(Photo : Seven & i holdings)

• Seven & i Holdings rejected a $38.5 billion bid from Alimentation Couche-Tard, citing shareholder interests and potential antitrust issues.
• The bid was disclosed to be at $14.86 per share, and despite the rejection, Seven & i is open to consider any future proposals.
• The company's shares closed 1.43% lower at 2,133.5 yen ($14.99) on Friday, slightly above the value of the proposal.
• The rejection highlights the complexities of global mergers and acquisitions, shareholder value, and potential regulatory hurdles in cross-border deals.

In a significant development in the global retail industry, Japanese retail behemoth Seven & i Holdings has rejected a $38.5 billion cash bid from Canadian firm Alimentation Couche-Tard. This proposed deal, if accepted, would have marked the largest-ever foreign acquisition of a Japanese company. However, Seven & i, the operator of 7-Eleven, deemed the offer not in the best interest of its shareholders. The company also expressed concerns over potential antitrust challenges in the U.S., where the combined entity would have dominated the convenience store industry.

The bid from Couche-Tard, the owner of Circle-K, was disclosed to be at $14.86 per share. Seven & i had previously acknowledged receiving an offer from the Canadian company but had not disclosed the price. Despite rejecting the initial offer, Seven & i stated it was open to sincerely consider any proposals. However, the company emphasized that it would resist any proposal that fails to address regulatory concerns and deprives shareholders of the company's intrinsic value.

Stephen Dacus, the chair of the Seven & i special committee of independent directors, expressed skepticism about the proposal in a letter addressed to Couche-Tard. He stated, We do not believe, for several critical reasons, that the proposal you have put forward provides a basis for us to engage in substantive discussions regarding a potential transaction.

Market Reactions and Future Possibilities

The company's shares fluctuated before closing 1.43% lower at 2,133.5 yen ($14.99) on Friday, slightly above the value of the $14.86 per share proposal. Couche-Tard's bid is the largest all-cash offer for a company since Elon Musk's acquisition of Twitter for $40.2 billion in 2022, according to LSEG data. Despite the rejection, independent analyst Travis Lundy believes there is still room for Couche-Tard to improve its proposal. He referred to the initial offer as an opening salvo, suggesting that it was not the final and best offer from the Canadian company.

The proposed merger has drawn attention to the growing interest of Western investors in Japanese companies, spurred by Japan's push for better governance. A successful takeover would have allowed Couche-Tard, which has a market value of about $52 billion, to expand its global reach and improve economies of scale. However, the deal would likely have attracted regulatory scrutiny in the U.S., where grocery chain Kroger's proposed $25 billion merger with smaller rival Albertsons was recently halted due to an antitrust lawsuit.

Historical Context and Regulatory Challenges

The rejection of the bid by Seven & i is reminiscent of similar instances in the past where large-scale foreign takeovers faced hurdles due to regulatory and shareholder concerns. For instance, two years ago, U.S. grocery chain Kroger had to abandon a takeover of smaller rival Albertsons over similar antitrust concerns. This historical context underscores the complexities and challenges involved in cross-border mergers and acquisitions, particularly in industries like retail where market dominance can lead to antitrust issues.