TOKYO (Reuters) – The founding Ito family behind Japanese retailer Seven & i wants to raise more than 8 trillion yen ($52 billion) by the end of this fiscal year to take it private, Japanese public broadcaster NHK said on Tuesday.
The family has formed a special purpose company that is in talks with Japan’s three largest lenders and major U.S. financial institutions to raise funds to take the 7-Eleven owner private.
A spokesperson for Seven & i could not be reached for comment outside normal business hours in Tokyo.
Seven & i is under pressure to convince investors it can grow its value on its own and fend off a $47 billion takeover bid from Canada’s Alimentation Couche-Tard.
The company said last week it had received a buyout proposal from the Ito founding family.
Going private would allow the company to remain under current management and remove pressure from shareholders to sell more of its assets – and eliminate the threat of a bidder it might view as hostile. A management buyout offer could also be a tactic to force Couche-Tard to offer more.
The company’s shares were little changed on Tuesday, but have risen more than 50% since August to record highs as takeover speculation swirled.
($1 = 153.5100 yen)
(This story has been refiled to correct capitalization in paragraphs 1 and 3)
(Reporting by Satoshi Sugiyama; Editing by David Dolan and Louise Heavens)
