Seven Bank, which is partly owned by Seven & I Holdings, will seek to expand its ATM cash machine network beyond its parent company’s 7-Eleven shops into other convenience stores, Chief Executive Officer Masaaki Matsuhashi said.
Although nothing has been decided, deconsolidation from Seven & I resulting from a reduction of its stake in Seven Bank would make such a scenario more possible, Matsuhashi told analysts in a briefing Monday. “There would be greater freedom,” Matsuhashi said. “Other shops and convenience stores other than 7-Eleven are possible.”
Seven & I, which is facing a takeover approach from Canada’s Alimentation Couche-Tard, plans to reduce its stake in its banking unit to 38% as part of a broader revamp, people with knowledge of the matter said last week. Seven Bank, which operates 27,000 machines across Japan, has made clear that it wants to expand its financial business into lending, and develop strategies to push deeper into retail, corporate and overseas banking.
