The Japanese owner of 7-Eleven said it has received a "revised" takeover offer from its Canadian rival Alimentation Couche-Tard after rejecting an initial bid worth around $40bn.
7-Eleven is the world's largest convenience store chain and has more than 85,000 outlets worldwide, about a quarter of them in Japan.
Seven & i Holdings did not give figures for the revised Alimentation Couche-Tard (ACT) bid, but Bloomberg News and other media reported it to be worth about seven trillion yen ($47 billion), AFP reported.
If the takeover goes through, it would be the largest foreign buyout of a Japanese firm.
"As requested by ACT, the Company has maintained and intends to continue to maintain the confidentiality of its current discussions with ACT," Seven&i, Japan's largest retailer, said in a statement.
Seven & i announces its quarterly earnings on Oct. 10, with the CEO scheduled to address the media.
Shares in the group ended up 4.7%, having risen almost 12% in the morning following reports that ACT - which owns Circle K - had increased its offer by almost 20%.
Reports said the new offer was sent to Seven&i on September 19, but no substantive negotiations have taken place since.
Seven & i rejected ACT's first offer last month, saying the $40 billion proposal "severely" undervalues its business and could face regulatory hurdles.
7-Eleven began operations in the U.S., but the franchise has been wholly owned by Seven & i since 2005.
The stores are a beloved institution in Japan, selling everything from concert tickets to pet food and fresh deli items.
Couche-Tard operates nearly 17,000 convenience stores worldwide.
With the purchase of 7-Eleven, it is looking to become "truly global," said Kai Li, a professor and Canadian corporate governance researcher at UBC's Sauder School of Business.
"Couche-Tard has done well with Circle K acquisitions, expanding its footprint in the U.S.," she said.
But "such a purchase could raise antitrust concerns," given that the combined entity would have "greater market power" and could put smaller operators out of business, Li added.
Japan's Tokyo Television reported that Seven&i is even considering changing its name "to demonstrate in name and content that the company will focus on its core convenience business."
Recent media reports also said the company wanted to strengthen its position by selling other assets, such as its banking unit. | BGNES
