Couche-Tard Rejects Idea of Hostile Takeover of Seven & i Holdings
LAVAL, Quebec — Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. is still hoping to reach a deal for Seven & i Holdings Inc. but the pursuit will remain friendly.
Couche-Tard Chairman Alain Bouchard told the Nikkei Business Daily that the company is not considering a hostile takeover bid for the Tokyo-based parent company of 7-Eleven Inc. According to a Reuter's report, he said a hostile bid "was not among factors being considered."
Bouchard is also the cofounder of Couche-Tard.
Couche-Tard, the parent company of Circle K, began its pursuit of Seven & i Holdings in August when it made a friendly, unsolicited $38.5 billion bid for the company in August. Following a rejection by Seven & i's board of directors, Couche-Tard upped its offer to $47 billion, as Convenience Store News previously reported.
However, in one of the most recent moves, Seven & i Holdings revealed it has received a $58 billion management buyout offer from Junro Ito, son of company founder Masatoshi Ito and current vice president and representative director, and his private company Ito-Kogyo Co. Ltd.
The "white knight" bid would take Seven & i private and block the reported $47 billion proposal from Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc.
Funding for this buyout offer is expected to be finalized by the end of December and could involve Japan's three largest lenders, Reuter's reported.
Laval-based Couche-Tard is No. 2 on the 2024 Convenience Store News Top 100 report. It operates in 31 countries and territories, with more than 16,700 stores, of which approximately 13,100 offer road transportation fuel. With its well-known Couche-Tard and Circle K banners, it is one of the largest independent convenience store operators in the U.S. and it is a leader in the convenience store industry and road transportation fuel retail in Canada, Scandinavia, the Baltics, Belgium, as well as in Ireland.
It also has an important presence in Luxembourg, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, as well as in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of People's Republic of China. Approximately 149,000 people are employed throughout its network.
Irving, Texas-based 7-Eleven is No. 1 on the 2024 Convenience Store News Top 100 report. It operates, franchises and/or licenses more than 13,000 stores in the United States and Canada. In addition to 7-Eleven stores, it operates and franchises Speedway, Stripes, Laredo Taco Co., and Raise the Roost Chicken and Biscuits locations.