Seven & i, Couche-Tard in talks on US store sales for $47b takeover

Both firms control 20,000 US stores.

Seven & i Holdings has started talks with Alimentation Couche-Tard on a potential store divestiture plan to clear antitrust hurdles for the Canadian firm’s $47b takeover bid, according to a report by Reuters.

The move follows Seven & i’s appointment of Stephen Dacus as CEO last week amidst the acquisition push by Couche-Tard, which owns Circle K. The two companies control about 20,000 U.S. convenience stores.

In a letter to shareholders on Monday, Seven & i stated that it had proposed working with Couche-Tard to assess the feasibility of a divestiture process and identify potential buyers. Couche-Tard had previously confirmed that it was in exploratory talks with third parties regarding a potential sale of U.S. stores to address regulatory concerns.

Seven & i said on Monday that Couche-Tard had “recently agreed” to proceed with discussions on store divestitures, allowing for further assessment of its takeover bid.