Seven & i said it is in talks to buy a stake in Zabka, a move that would deepen its European expansion as the retailer faces investor pressure and takeover-defense scrutiny.
Seven & i Holdings shares rose 3% in Tokyo after the Japanese retailer said it was in talks to buy a stake in Polish convenience store operator Zabka Group, confirming market speculation sparked by a Nikkei report. The reported investment, likely to total several hundred billion yen, would extend the 7-Eleven owner’s presence into Eastern Europe as it pushes to grow beyond its main markets in Japan and North America under CEO Stephen Dacus. Warsaw-listed Zabka, which has more than 13,000 stores in Poland and Romania, climbed 11% on the news. The move would build on Seven & i’s 2021 acquisition of U.S. chain Speedway and fits its strategy of making Europe a fourth pillar of growth. The company has been under pressure to improve returns and focus on its core convenience-store business after a takeover approach from Alimentation Couche-Tard and last year’s agreement to sell its supermarket business to Bain Capital. Separately, Bloomberg News reported that SoftBank Corp and PayPay are in talks to invest several hundred billion yen in Seven & i, with Sumitomo Mitsui Card also potentially taking a stake, prompting Bernstein analysts to describe the effort as a takeover defense.