the operator of 7-Eleven convenience stores appointed Stephen Dacus as its new CEO to steer a recovery strategy and address the takeover bid from Couche-Tard. Seven & i has noted that U.S. antitrust regulations could present a challenge to any agreement, as the two companies are major players in the U.S. convenience store market, collectively operating around 20,000 sites. In a message to shareholders on Monday, Seven & i suggested a collaborative effort to assess the feasibility of a divestment process and identify potential purchasers. Couche-Tard had indicated last week that it was in preliminary discussions with external parties regarding a possible sale of U.S. stores to facilitate regulatory approval, highlighting a selection of U.S. locations and ongoing negotiations to find potential buyers. Seven & i stated on Monday that Couche-Tard had recently accepted the proposal to explore divestiture possibilities for assessing the Canadian corporation’s acquisition offer. Additionally, Seven & i announced that Joseph Michael DePinto had resigned as a director of the holding company but would continue as the CEO of 7-Eleven Inc. Senior executives from Couche-Tard are scheduled to visit Tokyo this week to interact with the media about their acquisition bid. Artisan Partners, a U.S.-based investor in Seven & i Holdings, expressed opposition on Sunday to the Japanese retailer’s succession plan for the CEO role and encouraged reconsideration of Couche-Tard’s acquisition proposal. (Reporting by Rocky Swift and Anton Bridge; Editing by Stephen Coates)
